Blog entries

My Ex Isn’t Following Our Court Order, Now What?” A/K/A Deadbeat Spouse

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 08:19:23 +0100

You and your ex-spouse had a “dream” divorce. There was no yelling, no name calling, no arguments regarding the kids, parenting plan or child support. Heck, your Ex didn’t even have an issue refinancing the house and getting you off the mortgage and the deed. Neither of you wanted alimony, but you sure did appreciate him/her offering to pay off that $10,000.00 credit card bill in your name that you both ran up during the marriage. Things went soRead More...

Enforcing Out-of-State ‘Common Law’ Marriages in Georgia

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 09:37:54 +0100

If you relocated to Georgia with your ‘significant other,’ a Georgia court may find that even though the two of you never had an official ceremony or obtained a marriage license, he or she may still be your “husband” or “wife” – and entitled to all the benefits and burdens that come along with the title.

Recently, in Norman v. Ault, No. S10F0874, the Georgia Supreme Court emphasized that despite the statute that discontinued ‘common law’ marriages created within GeorgiaRead More...

Mother Jailed For Alienating Daughters From Dad

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 09:51:30 +0100

In a highly unusual move, a judge ordered a mother jailed for interfering with ex-husband's visitation with his children. In Lauren R. v Ted R. Justice Robert Ross ordered to the mother to report to jail for repeatedly violating the...

View the full post by clicking this link:

http://divorce.clementlaw.com/2010/06/articles/child-custody/mother-jailed-for-alienating-daughters-from-dad/

I think courts should take this step prior to the relationship being irreversiblRead More...

YOU GOT SERVED!!

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 10:45:38 +0100

YOU GOT SERVED!! What does it mean to be “served” according to Georgia law and what do you do if you are served with process?

Every civil lawsuit (including domestic relations cases such as divorce and child support modification) requires what is called service of process. The purpose of service is of course, to notify the person being sued, also known as the “Defendant” or “Respondent,” that a lawsuit has bRead More...

State-wide Fee Increase

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Fri, 21 May 2010 09:27:52 +0100

House Bill 1055 adopted by the Georgia House of Representatives and the Georgia State Senate and signed into law May 14, 2010, by Governor Sonny Perdue caused all court costs to increase effective that day.

Pursuant to the above, attached please find a list of court cost fee increases from the Fulton County Daily Report, the Fulton County’s official court record.

In summary, the court costs increased as follows:

· Read More...

Are Prenuptial Agreements enforceable in Georgia? (Part II of a II Part Series)

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Fri, 07 May 2010 08:19:57 +0100

Are Prenuptial Agreements enforceable in Georgia? (Part II of a II Part Series)

As usual, the best way to illustrate the current state of the law is to give an example by way of recent precedent. One particularly illustrative case is Mallen v. Mallen, a case decided by the Georgia Supreme Court in 2005. In Mallen, the Supreme Court upheld a prenuptial agreement after an in-depth examination of the facts on the record, which were fairly sympathetic and arguably in favor for the wifRead More...

Listen to Divorce Resource on Parental Alienation

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 07:45:18 +0100

Click here to listen to Atlanta Child Custody Attorney Mary Stearns-Montgomery on parental alienation!

Are Prenuptial Agreements enforceable in Georgia? (Part I of a II Part Series)

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 08:50:20 +0100

It seems that whenever a client calls to inquire about a prenuptial agreement (also known as an antenuptial agreement), that their initial concern is whether such an agreement will hold up under judicial scrutiny. Recent case law answers this question with a resounding “yes”….as long as the agreement is drafted prudently by a knowledgeable attorney.

Until 1982, prenuptial agreements were rejected by Georgia courts as a matter of law because they were deemed to bRead More...

Your ex-spouse may still be a beneficiary

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 09:33:45 +0100

Your ex-spouse may still be a beneficiary of your estate. Have you changed all of your beneficiary designations? – Whether it is for your retirement benefits or your life insurance, if you don’t remember to change your beneficiary forms when you get divorced your spouse will remain the beneficiary.

It goes without saying that it is important for your divorce lawyer to carefully craft a settlement agreement to submit to the court in your divorce case so that the agreement accurately Read More...

Getting released from liability for the mortgage: Is requiring a refinancing enough?

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 11:41:33 +0100

Thirty years is the initial term of most mortgages, so in a divorce situation it is generally of utmost importance for both parties to reach an agreement that specifically establishes a workable method to dispose of the marital mortgage. The idea is to not only to legally separate yourself from your spouse, but also from all marital debt so that you can start your new life without worrying about previous obligations.

Unfortunately, getting released from liability for the mortgage isRead More...

Child Custody Basics

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 15:46:38 +0100

In an initial custody dispute between the parents over the custody of a minor child, the sole question to be determined is what is in the best interests of the child. This question can only be answered by a judge, as Georgia law prohibits juries from determining custody matters. Essentially, there are no boundaries as to what a judge may look at in determining a child’s best interests, as the law provides that the judge may consider “any relevant factor.”

Unfortunately, each judgeRead More...

Rules of Un-Engagement

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 08:06:55 +0100

If you have watched any television over the holiday season, you have undoubtedly been subjected to the seemingly never-ending barrage of jewelry commercials portraying husbands and boyfriends surprising their wives and girlfriends with fine rings, bracelets, necklaces, etc. Of course, the jewelry companies are hoping to convince their male audience that the answer to happily ever after lies in their ability to give their significant other a perfect (and hopefully expensive) piece of jewelry.Read More...

Relocation Options for the Future

Mary Stearns-Montgomery — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100

5 Reasons to Keep Your Options Open

You've probably thought about this a few times recently, but it used to be so much easier to find and keep a job! You would get hired by a terrific company, work hard and advance in the organization as you proved your worth. You could establish roots in the company, as well as in the community. That has all changed, and I'm now receiving many more questions about the importance of factoring the posRead More...