Archive for the ‘Family Law’ Category

Facebook Cited In 1 In 5 U.S. Divorce Cases | AccuraCast Digital Media News

6th December 2010

It is a well accepted fact that the growing popularity of social networks has resulted in various changes in our lifestyle. However, the most recent revelation about how they have affected our lives is quite shocking.

Facebook LogoResearch from the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers indicates that Facebook is now used to procure evidence for 1 in 5 divorce cases in the U.S.A. 81% of lawyers admit that evidence from social networks has been used more and more frequently over the past five years.

People often get in touch with old friends and flames over social networks and can end up rekindling old relationships, often exchanging inappropriate or sexual conversations with each other. They might tag themselves in photographs documenting happenings contrary to what they state in court and they might post status updates that contradict their testimonies.

Of all the social networks, Facebook was used most often as a source of evidence, by as many as 66% of divorce lawyers. MySpace was used by 15%, Twitter by 5% and 14% said they use other social media sources.

Marlene Eskind Moses, president of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers says, “As everyone continues to share more and more aspects of their lives on social networking sites, they leave themselves open to much greater examinations of both their public and private lives in these sensitive situations.”

It is ironic in some ways that the same networks that help to rekindle past relationships are being used as evidence in court proceedings on the breakdown of current relationships.
© AccuraCast Limited 2010 : London, UK

Please contact your local Knoxville divorce attorney at The McKellar Law Firm, PLLC for a free consultation at (865) 566-0125.

By Joyce Woo (AFP) – 6 hours ago

HONG KONG — Hong Kong’s highest court has ordered that divorced couples must split their assets equally, a landmark ruling for the financial hub which could impact heavily on “big money” divorce cases.

Non-working spouses in Hong Kong, usually women, have traditionally been left with far less than half a couple’s assets after they divorce, a key issue in the glitzy metropolis known for its super-rich.

“It’s a landmark ruling,” lawyer Peter Barnes, who represented the ex-wife in the test case on which the court ruled on Friday, told AFP.

“Any remnants of discrimination against non-earning persons, usually being the wife, are now being firmly washed away,” he added.

Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal ruled that Barnes’ client, an unidentified 47-year-old, was entitled to half of her ex-husband’s assets, or about 2.68 million Hong Kong dollars (345,000 US dollars).

The decision upheld a lower court judgement in 2008. The woman had successfully appealed against a 2006 court ruling which granted her just one third of the couple’s assets.

“To confine a non-working wife?s award to the sum needed to meet her ‘reasonable requirements’ and to permit the husband to keep the remaining assets is patently unfair and discriminatory,” Hong Kong’s Justice Roberto Ribeiro wrote in last week’s ruling.

Family lawyer Amy Liu told AFP the ruling “will be the benchmark for all divorce cases (in Hong Kong) from this point forward”, adding that courts would be obliged to follow the decision in future.

“In this case, the court has confirmed that, even though the wife did not earn money, as a homemaker she has made contributions in other areas, thereby entitling her to half the couple’s assets,” she added.

Liu said the decision may prompt more people to seek pre-nuptial agreements.

The decision puts Hong Kong in line with Britain where an earlier ruling on asset-splitting sparked concern that London would become “the divorce capital of the world for aspiring wives”.

Ribeiro dismissed concerns about richer divorce settlements for women in Britain.

“I do not consider the higher level of awards necessarily a bad thing since they may merely demonstrate the inadequacy of [previous] awards,” he added.

But the court also said not every case would call for a strict 50/50 split of a couple’s assets, with the marriage’s duration a key factor.

“The duration of the marriage is highly relevant and an equal division is more likely to be sustained after a long, rather than a short, marriage,” Ribeiro said.

In a separate divorce case on Friday, the same court ruled that the ex-wife of a local tycoon’s son should receive only one third of his assets, saying the award “reflects the shortness and relatively unproductive nature of the (three-year) marriage”.

Contact your local Knoxville divorce attorney at The McKellar Law Firm, PLLC for a free consultation at (865) 566-0125.

