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…
Health insurance is an important consideration for most people, given the high cost of medical bills. Without health insurance, a catastrophic illness or injury can quickly drive a family into bankruptcy. In many situations, one spouse may have covered the other spouse and children on his or her employer-sponsored health insurance plan throughout their marriage.…
While the process for getting a divorce and getting a legal separation are essentially the same, the results are different. When a divorce becomes final, the parties are permanently and legally divorced and free to remarry. At the conclusion of a legal separation, however, the parties are still legally married. This means that they are…
Washington law uses the term “residential schedule” to describe what is commonly known as visitation. A parenting plan contains information about a family’s residential schedule. In most cases of divorce or separation that involve a child, one parent is designated the residential parent (custodial parent) and the other parent is designated the non-residential parent (noncustodial…
While most parents are able to cooperate about their child traveling internationally, some parents have well-founded concerns about their ex-partner taking their child to another country. These concerns often arise in the context of highly contested divorce and child custody proceedings, in which parental abduction may be a concern if the child is allowed to…
When parents separate or divorce, the court will issue a comprehensive parenting plan that addresses when the child spends time with each parent. As the child grows and situations change, one or both parents may seek a modification to the existing parenting plan. All modifications, whether they are major or minor, must be based on…
More and more couples are executing prenuptial agreements prior to getting married, which likely corresponds to the fact that couples tend to be older when they marry, thus putting more assets at stake. No matter the value of assets involved, for many couples, executing a prenuptial agreement is a wise decision. Entering into a prenuptial…
Any couple who intends to or is currently going through a separation or divorce can execute a separation contract in order to settle any issues of dispute. These issues might include the division of property, the payment of debts, the custody and support of children, and the payment of spousal support. A separation contract sets…
The common thread between annulment and divorce is that each legal proceeding ends a marriage. Legal separation may signal the beginning of the end of a marriage, but does not legally end the marriage. However, all three of these legal proceedings do have the potential to impact your finances and your children. An annulment is…