Charlotte Divorce Lawyer Blog

Utah Man Sues After Son Put Up For Adoption Without Warning

Published on: December 31, 2013 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What can I do to gain custody of my child in North Carolina?”

A lawsuit out of Utah has sparked nationwide coverage after a man claims that his son’s biological mother put their child up for adoption without his knowledge. The man has responded by suing the woman, the adoptive parents and the adoption agency for $130 million in federal court, claiming that the decision amounts to kidnapping.

The adoption took place soon after the boy was born, roughly three years ago. The father, Jake Strickland, says that the boy’s biological mother, the adoption agency and the adoptive parents all conspired to conduct a secretive and illegal adoption that deprived him of access to his son.

Strickland met Whitney Demke back in 2009 and the two dated for several months before breaking up prior to the boy’s birth in December 2010. Strickland says he knew about the child and that the two had remained on friendly terms despite the breakup. He says that they had discussed the issue of custody and that both agreed to share custody of the child as he got older. Strickland also says he gave Demke money whenever she needed it and had planned on naming him Jack.

Despite the seemingly positive mood, Demke placed the child up for adoption the day after he was born. Strickland says he was not informed about the adoption until a week after it was over. Days after the revelation, Demke admitted to having planned the adoption for months, deciding that the boy would be better off in the hands of a more stable and financially grounded couple.

Charlotte Man Sues Ex-Wife’s Lover And Website Operator After Affair Ruined His Marriage

Published on: December 26, 2013 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “Does adultery affect my divorce case?”

A man from Charlotte, North Carolina has filed suit against a website and a man, blaming both for the demise of his 13-year marriage. The lawsuit might sound like a strange one, after all, most affairs simply lead to hurt feelings and possibly divorce, not a civil case. However, unlike most states, North Carolina law permits wronged spouses to sue in civil court for the demise of their marriage, an attempt to financially punish wrongdoers.

The unusual approach is based on a North Carolina law that allows for lawsuits based on alienation of affection. These laws exist so that when a marriage fails due to the behavior of someone other than the husband and wife, the innocent spouse can sue, attempting to inflict financial pain on the philanderer.

North Carolina is one of only a half dozen states with such laws on the books. Several times now judges and legislators have attempted to repeal the state’s law, but with no real success. Instead, there has actually been an increase in alienation of affection lawsuits in recent years, with several multimillion-dollar verdicts.

In this case, Robert Schindler sued AshleyMadison.com and his ex-wife’s new husband, Chay Montemayor, claiming that both conspired to seduce Schindler’s wife into leaving their marriage. Schindler says that back in 2007, his wife met Montemayor (who was also married at the time) on AshleyMadison.com, a website that refers to itself as “the most recognized name in infidelity.” The two began an affair and ultimately divorced their respective spouses, marrying each other last year.

Georgia Man Forced To Pay Former Fiancée Thousands For Failure To Marry :: Mecklenburg Family Law Attorney

Published on: December 24, 2013 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What does uncontested divorce mean?”

The Georgia Court of Appeals recently affirmed a ruling by a county superior court that ordered Christopher Kelley to pay his former fiancée nearly $50,000 for failing to marry the woman. You read that right; Kelley has been ordered to pay tens of thousands of dollars to Melissa Cooper for failing to follow through with his promise of marriage.

According to court documents, Kelley proposed to Cooper back in 2004, giving her an engagement ring worth more than $10,000. Cooper moved into a new home with Kelley and soon had a child with him. Cooper says Kelley then asked her to quit her job and stay home with the child; something Kelley contends was a mutual decision.

Cooper claims that several years after the proposal she learned that Kelley had been in a long-term relationship with another woman. Cooper confronted Kelley who admitted the affair, but said that he would stop seeing the other woman and again promised to marry Cooper. However, several years later Cooper says she found out Kelley had met someone new and this time was not willing to break things off. Instead, Kelley told Cooper to pack up and leave home, saying he now wanted to live with his new girlfriend.

Not one to take such matters lying down, Cooper hired a lawyer and sued Kelley, claiming that Kelley committed fraud and breached their contract to marry. Kelley fought back, claiming that though he did give Cooper a ring, he never actually used the words, “Will you marry me?” Kelley argued that he never initiated any conversations regarding marriage and was content to live together as boyfriend and girlfriend.

Utah Legislator Proposes Mandatory Course Before Filing For Divorce :: Charlotte Family Law Attorney

Published on: December 19, 2013 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What does a “No-Fault’ divorce mean in NC?”

A legislator from Utah has proposed a new bill that would further stiffen already strict requirements for divorce in the state. The new measure would make it mandatory for couples seeking to divorce to complete a course about alternatives to divorce. Experts say the new legislation, if approved, would toughen what are already some of the strictest rules for divorce in the country.

Already Utah law says that parents must first take an hour-long class about the impact of divorce on children before their case can move forward. Also, Utah residents have to wait 90 days for legal separation to be finalized before filing for divorce. The 90-day wait is meant to provide cooling off time so couples have a chance to reconsider before a split.

