Your estate plan should include either: (1) a simple will, OR (2) a trust with a pourover will (a will saying “everything goes to my trust”). A will and/or trust is the backbone of your estate plan. Your attorney can help you work out which is better for you. Will A will is a document…
Post-separation support rules and forms simplify the process Chapel Hill, NC – Local attorney Melissa Averett of Averett Family Law recently oversaw drafting of formalized post-separation support (PSS) rules for Chatham and Orange Counties. The new rules were created by a committee of family law attorneys before being approved as a local rule signed in…
Snow days can wreak havoc on a visitation schedule. First, read the custody order. Does it say anything about snow days or days when school is not in session? If so, follow the order. If the order does not address snow days or days with school is not in session, see if it talks about…
Missing one visitation without scheduling the next one is not abandonment. When it comes to custody and visitation, “abandonment” does not have an exact definition in North Carolina. However, voluntarily failing to visit your child for 6 months is considered abandonment in an action to terminate parental rights. If you are dealing with a…
If you want to protect your family, yourself, and your finances in case you become incapacitated, you need an estate plan. If you want your loved ones to understand that you don’t wish to receive life-extending treatments when you are very close to death and it is merely prolonging the inevitable, you need an estate…
Under NC law, you can ask the court to order a separation, and give you possession of the marital home, in limited circumstances. Possession of the house is not ownership of the house and does not change how the house is titled. Even if you are granted possession, your spouse has a marital interest in…
Do you have a custody order or parenting agreement? What does it say about travel? How old is the child and what country is the child going to? Does the child have a passport? You should go to the U.S. Department of State website and look at the section on foreign travel to see what…
Generally, the answer to this question is no. North Carolina law only allows you to get an annulment in limited circumstances. You can file for an annulment if: You find out your spouse was already married to another person, who was still living at the time of your marriage; You or your spouse were under…
No, once you assumed the name, it became your name, and therefore it’s your decision whether to keep it – not your spouse’s, not the state’s. You can keep your married name, resume your maiden name, or, if this is not your first marriage, you may be able to resume the name of a former…