Charlotte Lawyer

Who pays for extracurricular activities in a divorce?

Published on: September 1, 2016 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Board Certified Family Law Specialist Matt Arnold answers the question: “How much does it cost to get divorced, and how does the billing process work?”

Some of the best Olympians on the world stage are children of divorced parents. Michael Phelps, Ryan Locthe, Gabby Douglas, you name ‘em. In each case, their parents had to figure out not only how to navigate the challenges of co-parenting an Olympic athlete, but how to divide up the costs and burdens of Olympic training. Given that Olympic training, with the coaches, the equipment, the travel, can cost tens and even hundreds of thousands of dollars per year, this can be a monumental undertaking. Thankfully, most divorced couples don’t have to worry about paying to get their kids into the Olympics. On a less extreme level, couples do have to consider how to tackle extracurricular expenses. To learn more about how to go about dividing up these extracurricular costs, keep reading.

Divorce Filings Spike After Vacation

Published on: August 23, 2016 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Family Law Specialist Matt Arnold answers the question: “How Can I protect myself from my spouses spending habits?”

Most people spend all year looking forward to vacation. It’s a time to relax, unwind and enjoy the company of loved ones. Vacations would also seem to be a perfect opportunity to strengthen your relationship, a chance for one-on-one bonding and increased communication. Though many people hope that vacations will shore up shaky marriages, a recent study by researchers at the University of Washington indicates that marriages are more likely to be undone by a vacation.

Serving your spouse online? Divorce courts increasingly say it’s possible

Published on: August 16, 2016 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Board Certified Family Law Specialist Matt Arnold answers the question: “What does a “No-Fault’ divorce mean in NC?”

If you’re preparing for a North Carolina divorce, you likely realize the first step will require formally notifying your spouse of your decision to end the marriage. This step is known as serving notice. Typically service takes place in person, by hiring a process server or local law enforcement to deliver the necessary documents. In cases where the person is difficult to locate it can be possible to serve notice by other means, including by certified mail. In the worst cases, where spouses appear to have vanished without a trace, publishing a notice in a local newspaper can suffice. But what about social media? Increasingly, social media is being viewed as possible means of effecting service. To find out more about the possibility of using Facebook or Twitter to start your divorce, keep reading.

4 Financial Steps to Consider Post-Divorce

Published on: June 7, 2016 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Board Certified Family Law Specialist Matt Arnold answers the question: ” I’m considering separating from my spouse; what actions should I refrain from doing?”

Divorce can be costly, emotionally exhausting and confusing. If you’ve been in a long marriage, divorce and your impending future as a single person can seem like scary and uncharted waters. Though it may be a new chapter in your life, the good news is that you can take steps to prepare and try to make the transition as smooth as possible. For some advice on how best to prepare, financially speaking, for your newly single life, consider the following tips from the Huffington Post.

Tennessee Judge Hears International Custody Dispute

Published on: April 19, 2016 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Board Certified Family Law Specialist Matt Arnold answers the question: “How does custody work if one parent moves internationally?”

A federal judge in Knoxville, TN recently found himself grappling with a case unlike any other he had encountered previously. The judge was forced to decide whether an international custody dispute would be decided by an American or Mexican family court. In the end, the judge decided that Mexico ought to resolve the matter, turning the page on one chapter of a more than three-year-old custody fight.

Do Stepparents Have to Pay Child Support?

Published on: February 9, 2016 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “How is the amount of child support decided in North Carolina?”

We generally assume that the responsibility for supporting children financially falls squarely on the biological parents, either directly or through child support payments. Stepparents are seen as being in the clear, legally speaking, due to their lack of a blood relationship with the child. Though this is generally true, it is not always true, something that a recent case out of Pennsylvania demonstrated. To learn more about stepparents and their obligation to pay child support, keep reading.

Man Secretly Divorces Wife In An Attempt To Protect His Money

Published on: January 26, 2016 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Charlotte Divorce Attorney Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What does uncontested divorce mean?”

Though it’s best when both sides know that a split is around the corner, it does happen on occasion that one party feels blindsided by the filing of divorce papers. They may have been happy while their partner was miserable, oblivious to the problems that had been lurking in the marriage. It can be hard to be the spouse who was caught unaware and it can take time to process.

Study highlights the benefits of co-parenting

Published on: January 19, 2016 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “What can I do to gain custody of my child in North Carolina?”

It’s a common refrain among those in unhappy marriages: staying together for the sake of the kids is the right thing to do. Though it’s noble that parents are willing to sacrifice for the sake of their children, it has become clear that the sacrifice is not only not necessary, but apparently not useful. A recent study by Swedish researchers indicates that children who are the products of divorced parents turn out just as well as those with married parents. In this case, the conventional wisdom that smiling through a bad marriage is good for the kids appears not to be true.

What Do Children Think About Divorce?

Published on: November 24, 2015 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Matthew R. Arnold of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “How can an attorney help me with my Divorce or Separation in North Carolina?”

A recent survey conducted by a British family law organization, Resolution, shed light on the divorce process by revealing some interesting statistics. Importantly, and unusually, the survey did not focus on the adults, but instead surveyed children, asking them their thoughts on divorce and ideas about what parents can do to make the process easier on the kids. Specifically, the group focused on hundreds of young people between the ages of 14 and 22 whose parents had gone through a divorce. To find out more about what the survey revealed about children and divorce, keep reading.