CALLER: “My sister and her husband are getting a divorce. They live in a house that was willed [to her] by our parents when they passed away. They were married at the time and lived in the house for 20 years.
He’s been trying to bully her into giving him the house, saying that he’s the breadwinner and he’s entitled to it. More than half. She works as well, but is she entitled to any more than half, being that the house was willed to her?”
CALLER: “I recently broke up with my girlfriend of three years. We had a kid together, and I’ve been paying her child support and keeping track with money orders. So basically my question is, where do I stand now for support for the child legally? I’m not getting visitation with the child because she’s upset with me.”
CALLER: “My son has temporary custody of my two-year-old granddaughter. We’ve been trying to get permanent custody, and it’s been going through the courts little by little. It’s taken us two years, but now finally in December, we have a trial date. We’re doing this without an attorney and have been blinded at times at what to do. We’re not quite sure what to expect at the trial and I was hoping that Rick could give me some guidance?”
Child custody disputes are common during divorce. But what about when there was no marriage?Who gets the kids? Do you even have any parental rights?
Going up against a divorce attorney without your own representation puts you at a serious disadvantage. Our founder explains why.
CALLER: “My Baby mama is trying to move to California for a job and she’s trying to take my kid with her. We have joint custody in our parenting plan. I have custodial rights as well, visitation is ‘meh,’ it’s minimal but I have custody rights, 50/50 custodial rights. So…What do I do?”
CALLER: “My ex agreed to pay my daughter basically the same sum of money he was paying for child support. And that was what we agreed to. Unfortunately, we didn’t file any legal documents to that effect. What can I do?”
CALLER: “I am…so over my husband right now. To sum this up, we have no kids. I own the house. I’ve always owned it and lived in it since we’ve been married. He’s rarely home and when he is he’s a train-wreck. Next time he’s on the road for work, can I move out all his stuff and change the locks, because I’m just tired of the whole thing.”
CALLER: “I’m a grandparent, and the child is in foster care, the parents are trying to get the child back. The father has a lot of warrants, but he still continues to see the child under supervised visits. Is that legal?”
The length of a marriage has a lot to do with how a divorce plays out. Part of this is practical. In shorter marriages, there’s usually not as much shared property. On the other hand, the longer the marriage, the more intertwined the two lives become. Thus it becomes more …
CALLER: “I got divorced back in 2011. My ex-husband and I owned a home together, which we still do. He was willing to release his interest to me so we did a quick claim deed. But apparently, all that did was release my interest, but not my responsibility on the loan.”
CALLER: “Here’s the situation. I am divorced, it’s been over a year, I still have belongings in the home and I can’t get them out. What are my options? She won’t return a phone call or anything.”
CALLER: “I’ve been married 19 years. Been with my wife for 21 years. I’ve been the stay at home dad and she makes all the money. What am I going to get out of this and how will it work?”
CALLER: “I married my ex-husband and remarried him after we were divorced. He thinks that our first divorce decree settlement is null and void because I married him twice, and then we got divorced a second time. Is that true? I don’t see what one marriage has to do with another one.”
“I pay child support and recently got remarried. Can my ex come after me for more child support, including my new spouse’s income?”
Retirement benefits like pensions often play a huge part in divorce settlements. But how long do you have to stay married until they kick in?
CALLER: “I’m with a long-term girlfriend who is cheating now. Or has been for a while. But we bought a house together. I can’t get her to go out, and I can’t afford to get out. What can I do to help push her out?”
CALLER: “I was recently divorced and currently have full custody of my son. He’s three-years-old and I’d like to legally change his last name from my ex-husband’s to my name. Am I able to do this? And if so is it fairly easy? And most importantly, does his father have a say because I know he would totally hate the idea?”
There are two ways that assets and debts are divided in the US. Forty-one states use equitable distribution and the rest use community property. California practices community property.
CALLER: “I’m married. Say my wife got a ‘gift’ but it’s called an ‘inheritance’ even though her parents are still alive. Is that an actual ‘gift’ or is it really an inheritance?”
CALLER: “My wife is bipolar, I think. She’s physically, mentally, and verbally abusive to me all the time in front of my kids, and I’ve had it. What do I have to do to build a case when I do file for divorce that works in my favor? When the police come, it’s always this, ‘Little old me, I didn’t do anything,’ and they buy it.”
CALLER: “Per the decree, my ex and I share college expenses for our children. So my question is, considering one of them is about to turn 22 and hasn’t even thought about college, how long does my obligation last?”
CALLER: “I have a daughter who’s five now and her mother and I were never married. I keep hearing people talk about parenting plans, so how do I get one? So far she and I have just kind of winged it. It’s been fine, but recently she’s becoming more and more flaky.”
