Washington law does not use the terms “custody” and “visitation” when referring to arrangements for children following a divorce or separation. Rather, Washington law refers to the term “residential schedule” in order to describe the parents’ physical custody and visitation arrangement. The primary residential parent is equivalent to the custodial parent, or the parent with…
While both parents have a responsibility under Washington law to financially support their children, changes in financial circumstances and related issues can justify a modification to a parent’s court-ordered child support obligation. However, it is important to remember that a parent’s child support obligation will stay the same amount until the court issues an order…
The essence of a parenting plan is who lives where, when, and with whom. The parenting plan is a court order that accompanies a petition for divorce, separation, or custody. It outlines the residential schedule of the child and lays out who can make decisions regarding the children involved. Before creating a schedule consider the…
Collaboration sounds nice…. but in the context of divorce, is there such a thing? Collaborative divorce is an out-of-court method of coming to a resolution on the issues involved in a divorce: custody, division of assets, spousal support, parenting plans, etc. Collaborative divorce requires a special participation agreement in which both spouses commit to specific…
Finding the ideal divorce attorney is different that finding, let’s say, the perfect criminal defense lawyer. Divorce is a complicated, personal event that encompasses various aspects of finances, family, and, often, heartbreak. To pursue a path towards divorce you need someone who is the right fit to lead that journey. What are the most important…
Sadly, your marriage or domestic partnership is ending. Your reality now includes understanding what is alimony, who pays whom, how much, and for how long. Here is what you need to know about alimony. What is Alimony? Alimony, also called ‘spousal support,’ is money paid by one spouse to the other to help the other…
You and your partner have decided to split. You’ve thought this through, perhaps gone to couples therapy, and maybe you are even past legal separation (which is not a prerequisite to divorce but it can be an alternative, and it can be done by court order). At this point divorce is a certainty. In that…
In a hurry to get unhitched? Well, if you live in Washington, and want to divorce in Washington, you may have to slow your roll – a bit. The minimum waiting time is 90 days. That is, after the Petition for Dissolution is filed and served on the non-filing spouse, the clock starts ticking. If…
During the course of a bitter divorce, some people are tempted to be less than truthful about their actual financial state in order to avoid paying money for spousal support to keep a greater share of property. While this practice is unfortunately common, failing to declare all of your assets and sources of income on…