Court rules that home-schooled child is emancipated

This was a very interesting case.  My client’s daughter was being home-schooled for years. Even though the child should have been half way through college, she was barely half way through high school.  There is no real case law on this issue so I had to get creative.  The other side really fought hard but I turned their arguments against them.  The case was so hard fought that both sides were arguing up to the day of court with new letters and documents being constantly sent to the court.

Thankfully, common sense prevailed and the child was deemed emancipated.  This was a great win to kick off the new year.

Published in: on February 1, 2010 at 9:03 pm  Leave a Comment  
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A motion for child support modification is a gamble, but sometimes worth the risk

I met a client a  few weeks ago that makes a nice income even though it is a 1/3 of what it use to be.  It was a fairly routine motion so I charged him a rather minimal retainer as I didn’t see the case getting out of hand.  If we won, he could save $40,000 over the next four years.  Worst case scenario, he would be out $5,000 in legal fees and that is really worst case. 

He wanted me to give him an exact prediction.  Unfortunately, our judicial system does not allow that.  Just because you should win, doesn’t mean you will.  Luckily, the system works most of the time.  You are rolling the dice with every motion you file for child support.  I just had a case where we were asking for an increase and the court decreased it even though the other party wasn’t requesting one!  Thankfully, I was able to withdraw that request and the child support remained the same.

So, when you speak to a New Jersey child support lawyer, understand that the best he or she may be able to tell you is how much of a risk you are taking.  If you have a really good chance of saving up to $40,000 and you will most likely spend less than $5000 (probably even less than $2500) to roll the dice, that may be a great bet!

Published in: on January 17, 2010 at 3:24 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Red Bank Divorce Lawyer Website

Check out our new website for our Red Bank, NJ office:  http://www.redbankdivorcelawyer.com

Published in: on January 17, 2010 at 3:03 pm  Leave a Comment  

New website

We have a new website for our princeton office:  http://www.princetondivorceattorney.com

http://www.monmouthcountydivorceattorney.com

http://www.redbankdivorcelawyer.com

http://www.oceancountydivorceattorney.com

Published in: on November 21, 2009 at 8:10 pm  Leave a Comment  

Can’t afford a lawyer? Think again.

I spoke to a woman yesterday that read my blog and had a question.  Unlike most of the people that call me, she was not prepared to hire a lawyer because she couldn’t afford it.  This thinking is interesting for several reasons.  First, she doesn’t work for free but for some reason, she thinks I do!  I cannot give free legal advice in the same  way you don’t call a plumber to have him teach you how to fix your problem on your own for free.

More importantly though is that this was a total assumption on her part without any real consideration as to the true cost of going with an attorney.  When I asked her how much other lawyers charged her, she said she didn’t speak to anyone who  actually quoted her a fee.  However, her divorce cost tens of thousands of dollars so she assumes a simple motion will be the same price.  Not quite. 

Even after I explained to her that it would cost much less to handle this simple motion, she still said she didn’t have the money even though she had plenty of room on her credit cards.  I then asked her to consider the true cost of going without a lawyer.

Her ex-husband filed a motion to emancipate her daughter and there is no way (in my opinion) that she should have lost this motion.  However, she went without a lawyer and her ex had one.  Guess who won?   Now she wants to file another motion and she thins for some reason, the result will be different as she still refuses to retain a lawyer.

Her daughter will start college in January.  So you have child support, college expenses and medical expenses for at least four years that will not be received.  This could add up to over $100,000 that she would have received.  So if you can’t afford a few thousand for a lawyer, how will you afford over 50 times that?

Published in: on November 13, 2009 at 10:37 am  Leave a Comment  
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Divorce Mediation in New Jersey: consider it, but not in place of an attorney

In this economy, many people in New Jersey are having trouble funding a divorce.  This leads some to stay in an unhappy marriage while others seek  cheap alternatives to the traditional divorce process.  However, I’m afraid that some people think that a divorce mediator can solve everything without an attorney.  While it is possible that some people can avoid ever hiring an attorney, I don’t think this is the best option for others.

Some attorneys, such as myself, have free consultations.  Thus, it will cost you nothing to meet with an attorney and get some information.  However, you should understand that a free consultation does not mean free legal advice.  So, there is no reason not to explore the attorney option, the costs, etc.

Keep in mind that there are two distinct types of divorce mediation.  One is with a therapist, counselor or social worker to resolve the emotional issues and help both people move forward with their new lives.  The second type deals with the legal issues.  I think everyone should speak to someone to deal with the emotional issues as it can only benefit your mental health and reduce stress.  I’m not sure everyone needs a mediator for the legal issues.

