Don’t Count on Do-Overs: Meet Your Court Deadlines or Lose Your Rights
Courts (and the orders that govern them) mean it when they set deadlines. If you miss one, you can lose claims, defenses, evidence, or even your entire case. Excuses like…
Should You Depose Your Spouse During Your Divorce Case? By Braxton Mounteer, Legal Assistant
One of the best evidence-gathering tools that a divorce litigant has at his/her disposal is a deposition. What is a deposition? To answer that question, you first need to understand that a…
Miner v. Miner – 2025 UT App 64 – modifying alimony, attorney’s fees
Miner v. Miner - 2025 UT App 64 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS LISA P. MINER, Appellee, v. JOHN E. MINER, Appellant. Opinion No. 20230278-CA Filed May 8, 2025 Fifth…
A Critical Analysis of Court-Ordered Mental Health Therapy in Utah Family Law
In family law proceedings, particularly those involving child custody disputes, courts frequently order parents and children to engage in mental health therapy. While the ostensible intent behind these orders is…
How Should Parents Document Communications During Custody Disputes?
Great, great question. First, fairly and accurately. Do not selectively cite the other parents communications with you and with others. If you do that, your credibility suffers. Second, relevantly. So…
What Is the Correct Way to Answer a Yes/No Question in Your Family Law Proceeding?
With rare exception, the correct answer to any yes/no question (also known as a polar question) in your family law proceeding is: “yes,” “no,” or “I don’t know/I don’t remember”…
What is Good Evidence in Divorce Proceedings, and What Critical Role Does It Play?
In divorce litigation, strong, compelling evidence is the cornerstone of successfully navigating critical legal determinations. When significant issues such as child custody, child support, property division, marital debt allocation, and…
A Better Approach to Acquiring Child Testimonial Evidence in Child Custody Disputes
In Utah child custody disputes, the voices of children are almost always filtered through court-appointed private guardians ad litem (PGALs) and/or custody evaluators. These intermediaries will claim to represent what…
The Pros and Cons of Having Your Spouse Investigated by a Private Investigator During a Divorce in Utah. By Braxton Mounteer, Legal Assistant
Many individuals in a divorce consider hiring a private investigator, hoping to uncover information that could affect the outcome of the case. While hiring a private investigator (PI) may seem…
How Do I Know If My Custody Evaluator and Custody Evaluation Are Any Good? By Braxton Mounteer, Legal Assistant
In your divorce case, you, your spouse (or other parent) and your children may be required to undergo a custody evaluation. The custody evaluation is governed by Utah Code of Judicial Administration Rule…
Timeline of a Typical Utah Divorce Case: From Start to Finish
While every divorce case is unique, the following outlines the general stages and timeframes involved in a Utah divorce case. Understanding the basic timeline of a typical case in Utah…
“A Child Is More Honest in His Interview if He Knows the Interview Is Not Recorded” Makes About as Much Sense as “The Runner Goes Faster if He Knows He Is Not Timed.”
The overwhelming majority of judges and domestic relations commissioners in Utah will refuse to have the interview of children who are the subject of child custody disputes recorded by sound-and-visual…
Staszkiewicz v. Thomas – 2024 UT App 183
Staszkiewicz v. Thomas - 2024 UT App 183 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS MADISON STASZKIEWICZ, Appellee, v. TIFFANY N. THOMAS, Appellant. Opinion No. 20230229-CA Filed December 12, 2024 Third District…
Is Trial In Your Utah Divorce Case a Boxing Match or an Audition? By Braxton Mounteer
Everyone has seen a trial portrayed in a movie or video. An actual trial (especially in a divorce case) is not like television or movies would have you believe. Initially,…
Godfrey v. Godfrey – 2024 UT App 156 – Broad discretion, Abuse of discretion
2024 UT App 156 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS AMANDA GODFREY, Appellee, v. RANDY GODFREY, Appellant. Opinion No. 20210871-CA Filed October 31, 2024 Third District Court, Silver Summit Department The…
Utah Law Question: Discovery Closes in Less Than 28 Days, but Opposing Counsel Just Serve Discovery Requests. Am I Obligated to Respond?
Answer: Almost certainly no. See Dahl v. Harrison, 265 P.3d 139, 2011 UT App 389 (2011). Note: Under the current Utah Rules of Civil Procedure, responses to written discovery requests are due…
Two Reforms (Of Many) That I Suggest Are Likely Not What You Think They Would Be.