Advisers playing divorce detectives | Reuters

By Helen Kearney

NEW YORK | Thu Oct 7, 2010 3:13pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The difficult task of dividing assets in a divorce is usually left to attorneys, but financial advisers can play an important role to ensure that clients get their fair share.

Increasingly divorce lawyers are looking to advisers to analyze financial information and uncover assets a spouse may try to conceal.

“We don’t have the power to demand something from the other party,” said Lili Vasileff, president of the Association of Divorce Financial Planners and a Greenwich, Connecticut-based adviser. “But we can tell the lawyer what to ask for and give them the ammunition for their depositions.”

In a typical divorce, both parties must list all of their assets in a net worth statement. Advisers can match this information against other records.

“It’s like playing detective,” said Vasileff. “You get to know the short cuts and where to look” for discrepancies.

The first place to look is the spouse’s tax returns, said Vasileff. In particular, examine the attached schedules which list all of the taxpayer’s interest income, which may come from accounts not listed on the net worth statement.

Also compare reported mortgage interest and real estate taxes against the real estate listed on a net worth statement.

Next, check credit card and loan applications, which usually list the applicant’s assets. Also look at bank and brokerage account records to trace any large transfers or withdrawals, and track where the money went.

Many spouses may “loan” money to a family member and then have it paid back once the divorce is finalized, say advisers.

OTHER TRICKS

The spouse’s pay stubs can also be revealing. Advisers need to ask for the W-2 form summarizing the year’s earnings, as well as records from around the time the spouse is usually paid a bonus, said Vasileff.

The spouse may have asked his boss to hold off on paying his bonus until after the divorce is finalized so it is not included in the asset calculation.

Things become far more complicated if the spouse owns his own business. It is easy to inflate business expenses, especially items such as “travel” or “entertainment,” to reduce the income available to split, said Leonard Florescue, a New York-based partner at law firm Blank Rome.

When examining the company books, look for any notable increases in spending, such as a jump in the advertising budget, said Ginita Wall, a San Diego-based financial adviser.

Sometimes, it helps to snoop around the office. Wall recalls visiting the office of one client’s spouse and being struck by the amount of artwork on the walls as well as paintings stacked behind doors.

Contact your local Knoxville divorce attorney today for a free consultation at The McKellar Law Firm, PLLC at (865) 566-0125.

When ‘happily ever after’ tanks, now there’s divorce insurance | The Columbus Dispatch

When ‘happily ever after’ tanks, now there’s divorce insurance
Tuesday, September 14, 2010 02:50 AM
By Mark Williams
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
WEDLOCK DIVORCE INSURANCE

Love and marriage, like cars and boats, now can be insured.

A new insurance company is selling a policy that pays off if a couple divorces.

“Your odds of getting divorced are real and tangible,” said John Logan, the founder, chairman and CEO of Safeguard Guaranty Corp., who operates the company from his home in North Carolina. “Your circumstances change, people change, your life changes.”

Called WedLock, the product allows policyholders to buy units of coverage. Each unit costs $15.99 per month and provides a cash payoff of $1,250 if the policyholder divorces. A spouse who, for example, buys 10 units stands to collect $12,500 in the event of a divorce.

Logan understands that the product might seem unseemly, as if those who buy it are taking out a wager on the institution of marriage.

“If someone offered me this product the day I got married, I would have punched them in the nose,” he said.

The concept of collecting from an insurance policy by getting divorced doesn’t sit well with many. Even the underwriter had some qualms.

“We had to really think long and hard about the ethical side of the product and the insurance side of the product,” said Jeff Leman, chief operating officer of Prime Insurance Co., the underwriter.

“In the end and after many revisions to the approach, we decided the idea had potential and served a legitimate insurance purpose,” Leman wrote in an e-mail.

Buying divorce insurance is similar to buying homeowners insurance or life insurance – products meant to protect against disaster, Logan said.

