Global Family Law Services
Effective July 24, 2011, New York will join the small but growing list of states that explicitly recognize and permit same-sex marriages. Many lawmakers and members of the general public remain opposed to same-sex marriage, but New York’s decision suggests that wider acceptance may be on the horizon. Within any random sample of couples a certain percentage will choose to…
Peter Frampton filed for divorce from his third wife, Christina Elfers-Frampton, on June 21. The couple has a 15 year old daughter. The story varies from one news outlet to the next, with one stating that he wants joint legal custody but for primary physical to go to Elfers, and another stating that he wants only visitation time. When clients…
Her story has garnered national and international coverage and sympathy, spawned an online petition to North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue that is nearing 100,000 signatures, prompted its own Facebook site, and launched Durham County District Court Judge Nancy E. Gordon to infamy. In June, North Carolina mother Alaina Giordano will be required to relinquish possession and custody of her two…
People like to talk about principle. Clients will often walk through our doors and say that “the principle is worth fighting for, regardless of the cost.” And some principles really are worth fighting for. But is this always true? Does principle always outweigh the cost? Consider same-sex marriage. People have all sorts of principles that make them either for or…
At the beginning of this month Elizabeth Hurley filed for divorce from her husband of four years, Indian businessman and textile heir Arun Nayar. While she claimed the divorce was caused by Nayar’s “unreasonable behavior,” her own behavior made headlines several months prior when the tabloids broke the news of her infidelity with the also married Australian cricket player Shane…
On September 21, 1996 President Bill Clinton signed into law the Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA.”) The DOMA is short – its effective sections contain fewer than 150 words. Yet those few words make a monumental impact on the lives of millions of United States citizens. First, the DOMA defines a “marriage” as a legal union between one man and…
If you have paid any attention to the news lately then you probably already know that actor Charlie Sheen was fired. Both tabloids and mainstream news outlets have reported that he was terminated from the show “Two and a Half Men,” effective immediately. The decision by Warner Brothers comes as little surprise to most, after his highly publicized personal and…
Couples break up all the time. While often the breakup means simply going in separate directions, when a child is involved the court system most often becomes involved. Issues related to child rearing are difficult for intact partnerships – everything from what school the children will attend, to what religion, if any, they will be raised in, to what they…
Often the most contentious of family law matters are child custody cases. When one parent wants to relocate with a child the other parent may fear they could lose their child forever, and will fight long and hard to prevent the move. A relocation case is always difficult when one parent disagrees with the potential move. But perhaps the most…
When asked at the outset of a case, most clients say that they want to resolve their matter through a fair settlement. Many mean it. Others only think they want to settle, when what they really want is a fight, or to inflict pain on their spouse. Many clients recognize how terrible it sounds to come out and say they…