For the most part, divorce records are public records under Washington law. For example, you can order a certified copy of a divorce certificate from the Washington Department of Health for any divorce that took place in the state of Washington. If you request a divorce certificate in person or by mail, you must pay…
For people who have had little previous experience with the court system, attending a divorce hearing can be a stressful and daunting situation. Emotions already tend to run high between spouses who are in the middle of a divorce, but the prospect of attending a court hearing about a contested issue can be downright frightening.…
The Service Member’s Civil Relief Act (SCRA)is a federal law that provides protection for service members involved in civil lawsuits, including divorces and other family law cases. The main goal of the SCRA is give individuals the chance to participate in the court proceedings when they are on active duty with the armed forces. The…
While a divorce is stressful enough for the adults involved, divorce can be even more difficult for children, who may not always understand why you are separating. Divorce is likely to make children scared, uncertain, confused, sad, and/or angry. Given the extreme emotions that your children may have when they learn about your intended divorce,…
Whether your spouse will receive any portion of your business in your divorce depends greatly on a number of different factors. Whether all or part of the business constitutes community or separate property, the length of your marriage, ownership of the business, and the longevity of the business are all factors that help determine how…
There are several different options for enforcing a child support order that are allowable under federal and state law. When a parent has a court order to pay child support and fails to pay as ordered, the consequences can be quite severe. Many of these enforcement techniques negatively affect a non-paying parent’s career opportunities. The…
Mediation is a form of alternative dispute resolution that is designed to help people settle legal disputes outside of the courtroom. The courts in Benton, Franklin, Yakima and Walla Walla counties require all parties in most domestic relations cases to go to mediation. In mediation, a neutral third party called a mediator works with the…
All children get sick or injured from time to time, and resulting medical costs can pile up very quickly. For this reason, health insurance coverage is essential to controlling the costs associated with illness or injury, although premiums for health insurance are rarely cheap. When parents divorce, the medical expenses for their children do not…
Washington law refers to alimony or spousal support as maintenance. In a divorce, the court may order one spouse to pay a certain amount of money to the other spouse on a set schedule, or a certain bill that is due on a regular basis, in order to support that spouse. There is no set…