There’s something else to consider: 32 percent of first-time marriages break up within eight years, he said, adding that another spike in divorces is seen after couples are married longer than 20years. Two-thirds of second marriages fail within 15years, and nearly three-quarters of third marriages end in divorce, he said.

Even with that failure rate, financial planner Eric Bishoff of Bishoff Financial Group of Worthington thinks the concept is a bad idea.

“That’s an awfully expensive policy for that small of payout,” he said.

Bishoff said the money for premiums would be better spent shoring up other forms of insurance that families need, or saving it.

But Logan said any savings could end up being split during a divorce or might be spent by a spouse before the divorce. So many spouses are in dire need of cash after a divorce – money that could be used for legal fees or to set up a new household, he said.

Then there is the idea itself.

“In some ways, it’s betting against yourself,” said marriage counselor Matt Orlousky of Gahanna Counseling.

He said policyholders might opt to skip the work needed to improve a marriage and instead take the payout.

Trois Lauber, 50, of Powell, who is married, said the money would be better spent for counseling and classes to keep a relationship strong.

“It’s like starting a marriage ready to fail,” she said of the insurance policies.

So far, Safeguard Guaranty has sold just a handful of policies, which are offered individually, but the company has done little to promote the product beyond its website, wedlockdivorceinsurance.com. It also just launched a website for the United Kingdom.

Logan said he has built-in safeguards to protect the company from a spouse divorcing immediately after buying the product.

The policy does not mature for four years. Policyholders can buy riders that reduce the maturity time or allow them to recover their premiums if they divorce before the policy matures.

After four years, the units increase in value by $250 per year. Premiums remain the same.

As is the case with many business ventures, Logan came up with the idea based on his experience: He and his wife split after seven years of marriage.

“It was world-class ugly,” he said. “It was one of those things I didn’t see coming. When the dust settled, it was a situation where I was broke, for all intents and purposes.”

Logan said he figured that he couldn’t be “the only schmuck this had happened to.”

Please contact your local Knoxville divorce attorney for any questions you may have about the divorce process at The McKellar Law Firm, PLLC at (865) 566-0125 for a free consultation.

Dotcom tycoon ordered to hand over £7m divorce pay-out by Appeal Court judge | Mail Online

By Daily Mail Reporter
A Polo-playing dot com tycoon was today ordered by an Appeal Court judge to hand over half his £14milion fortune to his ex-wife.

Robert Jennings, whose healthcare information website, Mediconsult.com, made him rich, applied to the Appeal Court to slash the £7million divorce payout claiming it left him facing millions of pounds of debt.

But Lord Justice Thorpe said there was no reason why the court should be ‘burdened’ with his complaints.
The Jennings’s stately Saddlewood Manor home is on the market for £4.5million

The Jennings’s stately Saddlewood Manor home is on the market for £4.5million

When High Court judge Mr Justice Charles awarded the cash to Sarah Jennings in March, he slammed her husband’s ‘flagrant, persistent and consistent’ failure to fully disclose the extent of his wealth and ordered that the assets to be divided between the couple were worth nearly £14million.

He split that sum down the middle, ordering Mr Jennings to pay his ex-wife £7million by September 1 this year. He was also told he must pay her over £200,000 ayear in maintenance until the money was handed over.

The Gloucestershire mansion, Saddlewood Manor in Leigherton, Tetbury, is currently being marketed by Mrs Jennings for £4.5million and she can keep whatever she gets from the sale, after the mortgage is paid off, as a down-payment on the £7million her ex-husband owes her.

Philip Moor QC, for Mr Jennings, told the Appeal Court the couple had enjoyed a millionaire lifestyle of polo ponies, dressage horses, a private plane, expensive school fees for their three sons, along with other ‘extravagant expenditure’.

They had, he said, burned their way through about US$10 million in ten years.

At the time the marriage was breaking down in 2007, the QC said, ”he worst recession for decades hit hard’ and wiped out much of the value of the couple’s shares and properties, including luxury homes in Spain and Canada.

