22. October 2010 by amills.

You may have seen on television ads for companies  that purport to offer divorce forms for $39.99. Please be aware of the maxim: Let the buyer beware.  We have had numerous calls from clients who purchased forms such as this only to receive them and be bewildered.  These companies often offer a “one size fits all” approach to divorce.  They send you the forms with blanks and expect you to be able to complete them correctly.  The problem is, one size does not fit all in the legal world.  Different states and different counties have specific rules.  Your divorce may not be the same as another person’s across town or across the state.  MissouriDivorceSource takes a personalized approach to your divorce.  We learn about your situation and prepare all of the divorce documents to your specifications.  A real lawyer will call you after submission of the online form. You will not “fill in a blank.”  In fact, if your divorce is rejected because of a defect in our forms, we will fix it for free. Check with the “$39.99″ company and see if they will offer that kind of guarantee.

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27. April 2009 by amills.

QUESTION:  My daughter is 19 and going to college out of state. Do I have to keep paying child support to her mother or can I pay it directly to my daughter?

ANSWER:  It is possible to pay child support directly to a child under limited circumstances. The circumstances you describe would likely qualify.  In order to pay child support directly to the child, the Court who issued the original divorce decree must consent to the arrangement.  As a practical matter, if your spouse agrees the support can be paid directly to the college student, then the parties can enter a stipulation with the Court.  If your spouse will not agree to such an arrangement, then the party paying child support must file a Motion with the Court

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30. May 2008 by amills.

Courtney & Mills is now pleased to offer a DIY divorce option through our www.SpringfieldDivorceLaw.com website. So often, we have phone calls from people who have attempted to navigate family court for a divorce on their own, only to be met with frustration. There are so many forms to fill out, different courts require different things, and then, there is the nagging fear something has not been done properly. Our online divorce is for people who want the security of having an attorney prepare all of the paperwork for their divorce, with the cost saving feature of not hiring the attorney to do anything else. This type of limited scope representation is authorized by the Missouri Bar. With this system, you know the paperwork will be right– it is guaranteed. Simply fill out on the online form. In a few days, you will receive all of the documents you need to get divorced. These documents are customized to you! All you have to do is sign them and submit them to the appropriate Court. You will receive step by step instructions for completing your own divorce so you are secure in the fact everything has been done properly. This option is best for people with few assets to divide, who have reached agreements about division of those assets and custody for the children. Our online divorce is a fraction of the cost of typical hourly rate divorces. Plus, if circumstances change in the divorce and you need personal representation, we will credit your online fees against our hourly rate if you hire us.

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27. February 2008 by amills.

Your marriage is breaking up. It feels as if you have lost control and your world is collapsing around you. Now is the time to get a grip and take control of your finances. Divorce can wreak havoc on your finances and your credit rating.  But, with a few easy step, you can minimize the damage.

1. Pull your credit report:  Everyone is entitled to a free credit report each year from each of the 3 big credit rating companies- Experian, Transunion, and Equifax. Visit www.annualcreditreport.com to get your free report.  By looking at your credit report, you will be reminded of the accounts that you opened, but no longer use. Consider your options on each open account to prevent your spouse from inflicting a financial strike.

2. Decide what to do with each account: Your options include closing the account, freezing the account, removing authorized users from the account, and doing nothing to the account. If you owe a balance on a joint credit account, you will likely not be able to close the account.  The next best option is to freeze the account so no one can run up a balance.  If you are going to take action, do so before the divorce is filed or else the Interim Family Law Order will prevent action.

3. Open individual accounts:   Get a bank account and credit card in your own name so you can continue to run your financial affairs.

4. Change the beneficiaries:  If you have named your spouse as beneficiary in a will, bank account, life insurance policy, retirement account, or any other type account, remember to change the beneficiary so your spouse won’t get an unexpected windfall if you die during the divorce process.   If you are going to change the beneficiary on an account, do so before the divorce is filed or else the Interim Family Law Order will prevent this action.

5. Consider what type of lawyer you want to hire:  Some people think they will punish their spouse by hiring the nastiest divorce lawyer they can.  Remember, the more your attorney fights on the issues, the more time the divorce will take and  the more money it will cost you.  Most of the time, property is divided equitably.  Find a lawyer with a good reputation for working well with clients and other attorneys.

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7. December 2007 by amills.

When a non-custodial parent is ordered to pay child support, that obligation does end, eventually. In general, the obligation to pay child support will end when the child: 1) dies, 2) marries, 3) enters active military duty, 4) becomes self –sufficient, or 5) reaches the age of 18 and does not continue his/her education full-time. In any event, the obligation to pay child support ends at age 21.

With regard to education, a parent’s obligation to pay child support continues so long as the child is enrolled full time in a post-secondary educational program. The child must be enrolled at least 12 hours per semester, and must be able to provide proof of the enrollment. A post-secondary program includes college as well as technical or vocational school. If the child takes off even one semester, the obligation to pay child-support ends, permanently.

The Missouri legislature recently changed the law to say the obligation to pay child support ends when the child reaches 21, regardless of their status in school.

A person should always consult with an attorney, before terminating child support on his or her own, to ensure some special circumstance does not apply.

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28. September 2007 by amills.

A client called me the other day asking whether his child support payments would be deducted from his paycheck before taxes or after taxes. The question is really more fundamental than that. Another way to frame the question is: “ Who gets paid first—the government or your children?” The answer is the government.

When child support is deducted from the paycheck of a non-custodial parent, it is deducted after taxes. In Missouri, federal, state, local, and FICA taxes will be withheld before the child support payment. I know it seems unfair. After all, when child support is calculated in Missouri, a parent’s gross income is used. However, in all fifty states, taxes are deducted before child support.

Another tax implication to consider is that the child support guidelines assume the custodial parent will get the benefit of claiming the children as dependents for federal and state income tax purposes. However, this is a point for negotiation in the divorce. As the non-custodial parent’s time with the minor children increases, the better the argument becomes for sharing the deduction. Couples often agree to alternate years on claiming the children as dependents—i.e., mom can claim the children in even years while dad can claim them in odd years. Where multiple children are involved, parents may agree to permanently allocate the children between the parents for tax purposes.

Always consult with your attorney or accountant when considering the tax implications in divorce.

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