7/13/10 7/13/10

Think Before You File

Sometimes it is good to take a deep breath before you go barging ahead in your case. I recently defended a Rule to Show Cause (contempt) hearing for a client filed by his wife. It appeared that she filed it as a retaliation for a letter that I mailed to her on behalf of my client. There were some pretty nasty allegations of contempt in the papers and my client was worried although he believed he had done nothing wrong. Just so you know, a rule to show cause hearing is what a person files to enforce a previous court order. If someone has not done what they were ordered to do by the court and they are found to have willfully disobeyed that order they can be punished by jail time up to one year, fines up to $1,500.00 and up to 300 hours of community service (or any combination of the three). This is serious!As we walked into the courtroom, my client's ex-wife appeared cocky and arrogant. She sought the contempt and attorney fees. However, she did not have a strong case. She let emotion and anger rule her rather than common sense. She did not tell the whole story to her attorney who was not ready for our defense. The rule to show cause was dismissed, and to add insult to injury for the ex-wife, she was ordered to pay for my client's attorney fees for defending the matter.So, next time you feel like you've been done wrong and you're ready to bring the shock and awe, take a step back, honestly consult with your lawyer and make a plan, but don't forget to look at the big picture and don't forget that anything can happen in the courtroom and quickly things can get turned around on you.

7/6/10 7/6/10

Solo Lawyer Working Out of the Office

Recently, I opened my own law practice here in Greenville, South Carolina. Right now, I am the only person working in the firm so I act as attorney, paralegal, boss, assistant, accounts payable, and everything in between. I have been extremely busy, and I have had some thoughts that perhaps some prospective clients may have some concerns about the type of attention that is paid to their case.I thought a real-life story would help in explaining how things are going so far. Several months ago, long before I opened this law practice, my wife and I planned a trip to Chicago to meet some friends and celebrate a friend's 30th birthday. We took in a couple of Cubs' games at Wrigley Field. We left on Thursday morning and planned to return to Greenville on Sunday. This meant that I would be out of my office for two days. In a family law practice, a lot can happen over two days and I was a little nervous.When I set up my practice, technology and the ability to practice from anywhere were high priorities for me. So I have set up systems, software, and utilize technology to allow me to do this. Some technology is as simple has having my iPhone, others things I use is Google Voice for telephone and voicemail, Google Apps for calendaring and e-mail, and Dropbox for storing documents and syncing between my computers.During the weekend, I was able to use Google Voice to route all of my incoming office calls to my iPhone. If I was in a place that would provide necessary confidentiality (like my hotel room) I would take the call. If I was unable to take the call, the voicemail would then be transcribed and e-mailed to me so I could immediately have access to the message. If it was very urgent, I could make arrangements to respond quickly. While sitting at the Friday afternoon Cubs' game, I received a voicemail from a client related to a custody/visitation matter. About the same time as her call, I received an e-mail with a fax message from the opposing counsel on that case. I was able to find a quiet corner of the stadium to call my client back to get an idea of what was going on. Then, I was able to send a fax back to opposing counsel - all from my iPhone in the upper deck at Wrigley Field.So, I hope this story will show you that my law practice is more personal and the way that I have carefully set it up will allow me to serve all of my clients effectively and promptly even though I may not perform all of my work behind the desk of my downtown office.

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?