Let’s discuss this principle in the context of DUIs, but the principle applies in any situation in which you could be questioned in regard to any crime. What is hard…
Much. And much that you can prevent, once you know what to avoid, what to do, and why. Profiteering mediators. It’s hard to find anyone selling goods or services these days…
Most attorney websites that contain “articles” on prenuptial agreements aren’t really articles but thinly veiled sales pitches for prenuptial agreements. This post is not one of those. I have always…
I can’t speak for all jurisdictions, but in the jurisdiction where I practice divorce and family law (Utah), child support awards are generally, in my opinion, 1) too high, 2)…
You may be asking yourself, why should I order from the court a copy of the audio recordings of my court hearings? Shouldn’t the court's own notes in the written…
Whether you “get the child” (meaning whether you will be awarded physical custody of the child) has little to no relevance to the fact that your spouse is seeking child…
I often encounter sneaky spouses who after separation and/or after a divorce action has been filed, start sending text messages and emails to the other spouse making false claims like:…
Most people fundamentally misunderstand what the Internet and social media are. Many believe that social media is a web of interconnections where you can send and receive updates about your…
Before you read another word, know this: the answer in these situations is, “It depends on many and varying factors.” Nobody likes that kind of answer, but it’s the truth…
I know you want to believe that divorce mediation is the trick to a fast, easy, cheap, amicable divorce. I know you want to believe this, and we know why.…
To those of you who ask, “How did I lose that argument in my divorce case? The judge couldn’t say why he/she believed my witness(es) over my spouse’s witness(es)!”: A district…
Generally, yes. Utah Family Law, LC | divorceutah.com | 801-466-9277 (48) Are good people suffering more from divorce than bad ones? - Quora
In my time as a legal assistant in the family law profession, I have observed many different kinds of client behaviors, some better than others. Those behaviors that cause the…
Research is hard to come by. Reliable research even harder. But here is what I could find in short order (how accurate it is I cannot say): https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2017-23543-004 Maybruch, C.,…
That's a good question. One that I've wondered about myself, but I don't know of any such studies. That doesn't mean they don't exist, it's just that I don't know…
Many people complain (justifiably) about child support in this regard: parents who qualify to receive child support or to receive more child support by being unemployed, underemployed or who deliberately…
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…
This is a subject that comes up frequently. It comes up frequently not because misappropriating child support is a hard problem to mitigate but because the courts don’t have the…
In divorce actions, be sure to distinguish between the different tax treatment of Roth and traditional IRAs. Investopedia.com stated it clearly and concisely: “The traditional IRA allows you to contribute…
Generally: It appears that the law in Utah is that the trial court is not required to consider hypothetical and/or future tax consequences of the disposition of the marital estate. See Howell v. Howell,…
Special masters and parent coordinators (and co-parenting therapists, co-parent coaches/consultants, and their ilk) were invented for the purpose of unburdening courts from some of the conflict associated with domestic relations…
No matter how hard people try to argue against remarriage (or marriage, for that matter), for all but a very, very few of us the arguments aren't true. Going through…
As any attorney can do with any client, a PGAL clearly has the right to argue on a child client's behalf, and the Utah Code makes clear that a PGAL…
As any attorney can do with any client, a PGAL clearly has the right to argue on a child client's behalf, and the Utah Code makes clear that a PGAL…
Utah Code § 78A-2-705 provides that, “The court may appoint an attorney as a private attorney guardian ad litem to represent the best interests of the minor in any district…
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…
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…
I think I know why you think it’s weird. Why have the children live with one parent instead both parents on an equal custody basis? In other words, “I’ll bear…
Sometimes a business is a marital asset. When the value of a business that is a marital asset is divided in divorce, the question of the “goodwill value” of the…
Divorce is corrosive. What it does not destroy it almost always affects adversely whatever it touches. The things that survive divorce’s initial devastation are forever changed. This effect is seen…
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…
Question: I am ordered to pay child support to my ex. My ex and I are both ordered to share the cost of our child’s health, medical, dental, and hospital care…
The Utah State Legislature passed this into law an amendment to Utah Code § 77-36-2.1, which was effective May 3, 2023. The newly amended code section now requires police officers to…
Family law is, for most lawyers, a miserable practice area. You have to have the right personality and constitution for it. If you want to be a family lawyer to…
It does not matter whether or how the legal system could support or better support parents who lose child custody cases because it is not the purpose of the legal…
Absolutely. No question about it. Now, don’t confuse “he has every right to ask for receipts” with “he has every right to receipts”. If a child support payor (known in some jurisdictions as the…
You have just received an email from your lawyer about a deadline that your lawyer needs your help to meet. What should you do? You are already extremely busy with your life and…
That is a great question. Most lawyers who have tried being divorce and family lawyers hate it and abandon it for other practice areas. I can tell you why I…
Your spouse must be served with the summons and divorce complaint or petition before the case can proceed. In my jurisdiction (as I believe it to be the case in…
Effectively, you can’t. You might be able to verify whether your lawyer is telling the truth about his/her winning record if the lawyer is willing to give you the information…
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…
Lawyers’ reputation for lying is, unfortunately, well-founded. There is a Bosnian proverb, “He who will lie for you will lie to you.” Lawyers who lie for their clients (and there…
Some do (if you can imagine an attorney doing something like that, it’s probably already been done), but they’re outliers, and they are violating both the law and the rules…
The term for representing yourself in court is "pro se" or "pro per". Can you navigate the legal system successfully without a lawyer representing you in your case? Before I…
The documents your attorney tells you that you must prepare for your case are, in fact, documents that you must prepare for your case. Failure to prepare them and to…
2023 UT App 95 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS STATE OF UTAH, IN THE INTEREST OF M.M., A PERSON UNDER EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE. A.M., Appellant, v. STATE OF UTAH,…
So, you have gotten news that your attorney has quit. Your attorney wrote you an email informing you that he or she your counsel either will soon withdraw as your counsel…
Before terminating a parent’s rights, the court must find that termination is “strictly necessary to promote the child’s best interest.” This analysis must be undertaken from the child’s point of view.…
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…
Black and white, plain and simple. We really mean that here at Utah Family Law, LC. What you normally hear about divorce and family law is all over the map–even when you hear it from lawyers.
© Copyright 2025 Utah Family Law LC. All Rights Reserved. A Sites by Sara Website