RADIO: The courts usually award spousal support where there’s a large discrepancy between incomes or earning potential. The idea is for payments to be temporary. For marriages shorter than ten years, spousal support usually lasts roughly half the length of the marriage. It’s when a marriage lasts longer than ten years that things often go sideways.
TEXT-IN QUESTION: “Married three years. They have a dog that they both love and basically it’s their child, or they think it’s their child, and they’re wondering how that’s treated in divorce. Is it treated like an asset or more like custody of children would be?”
CALLER: “My divorce was finalized in 2010 and in the division of assets it was actually pretty amicable. However, there was not language in the decree for her to refinance at all or within a time period. I did file a quick claim deed, but I’m still on the mortgage.”
CALLER: “My son is 18. He was held back in school by his mother. We’re not married. I’ve been paying child support for 18 years. He lives on the property, but not in the main house because he couldn’t tolerate his mother. Am I still on the hook for child support and secondary education?”
CALLER: “I was just wondering how a pension works? If one person has a pension, and the other doesn’t, do they get some of that or not until they start receiving it?”
CALLER: “I’m the grandparent of a 14-year-old, and mom and dad are not really capable right now to take care of her, how do I file for third party custody?”
CALLER: “I got divorced in Oregon in 2017. Everything was fine, alimony was set on a sliding scale for ten years. But she owes me $5,000 in legal fees. I pay $100 per month less until the $5,000 is paid for. Will I get in trouble?”
CALLER: “I’m not married to my former girlfriend, but we mutually own a house together. And I purchased another [property] while we were together. She’s baited me into arguments, recorded them and got a protection order. She owns houses in other states, and I’m terrified she’s done this to people before. It was very contrived and instigated.”
CALLER: “So I’ve had some monogamous relationships and I have some custody issues with where I’m paying child support and the mothers are refusing to let me have contact or visitation with the children. I was wondering if that’s legal?”
CALLER: “I’m going through a divorce. My ex recently got a lawyer and wants to do arbitration. What are the advantages and disadvantages of arbitration over going to court?”
TEXT-IN QUESTION “Does being convicted of a felony automatically prevent you from getting custody or visitation of your child?”
Caller: “I have an estranged husband who’s an addict. He decided to go use instead. He’s living in a different county and I don’t know where he is. What’s the best way to go about filing for divorce? What do I need to do?”
CALLER: “So my fiancé and I were given a ring from a family friend. The ring is in her name from her husband and then he passed away, so she gave it to us as an engagement gift. She got into an argument with my soon-to-be mother-in-law and it just turned nasty. She requested we give the ring back. Do we have to give her the ring back or can we keep it?”
CALLER: So my wife is filing for divorce and we’ve got a couple kids and some properties. I work, she doesn’t. I haven’t engaged a lawyer yet, but her lawyer is telling her that I’m going to have to pay all the legal fees. I’m curious what your thoughts on that are. Am I going to have to pay both mine and her legal fees?
Prenuptial agreements are often the prudent move before marriage. So, how do you ask for one? It’s often an uncomfortable conversation.
CALLER: “I have a 17-year-old stepdaughter who went into a three-year Job Corps program, yet we’re still being told we have to pay child support. Is that true?”
Ending a marriage is tricky business. But how can you divorce if there was never any marriage certificate filed in the first place?
“My boyfriend and I have been together for 19 years and we are both still married to our spouses. We want to divorce but his ex wants alimony. Can she?”
She’s supposed to pay her share for the kids, but she doesn’t contribute anything. What can I do to make her pay her legally obligated share?
EMAIL QUESTION: “My divorce decree states that my ex-wife is required to list and sell the home we owned together but she continues to live in the house and shows no signs of intent to sell or of moving. What can I do to force the issue, or what can I get the courts to do? Do I need to file something with the courts? What do I need to do to prove she’s not abiding by this judgment?”
Founder parter Rick Jones answers the question, “I got a wife, no kids, no property, do I need to get a divorce or can we just live separately?”
“I just heard that if I die tomorrow, my ex can sue my estate for everything in the name of supporting my child. Is this true?”
The most vulnerable members of society, it’s tragic when parents don’t care for children. If you encounter a case of child endangerment, what can you do?
Child support payments are important, but expensive. What happens if you lose your job and your ability to pay? Can you get them decreased?
After parents split, a parenting plan lays out the custody arrangement. But what if the couple never actually married? Do you still need one?
How long do I have to pay child support is a question we get all the time. The answer often depends on the specifics of a particular case.
Child custody cases are often heated and complex, but can your spouse give away guardianship of your child without your consent?
Divorce gets complicated in the best of times even when spouses have open lines of communication. But what happens when one spouse goes MIA?
Divorce is difficult and complicated in the best of times. It requires back and forth communication. But what if your spouse refuses to talk to you?