What’s Ending the Most Marriages?
November 16, 2013 | Elizabeth A. SchadingAccording to The Huffington Post, a British study has shown that “unreasonable behavior” is now being cited as a cause for divorce more often than infidelity is. Of course, the definition of “unreasonable” is quite varied. The British don’t have no-fault divorces, and so must list reasons why the marriage has to end. In Minnesota, however, no-fault divorce is the law. This means it doesn’t matter why the marriage is dissolving. The cause could be infidelity, financial indiscretions or the stereotypical “tube of toothpaste” conflict. It simply doesn’t matter as far as the law is concerned. The division of marital property, child custody, child support and spousal support are handled according to the same laws and guidelines and there’s no particular profit in trying to convince the judge that you are the one in the right. That doesn’t mean that every divorce is the same. Far from it. Every divorce is different, and the law can apply to those differences in many important ways. It just means that the “cause” of a divorce doesn’t matter. A judge’s decision generally won’t be swayed one way or another by who did what to whom unless other laws were broken and those laws apply to the case. Minnesota is an “equitable distribution” state. Equitable quite often…
Read MoreCan You Hide to Stop Your Divorce in Minnesota?
November 14, 2013 | Elizabeth A. SchadingIf you know that your spouse will be sending divorce papers, can you hide from the process server to keep the divorce from happening? You may be tempted to try it, but in Minnesota, this tactic simply won’t work. In fact, attempting it could even make things worse for you. If your spouse makes every reasonable effort to locate you, then he or she may use an “alternative method” for serving you the divorce papers. It will take a little longer because he or she will need a court order to do so, but eventually you could find yourself being “served by publication,” which means the petition will simply be published in a local paper. If you’re busy hiding you might not even realize this has happened. This means you could run out of time to file an Answer to the Summons and Complaint. You may lose your chance at having any say in the major issues of your divorce, issues such as child custody, child support, parenting time, spousal support, and the division of assets. Once a default judgment of divorce is entered, the court will typically determine the major issues of divorce exactly as your spouse requested, because you took no part in the decision. Hiding won’t help you reconcile with…
Read MoreMore Couples Divorcing After 50
November 13, 2013 | Elizabeth A. SchadingAccording to The New York Times, more couples are starting to divorce after the age of 50. A half-century ago, only 2.8 percent of Americans older than 50 were divorced. By 2000, 11.8 percent were. In 2011, according to the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, 15.4 percent were divorced and another 2.1 percent were separated. Some 13.5 percent were widowed. While divorce rates all over have stabilized and even inched downward, the divorce rate among people 50 and older has doubled since 1990, according to an analysis of census data by professors at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. That’s especially significant because half the married population is older than 50. In 1990, 1 in 10 persons who divorced was 50 and older. By 2011, according to the census’ American Community Survey, more than 28 percent (more than 1 in 4) who said they divorced in the previous months were 50 and older. Divorcing after 50 can bring some special considerations. While child custody is usually no longer an issue, an older couple will typically be either retired or rapidly approaching retirement. An older couple will also typically have more marital property to account for. There are also usually some special estate planning considerations that must be tackled during the divorce…
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