Under the new proposal, the person filing for divorce would be forced to attend a class before the petition for divorce could be considered by a family court judge. The law applies to all those couples with a child under the age of 18. The rule would also mandate the other partner take the same class within 30 days of the divorce petition being filed.

The bill’s sponsor, Jim Nielson, says that victims of domestic violence would be exempted from taking the course, however, the exemption would only apply if proof could be offered demonstrating the abuse. That means that the victim would need to produce a protective order, a letter from a domestic violence shelter or a police report alleging violence. Without such evidence the victims would be required to sit through the mandatory counseling session.

Oklahoma Tries And Fails To Halt Rise In Divorce Rate :: Charlotte Mecklenburg Divorce Lawyer

Published on: December 17, 2013 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What does a “No-Fault’ divorce mean in NC?”

Many states have experimented with ways to shore up family units. Some have considered schemes to lengthen the amount of time couples must be separated before divorces will be approved by a judge. Others have mandated counseling sessions or parenting courses. In Oklahoma, the state did more than just pass laws; it spent more than $70 million trying to lower its divorce rate, something that appears to have done little or nothing to lower the rate.

New numbers released by the Census Bureau show that 13.5 percent of adults in Oklahoma filed for divorce in 2012, up from 11.6 percent in 2000. The rate is substantial and ranks Oklahoma’s among the highest divorce rates in the nation. The trouble is that this rate was reached despite nearly 14 years and $70 million spent by the government trying to fight divorce.

Back in 1999, Oklahoma created the Marriage Initiative, funded largely by federal welfare money. The organization offers counseling and workshops for couples in nearly every stage of a relationship, from those who are simply dating to those considering divorce. Estimates say that around 10 percent of the state’s adults have participated in workshops put on by the Marriage Initiative, something that appears to have done little to prevent the demise of relationships.

The results indicate that other states such as Texas, Georgia and even North Carolina where legislators are considering plans to make divorce more difficult to obtain should reconsider. These stalling techniques not only have not been shown to help, they might actually make things worse.

Ohio Couple Pleads Not Guilty To Misdemeanor Charges After Surrendering Adopted Son :: Mecklenburg County Charlotte Divorce Lawyer

Published on: December 12, 2013 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What are my custody rights if the other parent moves?”

The Ohio couple that generated a lot of attention for giving up the 9-year-old adopted son they had raised since infancy is back in the news as court records reveal additional information about what took place prior to the child’s surrender.

Documents filed with the Butler County Common Pleas Court say that the mother, Lisa Cox, believed the boy was a genuine danger to the family’s safety and that she felt she had no choice but to surrender the child. Lisa and her husband, Cleveland Cox, both pled not guilty last week to misdemeanor charges of nonsupport of a dependent.

Prosecutors in Butler County who are handling the case say that Lisa and Cleveland left the boy with the county’s children’s services office after he began displaying aggressive behavior, including threatening family members with a knife. The boy was dropped off at the children’s services office with a bag containing some clothes and a handwritten letter from Lisa saying that she loved him and that he would never be forgotten.

Prosecutors say, shockingly, the boy did not know he was going to be given up, and that he was only told that he was going to a hospital where they would fix what was wrong with him. He did not realize that once he left he would never be returning home. Prosecutors say Lisa’s note included mention of how it broke her heart to hand him back to child welfare authorities and said she was praying that God would provide the boy the “perfect family” to show him love.

National experts on adoptions say that the case of the Cox family is a very unusual one given that the boy was adopted as an infant. Experts say that it is extremely rare in such cases for an adoption to fall apart. Instead, most cases of family discord occur when children are adopted at older ages and then try to assimilate into their new families.

Ashton And Demi Finally Announce Divorce :: Celebrity Divorce

Published on: December 10, 2013 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “How can an attorney help me with my Divorce or Separation in North Carolina?”

A recent Yahoo article discussed how Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore finally formalized their divorce, more than two years after first announcing their separation. To many people the lengthy wait would feel like an eternity, but as with most things, Hollywood couples appear to operate differently.

Though North Carolina couples can expect to have a relatively straightforward divorce dispensed with in a matter of months, not years, experts say that in Hollywood such a long time is not unusual, in fact, it’s almost commonplace. Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger spent more than two years battling each other. Heather Mills and Paul McCartney took two years or so fighting over their millions. Even Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries, a couple that was only married for a few months, spent a year and a half divorcing.

So what’s the reason for all the time spent fighting? Family law experts say that it typically boils down to one of two issues: money or anger. In the case of Demi and Ashton, both appeared to be factors, which explains the time it took to finally hammer out a settlement agreement.

Those close to the case say that Demi was hoping to get spousal support from Ashton and wanted to wait and see just how much he’d make from his new role on “Two and a Half Men.” Though Ashton is reportedly raking in millions from his sitcom, Demi will not be seeing any of it. The final agreement states that Demi will not receive spousal support, but will instead receive a healthy split of marital assets, including money that Ashton has invested in several tech startups.

