5/5/10 5/5/10

Top UpstateFamilyLawBlog.com Posts for April 2010

Here are the top posts from April 2010.

5/5/10 5/5/10

Firm Announcement: Atkins Law Firm, P.A.

Tripp Atkins is excited to announce the opening of the Atkins Law Firm, P.A. Effective May 1, 2010, the Atkins Law Firm, P.A. will be providing divorce, family law, and probate administration and litigation services in upstate South Carolina. We are doing everything possible to minimize the transition between the former firm and Tripp's new firm. You can contact the Atkins Law Firm, P.A. the following ways:

Physical Address: 11 N. Irvine Street, Suite 14, Greenville, South Carolina 29601
Mail: PO Box 27167, Greenville, SC 29616
E-mail: Tripp@AtkinsSC.com
Telephone: 864-735-8699
Fax: 864-349-5054
Get Directions to our new office here

4/10/10 4/10/10

Infidelity Stats: 20% of Men and 10% of Women

Came across this infidelity infographic on the Fast Company website this afternoon in an article about Tiger Woods. Interesting...One interesting stat on this infographic is that 90% of people who have had online affairs get addicted to them and begin another immediately after the current one ends. With the advent of Facebook and other networking sites, it is easier and easier to "hook up" online these days. While an online affair may not be enough to lead to a divorce on adultery grounds in South Carolina, the nature of this activity is such that it is a slippery slope that leads to adultery.Via: OnlineSchools.org

4/8/10 4/8/10

What Happens After my Temporary Hearing?

A temporary hearing in a divorce case can set the tone for the rest of the matter. It is probably good to note right here that the decision made by a judge at a temporary hearing is temporary in nature (hence the name) and it carries no weight as far as what the trial judge may or may not rule on. Therefore, if you are ruled against at the temporary hearing it isn't the end of the world. However, when a judge rules for or against a person at a temporary hearing it seems to give each party some false sense of power or weakness in the case.After your temporary hearing a temporary order will be prepared and signed by the judge and that sets the standard of conduct for the remainder of the litigation. Generally, in this period between the temporary hearing and the final hearing the parties will engage in discovery, potentially take depositions of key witnesses, mediate the case, and attempt to reach a negotiated settlement. If there are minor children involved, a guardian ad litem will be appointed who will perform an investigation into the issues surrounding the minor children.This process can take several months. Often, depending on the complexity of the case, it can last over a year. The final phase before the final hearing is the trial preparation phase where you and your lawyer will be preparing for trial by meeting with witnesses, preparing any necessary witness subpoenas, creating trial exhibits, etc. All of this leads up to the final hearing in your case.

4/8/10 4/8/10

Family Court Mediation is Confidential

Mediation is required for all contested family court cases in Greenville County and in many other South Carolina counties. One of the concerns that I hear as a mediator and as a lawyer who attends mediation with his clients is that clients are concerned with what they are saying to a third-party lawyer (the mediator) or the kinds of offers or counter-offers that are being made and how that might come back to haunt them down the road should their case not settle.In South Carolina, all family court mediations are confidential on several levels. First, when you communicate something to your mediator, you can specify that you do not wish for the mediator to share that with the opposing party. Second, everything you discuss in mediation is confidential so that if you and your spouse do not settle the case at mediation, you do not have to worry about them bringing up what you offered in trial. The mediator cannot be called to testify about the mediation and his notes cannot be subpoenaed.This confidentiality gives you a "free bite at the apple" so to speak. You have an opportunity to be creative with your spouse to resolve the contested issues in your case. You may make some offers that you ordinarily would not in an effort to settle the case without fear that they could be used against you later on.

4/5/10 4/5/10

5 Child Custody Tips

When you are involved in a case regarding custody of your children things can get crazy and out-of-hand very quickly. So, here are a few tips to help you out in your child custody case.

