People are often confused by the term “paternity action.” When I use the term paternity, I am often met with, “there’s no question about paternity.” A paternity action refers to an action to determine child custody and child support for a child who is born to parents who were never married. Even when there is [..]
Many people still refer to maintenance as “alimony.” However, the statutory term is maintenance. This would typically be expressed as a monthly payment that is paid from one party to the other post-divorce. It is an obligation of support that the Court imposes in certain cases. Most divorce cases do not result in an obligation [..]
One of the most common questions that I get asked is what age a child has to be in order to choose who he/she lives with. The short answer to this in the State of Missouri is 18. There seems to be a common myth that a child gets to choose at a particular age. [..]
Many people are unaware that there are two different categories of custody in Missouri and both must be included in a custody judgment. I have many people who come into my office, either as clients, parents in a case in which I am Guardian ad Litem, or as a case that I am mediating, who [..]
Some people believe that an even split of custody automatically results in an order that neither party pay child support. That is not necessarily true. Child support is still based upon a calculation that is called a Form 14, and typically the higher earner will still be obligated to pay support. The State recently adopted [..]
There has recently been a lot of hype in the media regarding recent revisions to the child custody laws in the State of Missouri. The common misconception is that it creates a presumption that a 50/50 custody arrangement is in the best interests of a child. Actually, an initial proposal included language of that nature. [..]
Mediation is a process in which two parties sit down with a third party to resolve their legal issues. Mediators in the State of Missouri can be attorneys or trained counselors, both with additional training in mediation. Courts will often order parties who have unresolved custody issues to attend mediation prior to setting the matter [..]
There are a few main categories of issues that we have to tackle in a divorce case. Namely, those are division of property and debt, maintenance, child custody, child support, and attorneys’ fees. Not every issue will apply in every case. If there are no minor children involved, that will, obviously, eliminate child custody and [..]
