America has millions of small businesses, family-owned businesses and closely-held businesses. Many thousands of these businesses reside in New Jersey, since it is the 11th most populated state in the country. Business valuation adds complexity to a divorce as compared to calculating income from W2 statements. The question always arises: in a divorce, how do Read More …
One of the first questions new clients ask me is “how much will the divorce cost?” I never shy away from answering this fair question – even though it doesn’t have easy answers. Unfortunately, you cannot completely control the cost, because you cannot control your spouse’s actions and the actions of his or her attorney. Read More …
Many attorneys accept it as an article of faith that January is “Divorce Month.” Do an internet search on “January divorce month” and you will find a lot of articles discussing this alleged phenomenon. You will even find one article on Findlaw.com which concluded, after analyzing divorce filings, that March is the true divorce month: Read More …
I love supporting local businesses, and I love good coffee. The “About Us” web page of one of my favorite local businesses starts like this: “We’re passionate about coffee.” Me too. I buy 5-pound bags of roasted, whole-bean coffee from Coffee Bean Direct. I’ve been a customer since 2008. Their large-scale craft roasterie is located Read More …
In Part 1 of this post, I described two ways in which a divorcing couple gets to an uncontested divorce. Let’s now explore two other ways-both slower than the first two. Method #3: Here, not only can’t the spouses negotiate first, they have trouble negotiating at all. One one of the spouses files first, the Read More …
We’ve all heard the term “uncontested divorce.” However, the term means different things to different people. Read on, and I will clarify the term as best as I can. I will also offer an alternate theory – that there is no single definition for the term, and that there are many different types of uncontested Read More …
One of the most common questions a divorcing spouse asks me is “how long will it take?” The answer is not completely open-ended, but it is accurate to say “it depends.” What the total time depends on, however, is what is really important to you. The complexity of your finances, child custody and visitation, a Read More …
Some months into the divorce process, frequently three to six, the court will schedule you, your spouse and the attorneys for an Early Settlement Program (“ESP”). This is designed to induce divorce settlements. You, your spouse and the attorneys meet with (usually) two ESP panelists who volunteer their time. This will occur in a courthouse Read More …
All divorce settlements should have life insurance provisions. A life insurance policy maintained by the spouse who pays child support or alimony should cover these support payments until the payments’ natural end. What does this mean? Child support should be covered until the children are emancipated, that is, on their own. This could mean approximately Read More …
Last fall, Governor Christie signed a bill reforming New Jersey’s alimony law. The alimony reform changes generally apply prospectively, and not for in-place agreements or judgments. If you were currently paying or receiving alimony as of September, 2014, when the Governor signed the bill, you are mostly unaffected, but the new law may be relevant Read More …