Supposedly Broke British Bloke Ordered To Pay Wife $30 Million :: Separation and Divorce Lawyers in Charlotte, North Carolina

Published on: December 5, 2013 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “Are overtime, bonuses, and commissions included in calculating child support?”

British tabloids were covered in articles about the final judgment in one of the country’s longest running and most contentious divorces cases. Late last week a British High Court judge issued his ruling in the case, ordering a supposedly penniless businessman to give his wife upwards of $30 million.

Though it may seem hard to believe, the result managed to anger both sides as each had very different views of what the family’s finances were. The unfortunate judge was left to try and divine the truth between two very divergent versions of reality.

The first theory was advanced by the husband, Scot Young. Scot spent the entire six years of his trial claiming that he was near destitution, arguing that his once lucrative business had folded during the financial crisis. Scot said that he went from hundreds of millions of pounds in assets to more than 30 million pounds in debt. As a result, Scot claimed he was unable to afford to pay his ex-wife any money or pay her whopping $9 million dollar legal tab.

The second theory was proposed by Scot’s former wife, Michelle. Michelle always said that her husband was hiding vast amounts of money in offshore accounts and had purposely made himself appear bankrupt for the sole purpose of avoiding forking over millions in a divorce. Michelle claimed that her husband was worth hundreds of millions of dollars, possibly even billions. She said that her husband’s offer of a $300 million settlement several years ago proved that he was sitting on more money then he claimed.

Man Sues After Discovering Twitter-Millionaire Wife Hid Stock During Divorce :: Separation and Divorce Lawyers in Charlotte, North Carolina

Published on: December 3, 2013 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “Are overtime, bonuses, and commissions included in calculating child support?”

A very interesting case out of New York City showcased the importance of making accurate and complete financial disclosures during a divorce. The case dates back to a 2007 split between Stuart Strumwasser and Jennifer Johnson. Prior to the divorce Stuart was making $43,000 a year while his wife made even less. After the divorce was finalized, Stuart was ordered to pay child support for his two young twins, money he has paid faithfully ever since. Everything seemed normal until Stuart decided to check up on his wife recently and performed a social media search, ultimately finding his wife’s profile on the business site LinkedIn. Imagine his shock when he read that Johnson was described as a first-round investor in Twitter.

After recovering from his surprise, Stuart began retracing his steps and remembered that prior to their divorce his wife went by herself on a trip to visit her brother in San Francisco. He was left alone in New York watching their two young children and thought nothing of the vacation. Only later did he find out that Jennifer had actually been secretly meeting with her ex-husband while in San Francisco. Her ex was a longtime friend and colleague of Jack Dorsey, founder of Twitter.

While in San Francisco, Jennifer took a meeting with Dorsey and invested between $10,000 and $50,000 in the social media company that was then in its very early stages. Estimates now reveal that that investment is worth between $10 and $50 million.

Stuart was furious after discovering his ex-wife’s windfall and has now filed suit against her in a Manhattan court. In his complaint Stuart accuses Jennifer of committing fraud by omitting the investment from their divorce financial disclosures. He is now asking that his wife repay $120,000 in child support that he’s forked over in the years since the divorce as well as 30 percent of her shares in Twitter.

Ohio Couple Charged After Returning Adopted 9-Year-Old Son :: Separation and Divorce Lawyers in Charlotte, North Carolina

Published on: November 28, 2013 | On behalf of Arnold & Smith, PLLC

Attorney Matthew R. Arnold answering the question: “What can I do to gain custody of my child in North Carolina?”

A couple from suburban Cincinnati, Ohio is now facing potential criminal charges after giving up the son they adopted nine years ago. The tragic case has polarized many groups in the area; some who feel for the parents and others who argue that they should be punished for their abandonment.

Prosecutors in Butler County, Ohio say that they intend to file criminal charges against the couple after they returned their son to the county’s children’s services department. Law enforcement officials say they are interested in prosecuting the case to send a message to other parents that it is not acceptable to simply return your child whenever you’ve decided you have had enough. So far the two have been indicted on charges of nonsupport of dependents and were released from jail after paying $10,000 bond.

The sad story began nine years ago when Cleveland and Lisa Cox adopted their son who was an infant at the time. The parents say that they were unable to continue to care for the boy due to his aggressive behaviors for which he had refused to seek treatment. The couple claimed that the boy had threatened both parents and the couple’s two other children with a knife.

The boy is now a ward of the state and remains in protective custody as the parents await word from a judge about whether they will be able to legally abandon the boy or whether they will instead face up to six months in jail and a fine of $1,000. Officials with Butler County Children’s Services say that the boy is alone and confused. The boy’s court-appointed attorney says that the parents should have provided help for the child, regardless of whether he wanted it or not.