| Mortgage Issues and Divorce |
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| If a divorce decree awards one party the marital home, that party is typically required to pay the mortgage, unless other stipulations were made during the divorce proceedings. Most often the mortgage is a joint mortgage and therefore constitutes a joint debt. However, if one party that is awarded possession of the marital home and is ordered to pay the mortgage, that party theoretically becomes responsible for the entire mortgage. More... |
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| Post-Decree Modification of Property Division |
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| During a divorce proceeding, the parties are entitled to conduct discovery. Discovery is a process by which each party can ask questions in depositions and inspect each other's financial and business records to discover the total assets and liabilities of the marriage. A court will enforce a party's right to full disclosure so that each party has a clear idea of the identity and value of all marital property.
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| Gifts in Contemplation of Marriage |
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| What if a marriage between two parties never takes place? Is the donor or the giver of the gift permitted to recover the premarital gift given to the recipient, his or her future spouse? Whether or not the donor is entitled to recover the premarital gift depends upon the circumstances. If the gift was conditioned on the marriage, either explicitly or implicitly, then the donor may recover the gift depending upon the facts in the case. More... |
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| Adoption Assistance & Child Welfare Act |
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| The Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 (Act) was passed by Congress in 1980. Lawmakers were concerned that many children were being removed from their homes unnecessarily and that, once they entered foster care, inadequate efforts were made to either reunify them with their biological families or place them with adoptive families. The Act was passed to correct or alleviate problems in the foster care system and to promote permanency rather than multiple foster placements. An additional goal of the Act was to encourage social workers to work toward reunification of the family and to avoid long-term foster care for the children if possible. If the child could not be returned to the family, another plan was to be sought such as adoption, long-term foster care, or some other resolution. More... |
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| Preferences Created by the Indian Child Welfare Act |
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| The purpose of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is to preserve and strengthen Native American families and culture. The ICWA attempts to accomplish that purpose by creating a legal preference for the placement of Native American children in Native American homes.
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