He said the couple had been living ’significantly beyond their means’ and all that was left of their assets was now worth only around £4.3million, including the equity in Saddlewood Manor – a far cry from the £14million assessed by the judge.

He told the Appeal Court Mr Justice Charles had ‘erred’ in not rejecting Mrs Jennings’ case that her ex-husband had approximately £9.5million in ‘undisclosed’ assets.

Lord Justice Thorpe, sitting with Lord Justice Elias, said of the £7million lump sum: ‘Of course it’s a stiff order’ – but went on to refuse Mr Jennings permission to appeal against it.

Describing it as what would generally be regarded as a ‘big money’ case’, he said the judge had found ‘flagrant, persistent and consistent’ failures on Mr Jennings’ part to comply with his duty of full and frank disclosure.

Arguments that the falling value of Saddlewood Manor – once valued at £4.9million – is having an unfair effect on Mr Jennings ‘did not even begin’ to justify a full Appeal Court hearing, he said.

For a free consultation on any family law issue, please contact your local Knoxville divorce attorney at The McKellar Law Firm, PLLC at (865) 566-0125.

Boris Berezovsky in ‘£100m’ divorce battle – Telegraph

Boris Berezovsky, the Russian oligarch, will divorce his second wife Galina today in what could be the costliest marriage split in British legal history.

The exiled businessman, who will not contest the case at the High Court, is reportedly expected to pay his second wife anything up to £100 million, which would be more than double the previous record of £48m.

Mr Berezovsky and his wife have been married for 18 years, though they have been separated for the last 16. Mrs Berezovsky lives in London with the couple’s two teenage children, while he lives in Surrey with his girlfriend of 15 years, Yelena Gorbunova, with whom he has another two children.

Mrs Berezovsky, who hired the law firm Mishcon de Reya to negotiate a divorce settlement, is reported to have been seeking a quarter of her husband’s fortune, which was once estimated at £1 billion but is now thought to be far less.

The couple met in 1981 when Mr Berezovsky, 64, was a professor of mathematics in Moscow earning £60 a month. He later set himself up in business as a car dealer, founding the first Mercedes dealership in the old Soviet Union, then became one of the original Russian oligarchs when President Boris Yeltsin sold off state assets to favoured supporters for a fraction of their value.

He married Galina after divorcing his first wife, Nina, with whom he has two further children, but his second marriage hit trouble after only three years and the couple separated.

Mrs Berezovsky, 51, is reported to have filed for divorce after becoming irritated at reports describing Miss Gorbunova as the oligarch’s “wife”.

Mr Berezovsky was sentenced to six years imprisonment in his absence in Moscow after being found guilty of fraud, having been granted political asylum in 2003 when Russia applied to have him extradited. He has since accused the Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin of being behind a plot to assassinate him.

Lord Bell, Mr Berezovsky’s spokesman, has confirmed in the past that the businessman was “negotiating a divorce settlement” and intended to marry Miss Gorbunova once the divorce was finalised.

The current record for a divorce settlement in a British court is the £48m awarded by the High Court to Beverley Charman, the former wife of the insurance millionaire John Charman, in 2006.

For a free consultation, contact your local Knoxville divorce attorney at The McKellar Law Firm, PLLC at (865) 566-0125.

Mortgage Options While Going Through a Divorce | Loans – Credit – Debt – LoanSafe.org

Homeowners who are going through a divorce have a lot of things that need to be taken care of before they separate. If both husband and wife are on a home mortgage together, than the home and loan issues need to be addressed right away. Even if in your divorce decree it says that the other spouse is to take care of the home and mortgage payments, it is crucial that you realize that this will not remove your liability from the obligation. When you both agreed to the mortgage and signed the loan documents, you both agreed to be held responsible for the repayment of the loan.

To remove one spouses liability from the mortgage, the property will either need to be sold, transferred/deeded or the mortgage refinanced or assumed. One can always choose to keep themselves on the mortgage, but this is a risky position if the other spouse happens to default on the loan. In this article we will briefly help you understand your options during these hard times.

