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Category: Family Law

What to Expect in a Divorce Action

Gain Key Insights on Legal Proceedings, Negotiations, and Asset Division Featured Snippet: A divorce action generally involves initiating divorce proceedings, negotiation, trial preparation, and property distribution. It is a well-known fact that divorces are far from being one-size-fits-all cases. Much like every other situation in life, they vary greatly based on the unique circumstances surrounding each couple. Legally termed a "dissolution of marriage," many divorces are resolved without the need for contested courtroom proceedings. However, if negotiations fail, the case may proceed to trial. The complexity of a divorce typically revolves around two main factors: whether min ...

Child Support Calculations in Indiana and Kentucky

Featured Snippet: Child support obligations are distributed fairly between both parents based on their individual incomes and other data. The calculation sums up the parents’ incomes using weekly gross income as the basis. Child support calculations are about figuring out how much money one parent should give to the other for their children’s upkeep when separated or divorced. Discussions around child support are often tough because they involve emotions and money. However, understanding how child support calculations work can make these conversations easier. Both parents can set realistic expectations and have healthy discussions without feeling cheated or unfairly treated. It ...

What Legal Rights Does a Non-Custodial Parent Have?

While divorce is difficult and often incredibly emotional, its effects go far beyond the separation of two adults who no longer wish to be married. When minor children are involved, decisions about custody must be made. Decisions are made based on the best interests of the child. And unless a parent has serious problems that could endanger the child, the courts typically favor the involvement of both parents in raising their children. Most often, parents share custody in Indiana. The parent with whom the child spends more time is typically considered the custodial parent. The other parent is the non-custodial parent. The term “non-custodial” can be confusing. It might lead some no ...

How is Pet Custody Determined in the Divorce Process?

We Know the Treatment of Pets in the Divorce Process Is Important to You. A pet custody agreement drafted by skilled divorce attorney is essential. Most people consider pets to be part of the family, not property. The law sees them differently. Thankfully, our divorce attorneys know a way you can work around that fact. There are steps you can take to create a pet custody agreement during a divorce. This agreement will help determine how pet custody will be handled in your divorce. We love our pets, and for good reason. Companion animals have been known to lower stress, teach children compassion, and help ease symptoms of depression. When it comes to divorce, deciding who gets Flu ...

Do I Need a Lawyer for Mediation?

Mediation is a way to resolve your differences with another party and avoid the high costs in time, energy, emotion and money that come with litigation. It involves a neutral third party who guides the parties to an agreement which ends the dispute. You don’t need a lawyer to be involved in mediation, but if your dispute involves your federal or Indiana legal rights, it’s best that you have one to help you. A mediator is normally an attorney who does this full time or as part of his or her legal practice, as we do at Church, Langdon, Lopp, Banet Law. Mediators can handle any kind of dispute, whether it’s related to divorce, child custody, disagreements between business owners or rea ...

Should Indiana’s Spousal Maintenance Law Change?

If you’re a spouse who sacrificed a career to care for children and later divorces, you may get spousal support for only three years. If you’re back in the workforce after being absent for years, this isn’t much time to get your income to a level where you can comfortably support yourself. This part of Indiana family law has come under scrutiny and should be changed because of the unfairness it can cause. This type of spousal maintenance (the term “alimony” isn’t used in Indiana law) is known as rehabilitative maintenance. It’s supposed to help “rehabilitate” a spouse whose unpaid job (possibly for decades) was to care for children and a household; it gives a three-year ...

Mediation Can Help Bring Legal Actions to an Early Conclusion

The legal system has become so complex, time consuming and costly that parties normally work very hard to avoid using it. After a civil lawsuit is filed, negotiations may ebb and flow, but the vast majority of Indiana lawsuits are resolved through settlements, not verdicts after trials. Those are the endings you see in movies and TV -- reality is normally far less dramatic. Mediation is the use of a neutral third party to help the parties negotiate a resolution. At Church, Langdon, Lopp, Banet Law, Larry Church, Jason Lopp and Dana Eberle not only negotiate settlements for their clients involved in litigation, but they also work as mediators in other cases. There are many benefits to s ...

Considerations for Postnuptial and Prenuptial Agreements

An Indiana divorce can drain you of energy, emotion and dollars. Two potential ways to prevent or lessen those losses are prenuptial and postnuptial agreement, drafted by a family lawyer. They are agreements made between the parties either before (prenuptial) or after (postnuptial) they’re married These agreements can spell out how various issues (but not child custody or support) will be resolved in case the parties end their marriage. Without one of these agreements, under Indiana law all property brought into a marriage or acquired during it is joined together and will be subject to division in a divorce. Under Kentucky law, property is deemed marital or nonmarital. The division of p ...

Should I Insure My Child Support Payments? 

Child support in a divorce ensures that parents give their child the quality of life and support they intended to provide while they were still married. It's a critical component of most divorce agreements when the couple has children. Yet what many parents fail to consider is what will happen to their child's quality of life and their support payments if at some point in the future the supporting parent dies or becomes disabled. In these instances, the income providing the support stops, but the child's need for support does not. One way to ensure that the child will receive all of the support necessary, in spite of obstacles like these, is through insuring the child support. Many parents a ...

Educational Support Orders

Married parents get to choose whether they will (or whether they can) finance their child’s college education. For divorced parents, however, that choice is one of the luxuries they often have to sacrifice. Nearly everyone is familiar with the concept of child support in divorce and custody cases. The court can (and nearly always does) order one parent to pay child support to the other parent. Child support is a contribution toward the child’s basic needs: a roof over his head, food in her stomach, clothes on his back. Child support ends at a certain age by statute or upon certain life events, such as marriage or enlistment in the military. When the parents don’t have a combined house ...

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Indiana Divorce: It’s Not Community Property

Learn More about Equitable Property Distribution Featured Snippet: Learn how your marital assets, debts, and financial duties will be distributed if you get divorced in Indiana. The general rule is justice and equity as opposed to community property practices. There are cou ...