If you're experiencing a child custody dispute for the first time, chances are you've had several friends or loved ones approach you with advice or perhaps even horror stories about what you could expect to see during negotiations. If you have, then chances are also good that these conversations may have left you with an uneasy feeling as well as concerns about whether your situation will be a similar one.Even though your friends and family may have personal experiences to back up their advice, it's important to remember that every person's situation is different. This means that every child custody case may be different as well. So while one person may have experienced contentions and emotional strain, not every individual's situation will end up the same way. Truth be told, you may have even heard some things about child custody negotiations that simply aren't true. One myth that generally gets told time and again is that the courts favor mothers over fathers in child custody cases. … [Read more...]

If you are involved in a child custody matter in North Carolina, a psychological evaluation may be part of your case. They are only required in cases in which one party calls the mental health of the other party (or the parties' child) into question.In order to ask the other party to submit to a psychological evaluation a motion must be filed with the court. The purpose of the evaluation is often to determine if a psychological disorder exists, and possibly to recommend treatment. What is a custody evaluation in a child custody case?A custody evaluation is different from a psychological evaluation. It is used to make recommendations on custody arrangements, and it typically involves interviewing and testing both parents and children who are old enough.The parties can agree to a custody evaluation, or it can be ordered by the court.Although the court doesn't have to follow the recommendations made by the custody evaluator, it usually considers the evaluation to be an important … [Read more...]

North Carolina's same-sex marriage ban was struck down in October, which was supposed to result in married same-sex couples being treated the same as married heterosexual couples under the law. But this isn't the case when a same-sex couple wants to bring a child into their family. As a recent article from The Daily Tar Heel explains, many same-sex couples have run into numerous obstacles trying to adopt and gain equal child custody rights to their children. That's because all of the state's family laws were written with heterosexual couples in mind, and so far very few of the laws have been amended to include married same-sex couples. For example, a non-biological parent can now adopt under the stepparent adoption rules (so long as the same-sex couple is married since North Carolina adoption laws do not allow unmarried couples to adopt), but there is a long waiting period. Many of these couples have been together for years and welcomed children into their families long … [Read more...]

Did you go through divorce in 2014 and are now a single parent? If so, there are several considerations related to your federal income taxes that could save you a lot of money.Believe it or not, tax season is here, so make sure all of these issues -- which were explained at length in a recent article from Forbes -- are on your radar. Filing as head of household. This filing status can give you a lower tax rate and open the door to more deductions. You may be able to file head of household if you: were unmarried on Dec. 31, 2014, earn at least half of your household income, and your children live with you at least six months out of the year.Claiming your children as dependent. Claiming children as dependent allows you to take many other tax credits and deductions. Under the IRS's rules, a child is a dependent if he or she lived with and was financially supported by the parent for at least six months out of the year.However, many divorce decrees and separation agreements spell out which … [Read more...]

If you are going through a divorce and you have children, chances are that they are your primary concern. You may be wondering what kind of parenting arrangement would be best for your child and what the experts think.In the past, it was widely believed that one parent (usually the mother) should be awarded primary custody of the children and that the other parent (usually the father) should spend visitation time with the children. However, some experts are now strongly advocating that children do best when both parents play an equal role in their lives. A professor of adolescent and educational psychology at Wake Forest University in North Carolina is one of them. After reviewing dozens of studies comparing the wellbeing of children who were raised with one custodial parent to children who were brought up in shared parenting situation the professor concluded that the latter arrangement is best for children.She found that children who were brought up with shared parenting arrangements … [Read more...]

Regardless of your position on the issue of whether same-sex individuals should marry each other, it is now a matter of law in North Carolina that such marriages are legal.That happened as the result of a federal judge's ruling in Asheville late last week. As The News and Observer reported, the judge declared that the state's constitutional ban on such unions and state laws prohibiting the marriages are "unconstitutional as a matter of law."It is possible that the ruling could be appealed, but considering that the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of a similar ruling by the 4th Circuit Court concerning Virginia law, it doesn't seem likely to happen. The 4th Circuit is also responsible for North Carolina. In the wake of the decision, a number of counties across the state have begun issuing marriage licenses and same-sex couples have begun lining up to have their relationships legally recognized. And as that happens, some legal observers note that the decision also means that … [Read more...]

Unfortunately we live at a time in which it is incredibly common for parents to be separated from their children because the parents are members of the military and deployed overseas. What with the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, there are a number of people from Raleigh who may not see their families for some time because of their deployment. With all that service members must give up, there should be laws that protect them should any family law issues arise during their deployment, right?There are, but these rules are not always (correctly or uniformly) applied, and it sometimes makes life difficult for active service members. Take, for example, the story of an out-of-state man who was on deployment on a submarine who almost lost custody of his daughter for failing to show up for a custody modification hearing. The judge eventually postponed the hearing until after the father returns. There have been other stories that many people in Raleigh may find shocking. One army lieutenant … [Read more...]