Really try to work with your spouse to parent together regardless of the custody arrangement. When you are going through a divorce (or you are already divorced and you are fighting over custody) things can really turn ugly, and I mean fast. What almost immediately happens is that the parents cease communications with one another and therefore cease parenting together and consistently. This causes confusion for the children and can lead to problems for you in the lawsuit. Just a few weeks ago I was in a custody hearing and each party was talking about "my son this" and "my son that." The judge quickly lashed into them and reminded each of the parties that this was "their son" and they had to parent together.
Don't bad-mouth your spouse in front of the children. Let's face it, kids talk. I never know what is going to come out of my two year old's mouth, but it is almost always something he heard his mother or me say. I'm sure your kids are the same way. When you talk to you kids about their other parent you really put them in a bad predicament. You confuse them and you cause them to lose respect for their parent. Depending on how mature they are, they may even lose respect for you.
Don't bad-mouth your spouse in front of the Guardian ad Litem. In any contested custody matter, the court is going to appoint a Guardian ad Litem to represent the best interest of the minor children in the case. It is the Guardian's job to investigate the circumstances surrounding the children and present a report to the hearing judge about his or her findings. During the litigation, the Guardian ad Litem is likely to meet with you several times to discuss the case. During these meetings it is your job to make sure you build up yourself as a good parent and not spend the entire time bashing your spouse. That never works for winning a custody case. It just shows you are bitter and angry and that takes away from your ability to be a good parent. There are almost always concerns about the other parent's ability to be a good custodial parent, so bring those up and move on. Don't dwell on them.
Help your children. When you are trying to win a custody case you should be spending quality time with your children. Too often parents think trips to the park and arcade are all the quality time they need. On one hand you will probably win the heart of your child if all you do is take them out to do the fun things and buy them nice gifts, but you are probably not doing your custody case chances any favors unless you are also doing the "hard stuff." Parenting requires you to punish, help with homework and projects, teach, have fun, cry, and everything in between. If you're just doing the fun stuff you're only part of the way there.
Stabilize your life. Do you move around a lot? Do you change jobs often? What's your lifestyle like? When you are involved in a custody dispute you should try to stabilize yourself. Make sure you have had a stable place to live for a while and that your home has ample room for your children. If you have teenager and their are opposite sexes they should probably have separate rooms. Can you hold down a job? Having a stable job history shows that you can provide for yourself and your children and that you are loyal and consistent. Good parenting attributes. Do you party? Do you stay out all hours of the night? During a custody dispute don't be surprised to find out your spouse has had a private investigator following you. If someone was documenting everything you were doing, would that help or hurt your custody case? If that PI went on your Facebook or Twitter page would they find that you have been out partying and drinking all night the last week?

4/2/10 4/2/10

Top UpstateFamilyLawBlog.com Posts for March 2010

In case you missed them, here are the top 10 posts from this blog in March 2010 (according to Google Analytics). And no, I'm not getting anything from Google for saying that.

Just for kicks, here are some of the top keywords used to find UpstateFamilyLawBlog this month:

how long does it take to get a divorce in south carolina
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tripp atkins greenville sc
sc dss advice
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how long does an uncontested divorce take in south carolina
how long does it take to schedule a divorce hearing in south carolina

4/1/10 4/1/10

Do You Get a Free Lawyer for Your Child Support Contempt Hearing?

One question I hear frequently is whether you can get a court-appointed attorney in your divorce or child support case. The answer is no. There is no constitutional right to have an attorney provided for you in a private family court matter like there is in a criminal prosecution or even in a DSS abuse and neglect case. This issue recently was before the South Carolina Supreme Court in Rebecca Price v. Michael D. Turner.In this case a father had previously been ordered to pay child support for his children and had not made a payment in over a year and a half. He was over $6,000.00 behind in his child support payments and the Court "ruled him in." Basically, when a non-custodial parent is ordered to pay child support through the family court the clerk of court monitors the cases and requires any person not paying on time to come to court and tell the judge their reason for not paying as ordered. Mr. Turner's excuses were that his failure to pay was due to incarceration, drug addiction, unemployment, and injury. At a hearing like this the defendant could be sentenced to one year in jail for civil contempt of court. In Price v. Turner, the defendant was sentenced to one year in jail, but he could get out of jail sooner if he paid the total child support arrears that he owed. Mr. Turner appealed this ruling because he did not have an attorney present at the hearing and he asserted that he has a constitutional right under the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution.The SC Supreme Court held that there is no right to legal counsel for a civil contempt case. The difference between civil contempt and criminal contempt is that the person sentenced to incarceration for civil contempt can purge their prison sentence by doing the activity that they previously refused to - in this case, pay child support. In the case of criminal contempt, you cannot purge your jail sentence - you must serve the sentenced time in jail.If you find yourself in the position that you are behind on child support and you are going to a Rule to Show Cause (contempt) hearing in the Family Court, you will not be offered to have a court appointed attorney represent you so you should either be prepared to represent yourself or retain a lawyer to defend you prior to your hearing.