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Joint Custody 101

In decades past gender roles played a stronger role in determination of physical custody of minor children in Massachusetts divorce. Within the past 15 years, the recent trend of the family court is to award joint physical custody because it can help the children maintain an equal bond with both parents in a post divorce situation. Whereas the mother had always been the primary caretaker of the children, and father the breadwinner, this is situation is no longer the “norm” as it once was in Massachusetts child custody cases. Household roles and responsibilities have been redistributed in as there are more families depending on the incomes of 2 parents, as opposed to 1 in recent times. There are drawbacks, naturally, but this has been the direction of Massachusetts Family Court rulings in recent years.

Massachusetts Joint Custody has progressively become more popular

One litigant inquired whether or not her job, which involved the sale of sexually photography of herself, would be a determining factor in her soon to be ex-husband obtaining a joint physical custody arrangement as opposed to her being awarded sole physical custody – even though she had been the primary care taker.

The Massachusetts Family Court is not altogether concerned about the explicit nature of peoples jobs, so long as the children were not exposed to it or harmed by it, and are not likely to be harmed by it in the future. There are many people who work as exotic dancers, for example, who are still caring and responsible parents. It may comes as a surprise that professions of this nature are not likely to have as much of an impact on whether or not you have joint physical custody as much as other factors, such as the proximity of where you both now live, and the other parties willingness and ability to participate actively in the children’s lives.

The Massachusetts divorce court is also mindful of the importance of routine and stability, and will try to maintain that for the children. If a party had never been involved due to his job and that it prevents him from performing day today parenting duties, that is a legitimate reason why joint physical custody in Massachusetts would not be practicable. Moreover, one could successfully argue that even if this were not the case, changing a prior established routine would unduly harm the children and may thwart an attempt of the other spouse to obtain an joint physical custody award in Massachusetts.

A Massachusetts divorce attorney at the Wright Family Law Group should be consulted to discuss the viability of any proposed joint physical custody arrangement in Massachusetts.  Call us today for your free, no obligation consultation.

Bankruptcy: What to Expect During a 341 Meeting of the Creditors

Despite the fact that you may have hired a lawyer to prepared a Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you must be present at a legal hearing known as the meeting of creditors, which is also known as the 341 hearing. You have to answer certain questions regarding the information entered by you in the paperwork filed for your bankruptcy. This meeting of creditors is led by the trustee for bankruptcy appointed to your case in Massachusetts.

The questions asked by the bankruptcy trustee are quite simple and straightforward. But these questions may vary depending on the type of information you have furnished to your attorney. Simply put, the questions will vary owing to the fact whether you have file a Chapter 13 or Chapter 7 bankruptcy case. Let’s look at some of the features and probable happenings of a 341 meeting of the creditors in Massachusetts.

When reviewing your case, the bankruptcy trustee must verify the information given by you in the paperwork for your bankruptcy case and judge whether you are in possession of any physical asset that may prove to be beneficial for the bankruptcy estate.

Before attending your 341 meeting of creditors, the bankruptcy trustee reviews your petition for bankruptcy very carefully, the related schedules, and all the supporting documents such as pay slips and tax return papers. During the bankruptcy hearing, the job of the bankruptcy trustee is to make you acknowledge under oath that the information you have given is correct in every way and ask questions related to any form of errors in the information given, which do not comply with the applicable laws of bankruptcy.

Along with making certain your bankruptcy paperwork is correct and complete to the fullest extent, the bankruptcy trustee will always be on the lookout for undervalued assets or omitted assets, hidden income, transferred property and any other discrepancies that can prove to be profitable for your creditors or shows that you misused the process of bankruptcy.  In Massachusetts, a bankruptcy trustee can “claw back” certain assets that are not exempt, so your attorney must be very knowledgeable and careful when preparing your Massachusetts bankruptcy petition.

In most situations, if you completed your bankruptcy paperwork thoroughly and you properly supplied information on all your assets, expenses and income, the 341 meeting will be straightforward and simple. But it is important to always remember that if you lie or misrepresent the fact in bankruptcy petition, or if you hide details regarding assets, or commit any other fraud, your petition may be denied and you could be subject to criminal prosecution along with other serious consequences.

In case of Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the bankruptcy trustee objective is to determine whether or not your repayment plan can be confirmed, or approved by the Massachusetts bankruptcy court.  Once the plan is confirmed, the bankruptcy trustee pays creditors regularly from the payments made by the debtor. Usually, all payments on debt existing at the beginning of the case must be paid through the trustee.  There are a few exceptions such as current mortgage payments and some leases.   The trustee also reviews the plan and challenges those plans that don’t, in the trustee’s opinion, meet the tests for confirmable plans set out in the Bankruptcy Code.   If the trustee and the debtor can’t agree on the terms of the plan, a judge will decide if the plan can be confirmed.  Like a Chapter 7 meeting of the creditors, a Chapter 13 meeting typically does not last long if there are no issues or objection with the plan as set forth in the Massachusetts bankruptcy petition.

Health Insurance and Divorce: What Are Your Rights?

According to a 2012 study by the University of Michigan, about 115,000 women every year lose their private health insurance after divorce proceedings are complete.  65,000 remain uninsured for months or years.  One quarter of those who were previously dependent on their husbands’ plans were still uninsured six months after their divorce.  It is clear that without proper planning and advice, losing health insurance is a real risk for a divorcing spouse who relies on the other spouse for coverage and women in particular, face this risk.  If you and your spouse live in Massachusetts are not yet divorced and have not filed the paperwork necessary to get the divorce underway, it is likely that there are no court orders requiring the maintenance of health insurance. If your marriage had disintegrated to the point where your spouse took you off of his or her health insurance plan without your knowledge or consent, you need to go to court in order to have this rectified.  Health insurance is an important necessity, so this isn’t something that should be put it off or postponed because of any unpleasantness.  You can do this either by filing a complaint for separate support or a complaint for divorce in a Massachusetts Family and Probate Court.  Either way, you need an order from a judge that stating that one party must maintain the health insurance for the other, otherwise there is not going to be much recourse.   If your spouse takes you off of the health insurance plan after a complaint for divorce has been filed, there is something you can do about it.  Supplemental Rule 411 of the Family and Probate Court imposes an automatic restraining order which prevents one party from removing the other party, or the children from any health or dental insurance plan.  A violation of the court’s automatic restraining order could give rise to a contempt action. Either way, make sure you consult with a Massachusetts attorney about  your particular situation. The importance of consulting with a Massachusetts lawyer who specializes in handling family law cases for guidance on how to best proceed cannot be overestimated.

Seatbelt and Airbag Related Injuries Resulting From Car Accidents Can Be Serious

 The increase in road traffic accidents and the seatbelt compliance rate among drivers and passengers have contributed considerably to higher rates of injuries that result from seat belt use. Likewise, airbag deployment in car accidents have also been known to cause significant injuries to motorists in Massachusetts.  

Common injuries sustained are: head and neck trauma, shoulder and back injuries as well as abdominal bruising.  Airbag deployment has also been known to cause scarring on the face and neck.

In personal injury cases where the driver or passenger was not wearing a seatbelt, insurance companies like to argue that the would be claimant failed to mitigate his or her damages by their own negligence. However, studies suggest that injuries as bad, if not worse, can still be caused even when a driver or passenger is seatbelted. 

If an insurance company is trying to convince you that you are at fault for your car accident injuries because you failed to wear your seatbelt, call a lawyer like those at the Wright Family Law Group right away in Massachusetts to assist you with your claim.  

Abdominal seat belt injury

    
Airbag injury 

Airbag Injury