Love is one of those things that finds you, you don’t necessarily find it. There are some people who are attracted to someone quite a bit older or younger than themselves. It’s both rare and not so rare. We all know these types of relationships have been around since the beginning of time. These relationships […]
One of the hallmarks of courtship is gift giving. Like love itself, bestowing presents goes back to the beginning of time. If you look beyond our culture and century, cultures around the world have regarded gift giving as a prominent facet of marriage since ancient times. These offerings are often expensive, luxury items and jewels. […]
In the recent prisoner exchange with Russia, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was critical to the negotiations. The prisoner exchange was taking place behind the scenes for a long period, but timing was crucial for the end result. The Right Person In the hostage deal, the pivotal player was Scholz. When selecting a mediator, it’s important […]
Recommended reading: “Well Into Adulthood and Still Getting Money From Their Parents” Wall Street Journal, January 26th, 2024. In order to help their family thrive, many grandparents financially support their adult children and grandchildren. For example, let’s think about a couple that lives in Manhattan with an income of $350,000 – $400,000 a year. In many […]
Nesting takes a little finesse on the part of mom and dad, but the kids get to stay put. If divorcing in a chaotic wild west style is on one end of the spectrum and divorcing like you’re having a congenial kumbaya and séance is on the other end of the spectrum, “Nesting” is the kumbaya […]
In last month’s article, we spoke about the intersection between matrimonial law and immigration in broad brushstroke terms. In this article, we parse out specific red flags and nuances to look out for in cases where immigration is a factor. Prenuptial Agreements: Many citizens who marry immigrants choose to have a Prenuptial Agreement in place […]
With the upcoming presidential election, crisis at the border, flood of migrants, and New York City being a sanctuary city, the topic of immigration has been getting a lot of air time, with all its inherent controversies and polar view-points. The magnified “crisis” is confined in scope to the illegal immigration issue. Untarnished by the […]
Most people spin conflict so that they are the victor or the victim. Here’s why it’s important to keep that instinct in check. The legal community focuses heavily on the topic of domestic violence with continuing legal education seminars and pro bono clinics. There is even a specialized court called the IDV court (integrated domestic […]
Most people are prepared to undergo intense scrutiny and background checks when entering into a business partnership or for consideration to high-level corporate and finance positions. It’s a common occurrence meant to unearth skeletons and expose red flags in your life. The business partners or corporation want to know how your problems may become their […]
In marriage, title doesn’t matter. Titles to houses, cars, accounts and businesses can all get overridden by the statute and court system in a divorce. I often do consultations where people say things like, “I’m married, but we keep everything separate.” They operate under the assumption that, because each party has assets in their own […]
Over my career, I’ve seen many cases in which the parties act more like top-tier competitors as opposed to loving spouses and partners. This almost always causes one of them to feel badly about the relationship because they can’t help but compare their “worth” to their partner’s. They may feel like they’re always outwitted and […]
The ground gives off a lot of clues before an earthquake — and so do people. We often hear that someone is “going through a midlife crisis.” It can happen in a way where the person is happy, sad, or in between. A red sports car may be involved, or it may be a new model train […]
My last post explored the phenomenon of one spouse bad-mouthing the other spouse — to friends, neighbors and places of employment. In this post, we’ll address what you can do about it. There are a wide variety of strategies that can be used to, for lack of a better term, tell your ex to shut […]
The idea of people speaking negatively about us is a huge source of shame for many. We all want to exist in the world thinking that we are well thought of, or at least neutrally thought of. Whether the negative thing is true or not, it’s obviously really unsettling. One of the unique aspects of […]
When clients come to me in the beginning, they often do not know the state of their marriage. On a number of occasions, this has led to both parties signing an executed divorce agreement and, after I’ve filed it, call me to withdraw the papers and to stop the action before the judge signs it. […]
A basic tenet of “fight or flight” is that when people are in an extreme state of anxiety, they’ll do nearly anything to relieve that immediate pressure and discomfort to get themselves to a more bearable state. This describes what divorced people go through quite well. People crave resolution and a path forward. There’s this […]
I’ve had many situations where one party is an addict and the other party has to deal with the repercussions or where both parties are addicts but one is more functional. In several cases, the parties actually met at AA. I’ve represented the addict spouse, the non-addict spouse, and neutrally mediated many cases involving addiction. […]
People find themselves on the wrong side of the law for various reasons. They get in trouble with work, with business, with taxes, with government officials. So sometimes, divorce becomes necessary in order to disentangle and protect the family’s assets. Other times, it’s a matter of conscience. I had a case where the husband had […]
