May 19th, 2010 | 9:02 am
Why You Need A Tribe
Rebecca, 44, is a Bay Area parent with an inflexible work schedule. She and her husband had pieced together a division of duties that kept the whole family’s busy schedules humming. Rebecca and her husband are now separating, and the logistics of their arrangement no longer work. Carl, 57, now has joint physical custody of his three, school-aged children; two of whom have special needs. His wife is returning to work after 15 years, and Carl faces a big learning curve on hands-on childcare.
Transitioning from coupledom to life as a single parent can be a jolting reorientation and it can feel like sprinting across a tightrope without a net. How do you and your family get through it? That’s where the tribe comes in.
A Tribe In Action
In the immortal words of Joe Cocker: you can ”get by with a little help from your friends”. It’s working for Rebecca. Through a friend, Rebecca found a skilled family law attorney who will mediate her separation and prepare a separation agreement to file with the court. Through another friend, she found an accountant who will look over her new budget and answer a question about how selecting Head of Household tax status could impact the Dissomaster formula for spousal support she may receive. When she shared news of her separation with her inner circle, several friends stepped up, volunteering to be added as authorized persons to pick her daughter up from school should Rebecca find herself in a pinch. For eons, people have banded together to create mutually-beneficial social groups in order to survive. In fact, humanity may be at its best when the chips are down and we pull together.
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April 16th, 2010 | 5:35 am
For couples who’ve decided to end their marriages, the question of what to do about the family home adds complexity to the divorce process. The recession has taken a bite out of nest eggs nationwide, across every demographic. High unemployment rates have not helped matters, and financial strain itself has fueled marital discord and divorce.
Selling the family home is a big challenge for many couples looking to divorce. Once, the marital asset of greatest value, for many, it has become an albatross. When neither spouse can afford the mortgage by themselves, and if the house cannot be sold for enough to pay off the lender, some people are deciding not to divorce, and instead, try to work out their differences. Others have decided to delay divorce. Couples set on splitting up are finding creative solutions to this housing dilemma. Here are some of the options:
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April 2nd, 2010 | 9:47 am
Finding good legal representation just got a little trickier. The recession has inspired some attorneys who’ve built their careers in real estate law and other hard-hit sectors to begin eyeing family law as a way to supplement their income. The Connecticut Law Tribune reports that “family law attorneys statewide have begun noticing some unfamiliar faces in their area of specialty. And given the state of the economy, they don’t think it’s a coincidence.”
Much like doctors, attorneys often specialize in a particular area of law such as securities, labor, tax, immigration, and so on. These specialties are different from one another without a lot of overlap. Specialization allows attorneys to focus their time on the kinds of cases they find interesting and rewarding, while creating valuable expertise for which clients will often pay higher fees.
Family law is its own specialty. In California, attorneys who meet certain qualifications set forth by the California Board of Legal Specialization can become Certified Family Law Specialists. Qualifications include:
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Creative Divorce Strategies in a Down Economy: House Under Water