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…
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…
A fair and equitable divorce is the best that any decent person who goes through the divorce process can honestly hope for. If you know you that you will be dealing…
Are there any potential drawbacks to switching lawyers, besides the added expenses and inconvenience? There are good reasons to switch lawyers, even if you realize this mid-case. That stated, there…
We’ve all heard some version of this story: the dramatic, knock-down, drag-out divorce. Where every move is a power play and every lawyer is part strategist, part saboteur. If you're…
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”…
Many people believe that everyone bends the truth from time to time. While the typical “no, that dress does not make you look fat” white lie in your everyday interactions…
I get calls about this frequently from former and from brand new clients: it may have been half a year or more since the child custody case was resolved, either…
Yes. Anyone who denies this fact is lying to you. This does not mean that fathers cannot get a fair shake in child custody cases; they can, but most fathers…
Spouses of selfish, intelligent, and manipulative people who want to avoid a messy legal and emotional battle are not telling the whole truth about what they want. Implicit in what…
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…
Can it be overturned? It is possible. Will it be overturned? The odds don’t favor Dad. While some fathers who are falsely accused do obtain vindication, the odds are against…
The family law legal system likes to portray itself as a shining beacon of justice and equity, but I have seen first-hand that it is not. Whether it is opportunistic…
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…
When those who realize they may be ordered to pay child and/or spousal support (alimony) confront the matter, many try to lie about and to misrepresent their income in the hope…
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…
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…
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…
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…
What should you do if you represented a client in a divorce who should not have gotten the kids, but got them due to your ability? We have a word…
If you find an attorney who knows a sure-fire, fail-safe way to defend an ex-spouse or an ex-boyfriend/ex-girlfriend against “false accusations,” that attorney is likely a multimillionaire because possessing such…
By Quinton Lister, legal assistant Lying is corrosive. Lying does not allow us to be the best version of ourselves. Lying keeps us in denial about the actual state of…
Yes, and for good reason. First, let me be unusually but sincerely candid: many judges and many of the actions that judges take disappoint me. There are some excellent judges…
In court cases, how does taking an oath make any difference? From what I can tell, yes, it appears that taking an oath or affirming to tell the truth before…
If a parent exceeds parent-time by an hour or so, what can I do? Our custody order provides that child visitation is 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. My ex and I agreed by e-mail to change it to 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. But now my ex picks…
If I start crying in court, will that help my case? This is a good question. An old and frequently asked question, but still a good question. The answer is:…
I’ve been a divorce and family law attorney for 23 years and gone back and forth over the years on my opinion of how the courts feel about and how…
Why don't some people fight for child custody in some divorce or child custody cases? Others have explained why, in their particular situations, they felt that while they desired custody,…
What do the police think of lawyers? Generally, we don’t like or trust each other. And for good reason. I’m an attorney. I don’t like most law enforcement officers because…
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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