Blog - Divorce Utah

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Do most marriages end in divorce because of infidelity or money issues?

July 23, 2019

Adultery, Divorce Prevention/Marriage Preservation, Infidelity

adultery, commitment, finances, financial strain, infidelity, money, poor, too much money

I think infidelity, IF you define infidelity broadly, meaning not simply adultery but a general lack of commitment to one another. Lack of devotion, care, and consideration for your spouse leads to indifference, then apathy, and eventually, contempt. Finances can…

Do women get sole or primary custody of children by default?

July 22, 2019

Child Custody, Children in Divorce, Custody, Fathers' Divorce Issues, Men's Divorce Issues, Mothers' Divorce Issues, Utah Law, Women's Divorce Issues

award, child custody, men, presumptive, sexist, women

How do you feel about the fact that in divorce, the mother seems to get custody of the child almost by default? Wouldn’t it make more sense to have 50/50 custody by default, or an actual assessment on which parent…

Disparaging the Other Parent: what not to say

July 19, 2019

Children in Divorce, Coping With Divorce, Dirty Tricks, Fathers' Divorce Issues, Men's Divorce Issues, Mothers' Divorce Issues, Women's Divorce Issues

disparage, health care, medical, non-disparagement, nondisparagement

What are some examples of things you shouldn’t say if your custody order says not to disparage your ex to the kids’ medical providers? Look at it this way: if you wonder whether what you’re thinking of saying is disparaging,…

Are a prenuptial agreement and real love mutually exclusive?

July 18, 2019

Postnuptial Agreements, Premarital Counseling, Prenuptial Agreements

adversarial, antenuptial agreements, distrust, postnuptial agreements, prenups, prenuptial agreements, trust

Do you believe a prenuptial agreement and real love between two people are mutually exclusive? Kind of. And for the obvious reason implicit in the question: what kind of chance does a marriage have, if the couple has already planned…

How did your parents’ divorce when you were a child affect your adult life?

July 17, 2019

Amicable Divorce, Best Interest of the Child, Children in Divorce, Co-parenting, Coping With Divorce, Divorce Fears, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness, Divorce Prevention/Marriage Preservation, Fathers' Divorce Issues, Men's Divorce Issues, Mothers' Divorce Issues, Women's Divorce Issues

children of divorce, consequences of divorce for children, effect of divorce on children

My parents did not divorce, but I base my answer to this question on the experiences of my clients, whether it be how their own children reacted to their divorce or how my clients felt as children when their parents…

How can lawyers justify defending the guilty?

July 16, 2019

Attorney Fees, Dirty Tricks

constitution, constitutional rights, defending the guilty, presumption of innocence, right to counsel, right to remain innocent

How can lawyers put aside their consciences and defend heinous criminals effectively? First, criminal defense attorney’s need not “put aside their consciences” to defend a criminal (accused or otherwise). There are four ways (starting with the best reasons and working…

The best thing to write in the memo line of the last child support check?

July 15, 2019

Child Support, Child Support Enforcement

Child Support, final payment, last payment

What’s a good message to write in the memo line of the last child support check? I can’t answer this question any better than did Anruth Dailaigh: Assuming it’s truly the final payment and no debt remains outstanding, I’d suggest…

Does being jailed necessitate supervised visitation?

July 13, 2019

Parent Time, Supervised Parent-time, Supervised Visitation, Visitation

supervised parent-time, supervised visitation, supervision, visitation

Would you be ok with a parent getting out of jail and having full unsupervised visitation? Under certain circumstances, yes. Certainly. If the jailed parent was jailed for non-violent, non-dangerous crimes like unpaid parking tickets or check kiting, it would…

Why do abusers sometimes get custody of their children?

July 12, 2019

Abuse, Child Abuse, Child Custody, Custody, Dirty Tricks, Divorce Fears, Domestic Violence, Fathers' Divorce Issues, Men's Divorce Issues, Mothers' Divorce Issues, Women's Divorce Issues

Simply (but accurately) put: they may intimidate, shame, and/or fool the other party into settling the custody case such that they agree to the abuser being awarded custody ; their resources may be so much greater than yours that they…

Should there be a mandatory “cool-off” period before you file for divorce?

July 11, 2019

Divorce Law, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Prevention/Marriage Preservation

bad, cool-off, cooling off, divorce, idea, intuitive, mandatory, need, solution, statutory

Should married couples have a mandatory cooling-off period before they can file for divorce? And if so how long should the cooling off period be? Society desperately needs to reverse the obscene divorce rate. I’m all for appropriate measures to…

Eberhard v. Eberhard – 2019 UT App 114 – modification of alimony

2019 UT App 114 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS TODD EBERHARD, Appellant, v. LORI ANN EBERHARD, Appellee. Opinion No. 20170721-CA Filed June 27, 2019 Third District Court, Salt Lake Department The Honorable Paige Petersen No. 024906303 David Pedrazas, Attorney for…

Utah Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 109. Injunction in Certain Domestic Relations Cases

July 9, 2019

Court Rules, Divorce Law, Restraining Orders, Utah Law

2019, abuse, allow to lapse for voluntary nonpayment of premiums, annulment, attempt to influence a child's preference regarding custody or parent time, automobile insurance, best efforts to prevent third parties from doing what the parties are prohibited from doing, cancel, change the beneficiary, child, conceal, custody, demean or disparage the other party, dispose of, divorce, domestic injunction, Domestic Violence, effective November 1, electronic disturb the peace, encumber, harass, health insurance, homeowner's insurance, how to contact the child or traveling party, identification, image, Injunction in Certain Domestic Relations Cases, interfere with telephone, intimidate, involve the child in the issues of the petition, itinerary of travel dates and destinations, life insurance, likeness, modify, name and telephone number of an available third person who will know the child's location, neither party may make parent time arrangements through the child, non-routine travel with the child, obtain a service, obtain credit, open an account for service, or paternity, order of the court, other party's name, other services, Parent Time, property, renter's insurance, Rule 109, say or do anything that would tend to diminish the love and affection of the child for the other party, support, temporary separation, terminate, transfer, upon filing the initial petition, upon receipt of a copy of the injunction as entered by the court, utility, written consent of the other party

