Legal Articles, General Practice

Filing for divorce will not solve any debt issues that you and your spouse have. This is because debt is divided between the spouses in a divorce. You and your spouse will share the responsibility for any debts that you accumulated over the course of your marriage. This includes joint loans, joint tax returns, or anything else that you and your spouse signed together.

In a divorce action, the Supreme Court of Connecticut considered, for the first time, whether postnuptial agreements (entered into during a marriage) are valid and enforceable in this State.

Deciding to adopt is one of the most joyous times in one’s life. However, navigating the legal field surrounding adoption may seem daunting. Having a basic understanding of how the process works can alleviate unnecessary stress.

In a post-judgment divorce action earlier this year, involving a stipulation agreement, the Superior Court of Connecticut, Judicial District of Fairfield at Bridgeport found a father in contempt of a court order that required him to provide health insurance coverage for his minor child, or at least pay a portion of her premium.

Every lawyer who handles divorce cases recognizes that grimace.  We often see the reaction from other lawyers and people in everyday conversation when they hear we litigate divorces and custody matters.  Most often, the grimace is followed by a verbal recognition of how “draining” or “difficult” the business can be. Invariably, that reference relates not merely to the two individuals who have decided that their marriage is no longer viable; rather, the fallout often squarely lands on the children caught in the midst of a custody battle during a divorce – or sometimes, in a residential relocation petition by one parent in the years after a divorce. Where young children are involved, divorce lawyers regrettably see a frequency of parental alienation by one party or the other, an active or passive attempt by a divorce litigant to cause the children of that union to align against his or her soon-to-be ex-spouse.

In a post judgment divorce case, the Connecticut Appellate Court validated the use of ongoing discovery to obtain documentation necessary to perform an independent review of an alimony payor’s income. In this particular case, the parties obtained an uncontested divorce in 2007. Pursuant to their separation agreement, the husband was required to pay the wife alimony in accordance with designated percentages of his gross income.

In a decision, the Connecticut Appellate Court affirmed a trial court order requiring a father to pay post secondary educational expenses even though no finding had been made that the parties would have provided support for college expenses had the family remained intact.  The parties in this action obtained an uncontested divorce in 2007.  Pursuant to the terms of their separation agreement, the court retained jurisdiction “to allocate between the parties any and all college tuition and expenses incurred on behalf of the minor child…”

The Connecticut Supreme Court held that child support orders may be modified upon a change in primary residence, even where a separation agreement contains language expressly precluding such modification.  In this particular case, the parties are the parents of two minor children.  Following their divorce, the children lived with the mother on a primary basis.

In a post-judgment divorce action, the Superior Court of Connecticut, Judicial District of Stamford-Norwalk at Stamford denied a husband’s motion seeking modification of his child support obligation on multiple grounds. When a parent seeks to modify the amount of his child support payments, he or she must show the existence of a substantial change in circumstances that would render it unfair to hold both parties to the terms of the previous order. Whether parental alienation constitutes such a change was at issue in this case.

The Superior Court of Connecticut, Judicial District of Stamford-Norwalk at Stamford considered a case of first impression regarding whether third parties are bound to automatic orders pursuant to a dissolution action. In this case, the plaintiff’s former wife commenced a dissolution action, and automatic orders were attached to the complaint, including one which prohibits the encumbrance of property without consent of the other party or by judicial order. However, in direct violation of the orders, the plaintiff’s wife executed and delivered two mortgages on the marital home to the defendant. Four years later, the plaintiff entered into a written contract to sell the home. When the plaintiff demanded that the defendant release the mortgages, the defendant refused and this lawsuit commenced.