When family courts are weighing how much a parent should pay in child support, they doesn’t simply look at each party’s pay stubs. Typically, the courts conduct a detailed analysis that includes consideration of: Salaries and wages Income from overtime and second jobs Investment and interest income Pension income Trust or estate income Annuities Capital…
Continue reading ›Per the 2002 Indiana Supreme Court case of In re Guardianship of B.H., family courts in this state operate with the strong presumption that a child’s interests are best served by being placed with his or her natural parent. When third parties seek to intervene in custody proceedings to acquire custody, it is the third…
Continue reading ›In Indiana, marital property is commonly referred to as a “marital pot.” It is all the assets and liabilities a couple shares in the course of their marriage. When they are divorced, in essence everything gets poured into a “pot,” and it’s up to the court to decide the best way to equitably divide it…
Continue reading ›When the adultery-promoting website Ashley Madison was hacked last month, the personal account information of millions of current and former site users was released. According to the Indy Star, it appears a number of email domains listed on the spouse-cheating site were .gov domains linked to city accounts in Indiana, Carmel and Greenwood, as well…
Continue reading ›Fall is about to arrive in Northwest Indiana and the Chicago Area. I have previously blogged concerning safety tips for bicyclists and believe that with the change in seasons that this is a good time to do so, once again. Those of us who are bicyclists need to take extra precautions as daylight decreases and…
Continue reading ›The Indiana Supreme Court was asked to consider whether the trial court abused its discretion in granting child visitation to maternal grandparents after their daughter – the child’s mother – passed away. In re: The visitation of L.- A.D.W., the state high court ruled visitation in this case was appropriate, even if it went against…
Continue reading ›When a court in Indiana issues a dissolution of marriage, it approves the divorce agreement as reached either by both parties through mediation or by the court following litigation or some combination of both. These agreements encompass everything from child support and parenting time to division of property and spousal maintenance (also sometimes referred to…
Continue reading ›Many people facing a divorce are hyper-focused on the here and now. And sometimes, it really is best to take things one day at a time. Your divorce attorney, on the other hand, should be looking at your long-term well-being. That means figuring out a plan for division of assets, debts and benefits to sustain…
Continue reading ›The issue of legality of same-sex marriage in America was settled recently with the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges. The lead plaintiff, from Ohio, challenged a state ban on homosexual marriage on constitutional grounds. Indiana voters had previously passed a similar ban, but the law was overturned last year when a federal…
Continue reading ›After two people decide they no longer wish to be married, one of the key points of contention often becomes division of assets. Indiana, as in most states, seeks equitable distribution, or a distribution that is fair given the circumstances. But this is often a more complex process than it seems. Some assets can’t be…
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