Co-parenting successfully in an equal (50/50) legal and physical custody arrangement requires more than just dividing time. It calls for each parent fostering 1) a strong bond between the child…
Children's perspectives on shared custody arrangements (equal physical custody being one such arrangement) are complex and nuanced, seeing both benefits and challenges to them. Here is what children typically report about…
Simply put, normal children of divorced or separated parents want their parents: not to make custody a turf war. Honor your children’s right to a strong loving and trusting, relationship…
Probably. If your question is, “Does it take a long time to obtain a court order modifying a child custody award?,” the answer is, generally, “Yes.” I can't speak for…
Divorce is hard enough on spouses, but perhaps the most painful impact is on their children. The last thing you should do is create confusion, fear, and emotional scars in…
“Quid rides? Mutato nomine et de te fabula narrator. [Why do you laugh ? Change only the name and this story is about you.]” Here’s a deeply disturbing but all…
So many in the Western world who could be happily married have lost sight of the purpose of marriage, and so their marriages end in divorce not because of any…
There is not much you can do to deny a spouse a divorce, if one lives in the U.S. Spouses in the U.S. can file for and obtain a divorce…
Ideally, with overwhelming amounts of compelling, objectively verifiable evidence that 1) the mother is unfit to exercise custody of the child; and 2) you are fit to exercise custody of the child. Why overwhelming…
Good point, and good question. Although the amount of time fathers are being awarded with their children is increasing in child custody dispute cases (and has been for the past…
2024 UT App 135 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS STATE OF UTAH, IN THE INTEREST OF S.M., A PERSON UNDER EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE. S.M., Appellant, v. STATE OF UTAH,…
There are literally thousands of lists you can find online that do an excellent job of identifying the reasons accurately, clearly, and concisely. I recommend that you find them and…
My ex-spouse is the primary custodial parent, and I am ordered to pay child support. My ex wastes child support money and/or doesn't spend it on the needs of our…
I’ll assume that what you mean by “my ex and I have joint custody” is you and your ex share physical custody of your child. I’ll also assume that in…
Unless the law of your jurisdiction or a court order in your particular case prohibits your children from viewing or posting on social media during the pendency of the divorce…
An accusation that gets thrown around a lot in a divorce action is that a parent doesn’t actually want to spend time with his or her children. Usually it's an…
Recently, Pat Reavy of KSL.com reported on the murder-suicide of Rebecca Siwale and Stanley Siwale. Rebecca and Stanley were found deceased in their Sandy, Utah home on Saturday, June 8,…
Like many people, I am a child of divorce. While I may not understand every reason why my parents chose to end their marriage (I was too young to understand…
Recently a Quora.com reader commented on my answer to this question: Is there a primary parent in joint custody in Utah which is also known as “equal” or “50/50” custody? They…
Whether you should be or try to be friends with your spouse after a divorce is a tough question to answer. Many divorced people continue to care about each other…
For lawyers and parents (and perhaps even commissioners and judges) who hate child custody determinations (temporary or otherwise) based upon proffer, I share this with you: This court has previously…
Have you ever heard that having a child will fix certain problems in marriage? That it will help bring a couple in a strained marriage closer together and thus fix,…
Yes. Many women (not all, but many more than we'd like to believe unquestionably lie and make outright false or grossly exaggerated domestic violence claims. The temptation to tell such…
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…
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…
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…
THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS STATE OF UTAH, IN THE INTEREST OF G.H. AND R.H., PERSONS UNDER EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE. L.G., Appellant, v. R.G. AND R.G., Appellees. Opinion No. 20220920-CA…
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…
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…
In re H.M. - 2023 UT App 122 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS STATE OF UTAH, IN THE INTEREST OF H.M. AND D.M., PERSONS UNDER EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE. G.B., Appellant, v.…
In re D.S. - 2023 UT App 98 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS STATE OF UTAH, IN THE INTEREST OF D.S. AND K.S., PERSONS UNDER EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE. S.S.,…
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…
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.…
Unless a court were to order that a parent was barred from traveling out of state or out of the country with the children on vacation, a joint legal and…
Do abusive parents get sole custody of their children, even when their children don’t want them to have it? If the children want to stay with a relative who can…
Generally speaking (you will need to confer with an attorney who knows the law governing this question in the jurisdiction where you, the other parent, and the child reside), if…
Answers to this question could take up an entire book (actually, it could take up many entire books, and it does—literally millions of pages have been written on this subject).…
Your question presumes that the judge heard from the child. In many cases (frankly most), even though the child has the greatest stake in the child custody award dispute, the…
So many people believe (and I don’t know how or why they have come to this belief) that “if I can show that the other parent has this flaw, I…
Both result in Mom and Dad no longer living together with their children. Divorce ends a marriage, and annulment results in a legal and religious ruling that the marriage does…
Common? No. Not all that unusual? Yes. Utah Family Law, LC | divorceutah.com | 801-466-9277 https://www.quora.com/Is-it-common-for-someone-to-choose-to-end-a-10-year-marriage-then-secretly-create-conflict-to-trick-kids-into-saying-yes-to-should-we-leave/answer/Eric-Johnson-311
Can being a noncustodial parent improve the child’s relationship with the noncustodial parent? Recently, a reader on Quora, where I comment regularly, commented on a post of mine with this: …
Of a sort, and depending upon the particular state, yes. In some places children (minor children, those who are by law deemed incapable of consenting to marry) can marry with…
Is it easier to get a divorce if you and your spouse have no debts, no shared property, and no children? Typically, generally, usually, yes. In the overwhelming majority of…
What are the primary concerns of the courts in determining parenting issues? Why? In Utah (and in no particular order), the court must consider the factors articulated in these sections…
As a child with divorced parents, I find it hard to answer questions such as, “What is the importance of marriage?” How can I better understand the importance of marriage?…
Why do kids talk and text online so freely with strangers? Don’t they understand how potentially dangerous that is? Why? Because kids that age aren’t very smart or wise. Don’t…
My sons father and I have joint custody but I have final say over his well being health and education. How can I enforce my power? If you are asking: “How do I enforce in good…
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.
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