Invalid Provisions In a Premarital Agreement
Premarital agreements ( prenup ) are governed by state law. Therefore, the law of the state in which the spouses reside determines what may and may not be included in a premarital agreement. While the law varies by state, there are a few generally applicable rules regarding what spouses may not agree to in a […]
How to Protect Gifts and Inheritances
With the overall divorce rate in New York State being approximately 50%, it is certainly reasonable to consider how to “protect” gifts or inheritances to married children. With that thought in mind, some basis concepts will be explained here. In the event of a divorce, marital property is distributed in an equitable, or fair fashion, […]
How Does Shared Custody Impact Child Support
The purpose of this discussion is to explain how the courts look at shared custody and payment of child support. Initially, we are going to define shared custody as a child or children spending equal time with each parent. That is to be contrasted with the legal term of joint custody, which refers to joint […]
Grandparent Visitation – Establishing Standing
As discussed in a prior entry, natural grandparents of a child are not entitled to automatic “standing” to commence a proceeding seeking a formal schedule of visitation. Instead, grandparents must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Court that they have the right to pursue such a schedule of parenting time by alleging that either or […]
Establishment of a Guardianship
A guardianship is a legal right given to an individual to be responsible for the care, housing and basic necessities of another individual, commonly referred to as the ward, who is deemed incapable or unable to care for themselves. Each state has different procedures for establishing a guardianship. If no financial or health power of […]