I am a huge fan of resolving cases without unnecessary expense and extensive litigation.  However, without knowing your rights, it may be tough to know what position you should take during  the mediation.  I have also heard some people tell me that they felt that the mediator chose one side over another.  Thus, mediation can lead to more problems and waste time and money.

My advice is to first meet with an attorney to explore the legal issues.  I prefer to set up a meeting with the other attorney and both litigants to discuss all of the issues.  We call this a four-way conference.  Assuming both parties (and both attorneys) are reasonable, there is no reason why the case cannot be resolved.  However, if an impasse is reached, then mediation may make sense.

Another time mediation may make sense is when the issues are minor and the parties generally agree on the issues but there is still some unknown as to how to handle certain legal issues.  The mediator then can guide the parties to not only resolving the case but how to handle the divorce itself and the issues that may arise afterwards. 

If you are getting divorced in New Jersey or if you are thinking about it, give me a call.  We can discuss all of your options.  I can either represent you in the case or I can act as a mediator.  However, please know that an attorney cannot generally do both as this would create a conflict of interest.

Published in: on October 1, 2009 at 6:38 pm  Leave a Comment  
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New website

Check out the new website:  http://www.newbrunswickdivorceattorney.com

Published in: on September 20, 2009 at 8:05 pm  Leave a Comment  

See an attorney before you file a motion, not after

I really don’t understand why some people file a motion and then come to my office after the other side files a response.  The best is when it is just days until the court date.  

My advice is to see an attorney before doing anything.  Also, don’t wait to see an attorney.  You are better off seeing one now then waiting.  The worst that happens is that the attorney tells you that cannot file the motion now.  I had such a client today.  He thought he had a good motion for emancipation even though he didn’t know the first thing about the law.  So as a result, the other side filed a cross motion and now he comes to my office.

Luckily, I don’t think it will turn out bad for him but most people are not so lucky.  I’ve seen too many people file some type of child support motion only to have it blow up in their face. 

Compare that situation to another client that came in my office today.  The child at issue is only 19 months old and she never had an attorney before.  At the last court appearance, the court actually told her that she better not come back without an attorney.  Even though the judge said that, she would have been able to represent herself.  The judge is just trying to help her.

The other attorney filed a real bogus motion that I would never have filed.  Some attorneys just seem desperate to take money.  If her ex would have came to me, I would have told him that most of what he wanted is impossible.  My client today tells me that his last attorney was like that which is why that attorney was fired.  So, there is clearly a market for attorneys that will rip you off.  I refuse to cater to that market.

Even though this was a real bogus motion, without an attorney to shoot it down, it might have taken off.  I’m sure I’ll be able to shut it down without it getting expensive.

Lesson for the day:  get some advice before you step in it.

Published in: on September 10, 2009 at 9:41 pm  Leave a Comment  

Does mental illness matter when it comes to child support?

Its no secret that mental illness is a huge problem today.  It becomes even more of a problem when the person at issue is a child and the parents have on going child support dispute.  Although not really a mental illness, autism creates the same problems in child support cases.  Best yet, New Jersey has the highest rates of autism.

One instance where this issue comes up is testing and treatment of the mental health issue.  I haven’t seen this become too much of an issue as it is hard to argue that the testing or treatment is not needed or unnecessary.

Instead, the debate usually focuses on emancipation.  This is an interesting issue that has not really been tested in recent times (at least not to the extent that you would think).  In order to  receive child support for life, courts generally rely on a 1960′s case where the adult child was placed in the type of institution that would probably never exist today.  However, when someone is that bad, they usually on disability anyway.  Thus, the fight in these cases generally centers on whether the custodial parent should be applying for disability on behalf of the adult child.

The real debate to be had though comes when the adult child cannot get disability.  This creates a quirk in our law that is not really developed yet although it somehow works out.  Emancipation is only proper when the child has moved beyond the influence of the parent.  But what if the child has a mental illness that prevents that?  In those cases, courts seem to force the child to go to college full time or risk emancipation. 

I think this issue is ripe for appeal.  Not so that the status quo is changed but so that the law on emancipation is clarified.  Any parent that tries to drag out child support forever will face an uphill battle.

I’ve been on both sides of this issue, so regardless of what side you are on, give me a call.

Published in: on August 30, 2009 at 10:21 pm  Leave a Comment  

New Brunswick, NJ Child Support Attorney

My office in New Brunswick is right near the court house.  As a result, we are there often.  If you need a tough attorney for your New Brunswick child support case, give me a call anytime.

Published in: on August 29, 2009 at 3:06 pm  Leave a Comment  
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