Archive for August, 2009

Divorce and family law comes in when a married couple decides to go separate ways. Usually, when a couple is undergoing divorce, disputes surface. These disputes are related to the family. They can be custody issues, child support issues, child visitation issues, and so on. The purpose of having these rules and regulations in place is not to inconvenience anyone. Instead, they are in place to help the entire family move through this difficult phase in a more amicable manner.

The best approach to adopt, is to seek the advice of a divorce lawyer. Usually, the first consultation is free, and there are no fees involved. If, during the first consultation, it is determined that hiring a divorce lawyer is the best option to take for the best interests of everyone, then you may go ahead and engage the services of a professional lawyer.

A lawyer practicing family law will be able to advise you on the options available. Not everything has to be settle by the court. There are alternative measures that can be taken to solve some of the problems at hand. Sometimes, your lawyer may even advise you that going to a court of law should be your last line of defense. This is because if the problem has to be presented before a court, there can only be one winner. Someone’s pride will be hurt in the process. It is mostly a win-lose situation.

However, if the issues can be settled with alternative solutions, everyone is happy. In other words, it is more likely to achieve a win-win with alternative measures.

When you take the time to ponder over your divorce issues, you will come to realize that the advice from your divorce lawyer has deep implications. These implications involve your relationships with other members of your family, especially your children. Relationships between parent and child cannot be bought with money. And they are perhaps the most important issue surrounding a divorce. Hence, it is not uncommon to see the majority of time and resources spent on custody issues.

When it comes to child custody, professional lawyers understand that the objective is obtain fair custody. They will provide the necessary information to help make your decisions easier.

When you have firm up your mind, you may then engage your lawyer’s help to execute your plans. For different states, different legal documents may be required. The primary role of your lawyer is to help prepare these documents to initiate your family law matters. If there are other options that you are not aware of, your lawyer will be able to advise you accordingly so that you don’t make the wrong decisions. For example, if you are the father of a child, you have to take action to establish the relationship with the child. Otherwise, parental interest may be lost entirely.

Determine your own needs and communicate them to the divorce lawyer during the first consultation. This will help them come up with a proper legal plan to settle the matters at hand.

Bankruptcy is often seen as the last resort in solving any debt issues, but I do not subscribe to this. In a related article I will take you through the pros and cons of bankruptcy, and the myths of an IVA which is often touted as the debt solution to take. Please read these and it will become apparent that bankruptcy has been and remains a far more utilised debt solution than the IVA.

The consequences of becoming bankrupt may mean you lose your house, it could prevent you from pursuing certain careers and, for example, prevent you from becoming a company director for the period of time that you are bankrupt.  Having said that, the severity and stigma of bankruptcy has lessened over time and it is now far more acceptable than it used to be. This year some 80,000 individuals will become bankrupt.

Bankruptcy can be a daunting experience. There are however companies such as mine that specialise in taking customers through the bankruptcy process, even attending court with you if necessary. Faced with a statement of affairs of 35 pages which needs to be completed in triplicate can be an unnerving proposition. Advice from an expert as to whether bankruptcy is the right route, and then someone to fill in the forms and help you file them at court and then attend with you is something to be considered, especially when I can help you keep your house and your income.

How do I know if I need to pursue the bankruptcy option?

The easy way to find out is to call an expert debt advisor.  They will, very quickly, get to understand your current financial position and advise the best way to solve your situation. The conversation is completely confidential, free of charge and without obligation. You should choose someone who is not allied to either a Debt management company or an IVA firm such as me I will give impartial advice not the solution which makes me the most commission.

What is bankruptcy?

Bankruptcy means that all your debts (subject to a very few minor exceptions) are written off on the instant you are made bankrupt. If you have disposable income you may be required to pay this to the Official Receiver for a maximum of three years. However part of what I do is to configure your disposable income to reduce as much as possible the potential of having to make income payments. You will generally be discharged from bankruptcy in a year or less. If you have equity in your property or valuable assets you may have to release these to the Official Receiver. Although in the vast majority of cases I have seen this year, with very little if any equity in property, homes can be transferred from the Official Receiver back to the bankrupt or his or her spouse for his fees, of about £400.

If you have ever considered bankruptcy as a way to get out of a debt problem you can do no better than call me today. Below are the details of the local county court.

Swindon Combined Court

The Law Courts
Islington Street
Swindon Wiltshire
SN1 2HG

County Court Section

01793 690505

SEPARATION AGREEMENT – In a marital breakup, a document that outlines the terms of the couple’s separation.

Separation Contracts are generally made by the husband for himself and by the wife with trustees. This contract does not affect the marriage, and the parties may, at any time agree to live together as husband and wife. The husband who has agreed to a total separation cannot bring an action for criminal conversation with the wife.

So, it’s kind of like a temporary divorce. You can get a Vallejo family law attorney to provide you with a separation contract. It’s easy, fast and relatively cheap to do. If you find that you do in fact need a divorce, having an existing separation contract makes the divorce very easy to execute.

The provisions of a separation contract created by a Vallejo family law attorney are binding upon both parties. The provisions become binding once the final decree is filed with the courts. It is possible that the court may rule that the contract is unfair. So, you’ve got the courts on checking up on your Vallejo family law attorney. In most cases, the whole process is pretty streamlined. The Vallejo family law attorney draws up the contract, you and your spouse sign it, and that’s it!

So why might you want to have a Vallejo family law attorney draw up a separation contract?

Well, the main reason is that it’s cheaper than settling your differences in court. Another reason is that you can live separate lives without officially getting divorce. You can still get a divorce if you need one, and having a seperation contract makes getting a divorce really easy (or at least much easier). The reason is that there’s nothing left to fight over. All the issues are resolved in the separaton contract that your Vallejo family law attorney created for you. If you need to get a divorce, all you need to do is file a few forms and you’re done.

This Vallejo family law separation contract may provide for alimony for either party, rules for using property, provisions regarding children’s residency, and child support.

If you need a Vallejo divorce, the first thing is to file a divorce action. A Vallejo family law attorney can help you with this. Don’t worry, it’s not expensive. The expensive parts come later. Once your Vallejo family law attorney has filed your case, you can seek to enter into a separation contract or Vallejo mediation. These two options will save you time and money. Talk to your Vallejo family law attorney about it.