In my opinion (as a divorce and family law attorney for the past 27 years), a “less is more” approach is needed at this point. What do I mean? For…
How to Fill Out Your Financial Declaration, Paragraph 6. By Braxton Mounteer, Legal Assistant
Paragraph 6 of your financial declaration addresses your after-tax income. Your after-tax income is a simple calculation. Take your gross monthly income (calculated in paragraph 4) and subtract your monthly…
If My Ex Husband Had a Secret Bank Account Before We Were Married, Would I Be Entitled to Some of It After the Divorce? I Already Have a Private Investigator Looking Into It. Thanks in Advance!
This is an area where the laws differ substantially from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. To know what options may be available to you in your jurisdiction, you need to consult with…
How to Fill Out Your Financial Declaration, Paragraph Two. By Braxton Mounteer, Legal Assistant
Paragraph two of your financial declaration details the documents that you must attach to your financial declaration (unless they don't exist). It is not optional; they are the documents you are required…
Merrill v. Merrill – 2024 UT App 94 – Tax Rate, Expenses, Affect on Income Calculation
Merrill v. Merrill - 2024 UT App 94 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS LUTISHA MERRILL, Appellee, v. JOHN RICHARD MERRILL, Appellant. Opinion No. 20210785-CA Filed July 11, 2024 Third District…
Elder v. Elder – 2024 UT App 68 – enforcement vs. modification
Elder v. Elder - 2024 UT App 68 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS BRITTANY LEE ELDER, Appellee, v. MATT BLAKE ELDER, Appellant. Opinion No. 20210902-CA Filed May 9, 2024 Second…
Is There Anything I Can Do for Winning Custody After the Gal Report Is Favoring My Ex? Is Paying More to My Attorneys Worth It or No?
After you ask, “Is there anything I can do for winning custody after the GAL report is favoring my ex? Is paying more to my attorneys worth it or no?,”…
Is It Possible to Discredit a Biased Custody Evaluation Full of Unsubstantiated and False Claims?
Yes, it is possible, but not always possible, and when it is possible it is often very difficult to accomplish. Difficult not because custody evaluators are particularly competent (they typically…
2024 UT App 51 – Bailey v. Bailey – evidence, sanctions
2024 UT App 51 - Bailey v. Bailey THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS AMY L. BAILEY, Appellee, v. DANNY RAY BAILEY, Appellant. Opinion No. 20220534-CA Filed April 11, 2024 Second…
I Was Just Laid Off, Through No Fault of My Own, and Don’t Know How Soon I’ll Find Work Again or How Much I Might Actually Earn Once I Do. How Do I Get the Court to Reduce or Terminate My Alimony Obligation?
A reduction in the alimony award obligation is extremely difficult to obtain. It's designed to be difficult to modify downward, so that only those who 1) are truly unable to…
Why Get it Straight From the Horse’s Mouth When You Can Get a Truncated Version, Second-Hand?
When a custody evaluator and/or private guardian ad litem is/are appointed in a divorce case in which custody and parent-time of the children is disputed, they usually interview the children…
I Am Going through a Custody Battle and the Other Parent Is Making False Statements About Me in Court. What Can I Do to Protect Myself and My Child?
If you want just my direct answer to this question, skip to the last paragraph, but I submit that you’ll have a much better understanding of the answer if you…
If I’m asked to take a urine test in the courthouse, will someone watch me?
Probably. The schemes and technology for providing fake urine samples have advanced so much and are available so easily to everyone that most urine collection that courts order is observed…
Doing What’s Best for Children by Refusing to Hear From Them on the Subject (And Other Nonsense).
