Happy New Year!
As we welcome in 2010 and a new decade, I want to wish you a Happy New Year and wish you continued health and success in 2010. If I can assist you at all in 2010, please do not hesitate to contact me!
Proving You've Been Separated for More than 1 year
When you have filed for an uncontested divorce in South Carolina usually the no-fault ground of more than one year's continuous separation is used as the ground for divorce. This means that you and your spouse have not resided together in the same residence for more than one year. I am questioned by clients about how they are going to prove this. Sometimes, in counseling a client who is considering leaving their spouse, they want to know what they should do to make sure that once their one year passes they will not have to worry about their spouse being about to avoid the divorce by proving they have not lived separate and apart for more than one year.In a typical case, a witness who is at least 18 years old and has known the parties for more than one year is used to testify about the length of separation and that they are confident that the parties have not lived together in more than one year. Their testimony could include that they call or visit one spouse on a regular basis and the other spouse is never present and it does not appear that the other spouse is residing in the home. It is also nice to have testimony from the witness stating that they are confident that they know the parties (or one of the parties) well enough that if the couple had gotten back together they would know about.Unless the other party can prove that you have lived together in the last year you will not need any more than that to prove separation or the date of separation so it is usually not necessary for you to have a copy of the receipt from the hotel you booked the night you moved out.
Is a Hearing Required for an Uncontested Divorce in South Carolina
Many prospective clients have an idea that we can file some paperwork with the court and as long as everyone agrees with everything and wants a divorce that we won't have to go to court and have a hearing. In a South Carolina divorce case, even in an uncontested divorce case, you will be required to go to a final hearing.The final hearing is where the judge will hear testimony from you and your witnesses about the grounds (or reason) for divorce and about any other issues such as a property settlement agreement or custody agreement. It is the judge's duty to ensure that the marriage cannot be saved and that no counseling would help reconcile you and your spouse. The judge will also look at your agreements to make sure they are fair to both parties and in the best interest of any minor children born of the marriage.In a typical uncontested divorce in South Carolina a final hearing will last between 10 and 15 minutes depending on how much information is needed to be put on the record.
How Long Does it take to get a Divorce in South Carolina
This is one of the most popular questions that I am asked as a divorce attorney. People really want to know a time-line. When are things going to happen. How long am I going to be married to this (fill-in-the-blank)? Sometimes, they even have another wedding planned an on the calendar and they are just trying to squeeze in a divorce before the next "big day."Giving an answer to this question is pretty difficult. There are lots of things that play into determining how long it will take to finalize your divorce. Some of these factors are: what are the issues in your case, are you filing based on fault or on the no-fault ground for divorce, do you and your spouse have any children together, has your spouse hired an attorney, who is that attorney, and on and on.Another large factor that plays into this equation is the Court docket. Many court dockets are set out several months in advance, so if you were to request a hearing today, it could be four or five months before the hearing is set.If there are issues in your case such has who gets the marital home, how to divide up the retirement accounts, who will have custody and visitation of the children, etc. Many times, people believe they have all of the issues in their case worked out and settled before they meet with a divorce lawyer, but many times they had an agreement in theory, but when you begin to look at how practical their agreement is, it becomes nearly impossible to execute it. If you are filing for a divorce on a fault-based ground (adultery, physical cruelty, habitual drunkenness, desertion) then you will have a mandatory waiting period of 90 days following the filing of the divorce complaint before you can have a final hearing. There is no waiting period for a final hearing based on the no-fault ground other than the proper time for the defendant to file an answer which is 30 days from the date of service of the Summons and Complaint.So, in broad generalities, It could take from about 60 days to over one year based on the specifics of your case to finalize your divorce matter.
Merry Christmas from UpstateFamilyLawBlog.com
I wanted to take a moment to wish you and your loved ones a merry Christmas and happy holidays. This is a very exciting (and stressful) time of year. I also wanted to thank you for reading these articles over the last year. I hope the articles have provided some information and encouragement to you when dealing with a legal issue you are unsure of. This year would not have been the same without you and your participation with this article.For me, Christmas provides a short break that gives me an opportunity to reflect back on a year full of wonderful joys and stressful personal and professional situations. It also signals the impending end of one year and fresh start of another. It is refreshing to look forward at a new year to imagine how we will move forward and build on the things we achieved in the previous year. I understand that many of the people that have contacted our firm to assist them this year or who are considering coming to speak to us are feeling extremely anxious about what may happen to them because of their individual legal problems, and Christmas may seem like just another day of stress. I encourage everyone to take some time this Christmas to be thankful for what you have been blessed with in 2009. I would invite you to call our office to set up a consultation to discuss the possible resolutions to you problems.Merry Christmas from the Greene Law Firm!
Questions to Get Answered Before Getting Married
As a divorce lawyer I meet with people in bad marriages every day. The marriages we discuss are widely varied and come in all shapes and sizes. It is always sad when a marriage doesn't work out no matter how long it lasted, but there is something puzzling that I can't quite put my finger on about marriages that last only a few weeks or months. Sometimes, I think the breakdown of these marriages has to do with communication issues or just varied future plans.I ran across as list of marriage questions you should discuss with your future spouse before you get married. These are questions about the decision to get married in general, family questions like how many children should you have, what religious beliefs do you have, what are your thoughts and ideas about money and how we will manage money as a family, will both of us work or not, what types of values do you have, what are your family values, what is your family relationship like, etc.I think you will find the article thought provoking and helpful to make sure you are making the right decision before you get into a marriage.
Merry Christmas and Thank You from UpstateFamilyLawBlog.com
2009 has been a great year and it couldn't have happened without you! I'm so thankful for my friends, clients, and those I have connected with online this year so I just wanted to take a few minutes to let you know. 2010 is shaping up to be a great year and I'm really looking forward to connecting with you in 2010. If I can do anything for you, please don't hesitate to let me know and connect with me through this site or on Twitter or Facebook.I want to wish you a very Merry Christmas and happy holidays.
Can I Modify My Child Custody Order?
Most court orders are permanent. If you were to be sued for some harm you caused to another person or their property or if you are involved in some property division in your divorce case, your court order would be permanent. That means, no matter what happens down the road, no matter what change of circumstances the order will not be changed.Family court orders dealing with children are different. The aspects of a family court order in South Carolina that deal with children such as custody, child support and visitation can be altered and modified after the order has been entered. In order to modify your child custody, visitation or support order you must file a new action and request that the previous order be modified due to a substantial change in circumstances. So, if the circumstances surround custody, visitation or support have not changed since your decree was entered, then you cannot seek to have the order modified.