Celebrity news is a Catch 22 in a lot of ways. On the one hand, we’re divorce lawyers, and that makes stories about divorce, child support and custody interesting to us. On the other hand, we’re not representing Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie, or Tarek or Christina El Moussa, so we don’t want to comment too much since we don’t…
A guardianship arrangement gives you custody of a minor child, along with the responsibility for the care and education of the child when the child’s parents are both deceased, have relinquished their parental rights, or are otherwise unable to care for him or her. If you have taken a minor child into your care, you may be required to establish…
The holiday season is in full swing, and for lots of folks, that means time with family and loved ones. But if you’re a single mom or dad, or are in the midst of a divorce, the holidays can be a bit overwhelming, and a little less joyful. As a Maryville divorce attorney, I’ve guided a lot of people through…
Right now, there are more than 8,000 children in foster care in Tennessee. The State offers a comprehensive overview of the system and how it should work on TN.gov, but the truth is a lot of kids need homes: sometimes temporarily, and sometimes permanently. As someone who helps families grow through adoption, I’m aware of just how many kids out…
The last few years have been tough for the economy, and tough on folks who were out of work, or whose jobs didn’t pay them enough to make ends meet. So when I hear about people finding work that really suits them, or will give them a little more breathing room, I’m genuinely happy for them. But before you take…
Divorce brings a lot of changes, but most folks I help can anticipate the majority of them. What really throws people off, however, is when things need to change after the divorce is finalized and the parenting plan is set. When there is a “material change in your circumstances,” and that change is going to affect your children (either through…
Raising a child is hard enough to do under the most ideal circumstances. When you and your spouse decide to divorce, however, it becomes even trickier. Maybe you trust your former wife or husband, maybe you don’t – all you know is that you can’t be there for every conversation and to guide your child when he or she makes…
For the last 15 years, the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services, or DCS, has been subjected to federal oversight. It all started with a case in 2000 involving a “9-year-old boy who spent seven months in an overcrowded Memphis emergency shelter with dangerous older boys and little access to education,” as described by The Tennessean. The advocacy group Children’s Rights,…
I heard a funny joke one time, attributed to the writer Teresa Bloomingdale: “If your baby is ‘beautiful and perfect, never cries or fusses, sleeps on schedule and burps on demand, an angel all the time,’ you’re the grandma.” And as a parent, I know it’s true: my kids were always “better” for Grandma and Grandpa than they were for…
In Tennessee, child support is its own separate entity. In other words, no matter what kind of plan is put in place regarding primary residence and parenting time, a person ordered to pay child support must do so – period. But a case out of New York may be influential in how other States handle such an issue, by ruling…