Recently an attorney posed a question on a forum for fellow Utah family law attorneys. The question involved how to find out what the children’s experiences have been with one…
Should You Ask for a Psychological Evaluation in Your Divorce Case? By Braxton Mounteer
The point of a psychological evaluation isn’t to establish if someone merely suffers from any mental or emotional disorder or disorders, but to help determine whether such disorders, if they…
Why Hiding Your Money in a Divorce and/or Child Support Court Case Won’t Work (and why people still try) By Braxton Mounteer
When those who will be ordered to divide assets with a spouse and/or pay child and/or spousal support (alimony) confront the matter, many try to lie about and to misrepresent their…
Family Law Legislation for the 2024 Utah State Legislative Session
Here is a list of the current proposed family law legislation for the 2024 Utah State Legislative session, along with a (very) brief description of the proposed legislation. If you…
Clarke v. Clarke – 2023 UT App 160
2023 UT App 160 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS EDWIN M. CLARKE, Appellee, v. ANGOZI R.S. CLARKE, Appellant. Opinion No. 20220067-CA Filed December 29, 2023 Third District Court, Silver Summit…
Evidence and Honesty By Braxton Mounteer
You have just decided to file for divorce. Or perhaps you have been served with divorce papers. At some point early on in the process you will likely think to…
Utah Divorce and Your Financial Declaration: Why it Matters, and How to Prepare It the Right Way
In every Utah divorce case, the parties must prepare what is known as a financial declaration. The parties to a divorce action are required by the rules of court to…
In re A.S.G.-R. – 2023 UT App 126 – permanent custody and guardianship
In re A.S.G.-R. - 2023 UT App 126 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS STATE OF UTAH, IN THE INTEREST OF A.S.G.-R., A PERSON UNDER EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE. G.R., Appellant,…
Why Do Utah Courts Not Allow Child Testimony?
I had lunch today with a former legal assistant of mine who is now a law student in Arizona. Over the summer he shadowed judges in Maricopa County during their…
Clark v. Clark – 2023 UT App 111 – divorce, exhibits, dissipation
Clark v. Clark - 2023 UT App 111 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS SUSAN JEANNE CLARK, Appellee, v. RICHARD LEE CLARK, Appellant. Opinion No. 20210713-CA Filed September 28, 2023 Fourth…
Completeness of Documentation By Braxton Mounteer
One of the hardest documents for a Utah divorce litigant to prepare is the financial declaration. I am amazed at the number of clients who don't take this document and…
Important things divorce attorney clients need to know but would easily and freely be forgiven for not knowing without being told. No. 4:
Your attorney cannot do what only you can do. Your attorney cannot answer questions posed to you until you provide your attorney with the information and facts needed to answer…
How to Avoid Being Called a Liar in a Utah Case By Braxton Mounteer
Who would you believe more in a court case: a person who admits to his/her faults, who honestly discloses all of his/her relevant information (even the information that hurts his/her…
Knight v. Knight – 2023 UT App 86 – trusts and alimony
Knight v. Knight - 2023 UT App 86 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS JARED M. KNIGHT, Appellee, v. REBECCA B. KNIGHT, Appellant. Opinion No. 20210080-CA Filed August 10, 2023 Third…
Do Family Courts Ever Verify the Information a Parent Offers in a Divorce Proceeding, Things Like Income, Housing, Bills, Savings, or Is It Dependent on the Other Parent to Object if the Information Is Fantasy Rather Than Reality Based?
Great question. Your question helped to clarify something I have started to notice more and more among many people who are not divorce and family law attorneys or experienced in…
Fox v. Fox 2022 UT App 88 – alimony
Fox v. Fox 2022 UT App 88 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS DIANN SHERI FOX, Appellant, v. BENJAMIN DAVIS FOX, Appellee. Opinion No. 20200949-CA Filed July 14, 2022 Fifth District…
Nix v. Nix – 2022 UT App 83- insufficient evidence of adultery
2022 UT App 83 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS JILL NIX, Appellee, v. ROLAND COMPTON NIX JR., Appellant. Opinion No. 20200691-CA Filed June 30, 2022 Fourth District Court, Provo Department…
T.W. v. S.A. – 2021 UT App 132 – child custody
2021 UT App 132 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS T.W., Appellant, v. S.A., Appellee. Opinion No. 20200397-CA Filed November 26, 2021 Third District Court, West Jordan Department The Honorable Dianna…
Johansen v. Johansen – 2021 UT App 130 – compliance with court rules
2021 UT App 130 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS COLTEN JOHANSEN, Appellee, KATHY JOHANSEN, Appellant. Opinion No. 20200234-CA Filed November 26, 2021 Second District Court, Ogden Department The Honorable Joseph…
How do courts insist upon custody evaluations being conducted?
With rare exception in Utah (so rare that it might as well be non-existent), the way courts insist upon custody evaluations being conducted consists of: the court imposing one and…
What are legitimate ways to contradict a witness in the court?
If you are asking whether there are “legitimate” ways to make truthful witness look inaccurate or dishonest (meaning there are ways to do it that won’t get you in trouble),…