Marijuana use, both medical and recreational, has been legal in Washington state for some years now. You may know people who regularly use it, or even yourself may be a frequent user. Legally speaking, using marijuana should not affect your family law case. But this is not always the case because even medical marijuana could…
Parents have the right to seek child custody and child visitation. Seeking custody or visitation rights holds true for parents irrespective of the situation of things between the partners, that is, whether they were married or not as of when the child was born. Similar to all other child custody cases, child custody in an…
There are a number of different factors that a judge must consider in making a child custody order and parenting plan. However, absent a showing of harm, a court cannot use the sexual orientation of a parent as part of the reasoning for its custody decision. Under Washington law, the court must remain neutral as to the issue of…
A parent’s right or ability to take a child on vacation is generally addressed in the parties’ parenting plan. The provision relating to vacations may address when and for how long a parent may take a child on vacation, how much advance notice of the vacation should be given to the other parent, and whether…
For parents with children, getting a divorce requires each spouse to make multiple decisions about their children’s futures. When working through a divorce settlement with your spouse, be sure that your plan for child support and visitation addresses each of these ten issues before signing any paperwork. #1: Where Will the Children Live? First and…
Not everyone is satisfied after a judge makes a ruling during a family law or divorce case. Often, parents and spouses wonder if they have the right to appeal an unfavorable decision to a higher court. While in some situations an appeal is warranted, it is usually difficult to overturn a ruling without solid evidence…
Not all of us grew up under the threat of discipline with a belt, a tree switch or a wooden spoon. People were not exposed to corporal punishment and those who believe that the occasional spanking made them stronger people are often diametrically opposed and will rarely agree on what constitutes abuse and what constitutes…