If you are involved in a Minnesota custody dispute, your lawyer or a judge might have brought up the topic of a guardian ad litem with you. A guardian ad litem is someone who is appointed, for the duration of your legal battle, to look out for the best interests of your child. The idea…
Wow, pretty dour topic. As you, my dear readers, probably know this is a bit more intense than my normal headlines. But, I wanted to discuss a common misconception that is going around Minnesota courthouse these days, and that is that if you have addiction issues; alcohol or drugs come to mind, then you can…
Are you contemplating if you should file for divorce? I’m sorry to hear that, but if you do decide to get a divorce here are 7 tips that should help you make the process smoother. 1. Make a Plan Where will you live? Taking the kids with you? Who’s moving the furniture? All basic questions…
Minnesota Child Support Enforcement | Having a court order for your former partner to pay child support is one thing. Actually receiving that money from them can be a bit more challenging, however. If your ex hasn’t kept up with his or her child support obligation, Minnesota has several different options for enforcing the order. …
About once a month, a person calls me and starts asking about their rights regarding their common law marriage in Minnesota. I then spend about the next 10 minutes explain that Common law marriage was abolished in 1941, despite what they may have heard. What is common law marriage? Well, individual states have different interpretation…
Estimated reading time: 5 minutes Key Takeaways The question of who gets the engagement ring after divorce often depends on whether the marriage occurred. If the wedding never happens, the ring usually returns to the giver, with rules differing by state. In Minnesota, the giver generally gets the ring back, while California may consider fault…
Minnesota Court – Family Law Cases | Pssst, wanna know the secret to winning in a family law case? Ready? Here it is, let the other side think they won… it’s that simple. If you let the other side think they won, that they pulled one over on you or you gave up, it often…
A common question asked is, “Why won’t the judge do anything when the other side doesn’t follow the order?” Well, the sad truth is that while an order in Minnesota is supposed to be followed and the police are often times supposed to enforce the order, all too often a judge’s signed order is ignored….
Stepparent Adoptions: What you need to know. Ready to make your spouse’s child officially your child too? Stepparent adoptions in Minnesota are specifically provided for under the state’s adoption rules. This makes stepparent adoption fairly uncomplicated (and less costly than other types of adoptions), at least in most situations. Before you start the actual adoption process,…
Your kids are grown, married, and have moved away, and now they’re having children of their own. It should be time to enjoy having the house to yourself and visiting your grandkids. But what if something unexpected goes wrong in this plan? Maybe your son passes away unexpectedly, and your daughter-in-law (whom, in all honesty,…