The Utah Rules of Civil Procedure have been amended with a new rule, Rule 109, entitled “Injunction in Certain Domestic Relations Cases”. The rule does not go into effect until November 1, 2019, but when it does, it will affect…

Gardner v. Gardner – 2019 UT 28 – alimony – infidelity – tax burden

This opinion is subject to revision before final publication in the Pacific Reporter Gardner v. Gardner – 2019 UT 28 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF UTAH CHRISTINA L. GARDNER, Appellant, v. NELSON D. GARDNER, Appellee. No. 20170598…

Hypothetically speaking, would you divorce over adultery, if you have kids?

July 5, 2019

Adultery, Children in Divorce, Divorce Prevention/Marriage Preservation, Fathers' Divorce Issues, Infidelity, Men's Divorce Issues, Mothers' Divorce Issues, Women's Divorce Issues

cause, children, divorce, fault, forgive, forgiveness, repentant, unrepentant

Not simply because of an affair, no. It is certainly understandable if one desires to divorce a spouse who has committed adultery. The law understands this as well, which is why adultery is grounds for divorce in every state in…

After a divorce, is joint residential custody better or worse for the children?

Let’s indulge an analogy to answer this question. Is sugar good for you, or bad for you? It depends upon the circumstances. An occasional slice of cake or pie is a safe and pleasant way to enjoy sugar. ‘Nothing wrong…

Pulham v. Kirsling – 2018 UT App 65 – custody, parent-time, child support

July 3, 2019

Attorney Fees, Best Interest of the Child, Child Custody, Child Custody Modification, Child Support, Children in Divorce, Co-parenting, Custody, Custody Evaluation, Divorce Court, Divorce Law, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness, Divorce Procedure, Domestic Relations Commissioners, Expert Witnesses, Fathers' Divorce Issues, Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, Joint Legal Custody, Joint Physical Custody, Legal Custody, Men's Divorce Issues, Modification of Child Custody, Modification of Parent-time, Parent Time, Petition to Modify Decree of Divorce, Physical Custody, Procedure and Evidence, Relocation, Utah Code, Utah Court of Appeals, Utah Court of Appeals Decisions, Utah Court Rules, Utah Law

2018, 2018 UT App 65, amended decree, April 12, attorney fees on appeal, change elementary schools, commuting by car, custody evaluation, custody evaluator, final say, friends, income imputed, joint physical and legal custody, Judge Richard D. McKelvie, jurisdiction is limited, Margaret S. Edwards Attorney for Appellant, modification of parent-time, modifying child custody, motion for new trial, newly discovered evidence, No. 104901246, not in child’s best interest, notice of appeal, Office of Recovery Services (ORS), Opinion Nos. 20150577-CA and 20160236-CA, past-due child support, petition to modify custody, primary custodial parent, Pulham v. Kirsling, routine, rule 59(a) Utah Rules of Civil Procedure, Steve S. Christensen and Clinton R. Brimhall Attorneys for Appellee, substantial and material change in circumstances, surroundings, Third District Court Salt Lake Department, unnecessary adjustment, Utah Code section 30-3-35, Utah Court of Appeals

Pulham v. Kirsling – 2018 UT App 65 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS KRISTEN PULHAM, Appellee, v. WILLIAM KIRSLING, Appellant. Opinion Nos. 20150577-CA and 20160236-CA Filed April 12, 2018 Third District Court, Salt Lake Department The Honorable Richard D. McKelvie…

How many years is it likely to be before father’s rights are recognized as equal to mother’s rights in child custody cases?

July 3, 2019

Child Custody, Co-parenting, Custody, Divorce Fears, Divorce Law, Divorce Preparedness, Fathers' Divorce Issues, Men's Divorce Issues, Uncategorized

Not many. In fact, in many jurisdictions this has already occurred (many states have, in the past few years, passed laws that presume joint equal custody is in the child’s best interest).[1] In other jurisdictions it’s just around the corner.…

What do most TV shows and movies get wrong about the legal profession?

July 2, 2019

Divorce Attorneys, Divorce Fears, Divorce Law, Divorce Lawyers, Divorce Mistakes, Divorce Preparedness

I’m amazed at the number of people who believe, from what fictitious TV lawyers “accomplish,” that if the lawyers just try hard enough, do enough research, pound the pavement tenaciously, any case can be won. No. Some clients plainly do…

Can you re-file for custody after a judgment has been made?

July 1, 2019

Child Custody, Child Custody Modification, Uncategorized

Can you re-file for custody after a judgment has been made? Yes. In the context of a divorce or child custody action (not a termination of parental rights case), the answer is yes, at least in Utah (where I practice…

What do you do about domestic abuse?

June 28, 2019

Abuse, Domestic Violence, Protective Orders, Stalking Injunction/Civil Stalking Injunction

abuse, abused men, abused women, Domestic Violence, gun, protective order, stalking injunction, violence

I have not been the victim of domestic violence or abuse, but I have had some clients who are. If you have a good, honest, and responsive police force in your jurisdiction, coupled with the court that is willing to…

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