Quitclaim Deed or Interspousal Transfer Grant Deed:

A quitclaim deed is a document that transfers any interest in a property from one person to another another person. A quitclaim deed can be utilized to transfer a home from one spouse to another, but an interspousal transfer deed may be better for this type of situation. But please keep in mind that they both cannot release your mortgage debt obligations on the home. A quit claim deed may prevent an ex’s heirs from claiming his shares after his death which can be avoided through an interspousal transfer deed.

A interspousal transfer grant may be the best option in a divorce situation. This makes it simple to transfer property from one spouse to another and also to change community property into separate property. The process is similar to that of a quit claim deed. You will need to sign these together with a notary and you may want to get the assistance of an attorney to make sure it is filled out correctly.

In the case of a Interspousal transfer deed, you can add your spouse to the deed later by going to your county recorders office and adding them on title.

But please keep in mind, that once you all sign the deed, this does not get rid of your mortgage contract. You are still obligated to pay by law.

Sell the Property

Generally, one of the easiest and most effective ways to get both spouses name off the mortgage and to remove liability from the debt is to sell the home. You can use the sale to help pay off the existing mortgage, and any left over proceeds can be split between both parties. It may be a better option to attempt to sell the home before the divorce is complete to help avoid any future problems over the sale price. Additionally, this benefits both parties because neither will have to worry about the other spouse managing the monthly payments, maintaining the household, or paying property taxes and insurance.

One spouse refinances the home into their name only

Having one spouse refinance the mortgage into their name only is another very effective way to remove one’s liability from the mortgage. During this event, usually the spouse that wants to keep the property will pay off the other spouse’s equity share while refinancing the loan into solely their name. Many professionals suggest signing a quit claim deed to extinguish any rights the other party has to the home.

It is crucial that you make sure the home is only refinanced into one spouses name. This will ensure that the spouse who did not keep the home is safe in the event of a default or foreclosure on the property.

If you divorce is not yet complete and you have already decided who will be keeping the property, its a good idea to include in your divorce decree who will be refinancing the mortgage. This way you can prove that both parties have came to an agreement as to who will be taking over the home and mortgage payments.

One spouse assumes the mortgage

A divorce mortgage assumption is one option that is not brought up all that often. One main reason why is because not all mortgages are assumable, and even if they are, many mortgage lenders tend to be hesitant to do so. Therefore, your only way to find out is to call your lender and see is this option is open.

If the mortgage lender will allow one party to assume the loan, you will begin the process by completing an assumption agreement and a release of liability. The bank will also require your financial documentation to determine whether or not the mortgage can be handled based off one borrower’s income. If you do meet the requirements, you may also have to provide a copy of your divorce decree and quit claim deed. Generally, if the assumption is approved one spouse will receive a release from liability.

For some homeowners going through a divorce an assumption may be a good option (if your loan allows you to do so). While there may be a few fees that come along with this event, they are usually much less than the fees that will come with refinancing the mortgage.

Please contact your local Knoxville divorce attorney today for a free consultation at The McKellar Law Firm, PLLC at (865) 566-0125.

British Columbia eyes family law reforms – CTV News

VICTORIA — The B.C. government is proposing broad family law changes it hopes will discourage domestic violence while encouraging separated and divorced couples to settle disputes outside the courtroom.

After a four-year review of its Family Relations Act, the province released draft legislation Monday as part of a 180-page discussion paper.

It marks the latest effort to change how the province deals with legal disputes involving separating couples and domestic violence.

The proposed legislation — which would be called the Family Law Act — aims to discourage couples from seeing the courts as the first stop in resolving a dispute, instead calling for more options to resolve conflicts through co-operation and mediation.

The government hopes a less adversarial system will reduce the stress that comes with a divorce or separation, which is something the province’s attorney general notes is associated with an increased risk in domestic violence.

“There is nothing more emotional than the breakdown in a relationship, and you can amplify that statement when children are involved,” said Attorney General Mike de Jong.

