In some North Carolina counties, including Pitt County, there is a specific Family Court Program devoted to cases involving child custody and support, alimony and equitable distribution (division of marital property). In Pitt County we have a Family Court Administrator and two Family Court Coordinators. I’ll call the program FC for Family Court. What’s the […]
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What is a Legal Separation in North Carolina?
In our state, the term “legally separated” is a term of art used by attorneys, and misused by many non-attorneys. This legal separation is a decree made by a judge after a special trial based on marital fault. The court enters an official decree, stating that you or your spouse was wronged and declaring you separated. […]
What’s Involved With a Divorce?
In North Carolina, marital fault is not required to obtain a divorce. In most circumstances, the parties must be separated for at least one year before either party may file a lawsuit for a divorce. A divorce severs the legal relationship between two married people, and impacts many legal rights and responsibilities. There is no common law marriage in our […]
Common Law Marriage: Did You Accidentally Get Married?
Common law marriages are based on an agreement between the parties, without any paperwork or a formal ceremony performed by a person vested with authority to perform marriages. In my practice, I have met a number of people who believed they were “common law married” in North Carolina. Some people have the mistaken notion that […]
What is perjury?
Perjury was deemed illegal by inclusion in the Ten Commandments, the first legal system, in Exodus 20:16. According to the Oxford Dictionary, the word perjury comes from the Latin word perjurium meaning false oath. In our state, perjury is defined as an intentional false statement under oath in court, in a deposition, or in matters the law […]
What is a Deposition?
What is a Deposition? A deposition is essentially when a person testifies outside of a courtroom. The witness, who may be subpoenaed, is usually required to go to the office of one of the attorneys where a person called a court reporter also attends. The reporter prepares a written statement to be distributed to both […]
Taking Care of Business: Child Support When a Parent is Self-Employed or Owns a Business
Our state’s child support guidelines calculate child support obligations based on gross incomes of parents, any work-related childcare, health insurance and several other factors. When a parent has a salary and W-2 statement, it is usually easier to determine that parent’s gross income. A parent who is self-employed and/or owns a business has at least […]
Are Bad Parents Rewarded in Custody Cases?
In the real world, people’s morals form the foundation of their beliefs, of right and wrong. If someone does something wrong, there is an expectation of consequence or penalty. A parent punishes a child for bad behavior. Or, relatives might disown each other and spend decades estranged from one another because one of them wronged […]
Untying the Knot: Alimony in Our State
The law in North Carolina defines alimony as payment for the support and maintenance of a spouse or former spouse. A judge may order it in monthly payments, a lump sum and possibly by payment of certain expenses, such as health insurance. Temporary alimony is called post-separation support (PSS), which the court may award on […]