“What you see is an attempt to provide a route to resolution that is less adversarial and less likely to invoke unpredictable emotional responses.”

Domestic violence is also at issue in how the law would settle custody battles.

The proposed legislation makes the best interests of the child the only consideration when it comes to settling parenting disputes, including asking children for their views.

Those best interests will now include a history of family violence, how children have been cared for in the past and whether there have been any civil or criminal proceedings relevant to their safety.

“It (domestic violence) goes from being a factor that was always given consideration to being explicitly set out statutorily in a case where there does need to be court intervention,” he said.

Domestic violence has been under a microscope in British Columbia since a horrific murder-suicide in Victoria in 2007, when Peter Lee killed his six-year-old son, his wife and her parents before finally killing himself.

There have been several reports since, including a coroner’s report and another from a government panel into domestic violence calling for changes, including fast-tracking domestic violence cases through the courts and ensuring better co-operating between police, the justice system and government departments.

The changes announced Monday also follow amendments last year to the rules governing civil and family cases designed to make it easier for ordinary citizens to access the courts.

Those included eliminating filing fees for parties that use mediation, limiting the exchange of documents that aren’t directly relevant to a case, and three days of free trial time.

Other proposed changes in the document released Monday include:

– Extending property rights for common-law couples who have lived together for two years or have children.

– Outlining how to determine a child’s legal parents when reproductive technologies are used.

– Removing adversarial language in the law by replacing terms such as custody and access to “guardianship” and “parenting time.”

The proposed changes will go to public consultation in the coming months prior to coming up in the legislature some time next year.

Please contact your local Knoxville divorce attorney at The McKellar Law Firm, PLLC at (865) 566-0125 for a free consultation.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Till death do us part? The vow would really hold true in California if a Sacramento Web designer gets his way.

In a movement that seems ripped from the pages of Comedy Channel writers, John Marcotte wants to put a measure on the ballot next year to ban divorce in California.

The effort is meant to be a satirical statement after California voters outlawed gay marriage in 2008, largely on the argument that a ban is needed to protect the sanctity of traditional marriage. If that’s the case, then Marcotte reasons voters should have no problem banning divorce.

“Since California has decided to protect traditional marriage, I think it would be hypocritical of us not to sacrifice some of our own rights to protect traditional marriage even more,” the 38-year-old married father of two said.

Marcotte said he has collected dozens of signatures, including one from his wife of seven years. The initiative’s Facebook fans have swelled to more than 1,100. Volunteers that include gay activists and members of a local comedy troupe have signed on to help.

Please contact your local Knoxville Divorce Attorney for a free consultation regarding any family law issue at The Mckellar Law Firm, PLLC at (865) 566-0125.

‘Bi-national’ divorce gets easier in parts of EU – Hindustan Times

European Union(EU) governments gave 14 states the go-ahead today to simplify divorce rules for couples of different nationalities. Such couples will be able to choose which country’s law applies to their divorce, helping them avoid potentially long and expensive proceedings. It is the first time the EU has used an
ed cooperation” clause in its treaties that allows a group of at least nine countries to take joint steps in an area where they cannot secure the agreement of all 27 member states.

“Today’s vote is historic. I am very proud that the Council(of EU governments) took the brave decision to use this legislative tool for the first time. Painful experiences for international couples and their children will soon be made easier,” said Viviane Reding, the European justice commissioner.

The executive European Commission said in a statement the 14 countries were Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and Spain. The 14 had been frustrated with a failure to make progress with Commission proposals on divorce in 2006. The European Parliament and EU justice ministers have already backed the moves on which the 14 have agreed.

If a couple cannot agree which country’s law should apply to their divorce, judges will have a common formula to decide on their behalf. The Commission said there were more than 1 million divorces in the EU in 2007, of which 140,000(13 percent) involved couples of different nationalities.

Please contact your local Knoxville Divorce Attorney at The Mckellar Law Firm, PLLC at (865) 566-0125 for a free consultation.