Front Royal Law Blog

Why men are still expected to be breadwinners

On behalf of Williams & Bell, PC posted in divorce on Tuesday, November 5, 2019.

Men in Virginia and throughout America are generally expected to be financial providers for their families. However, it is not uncommon to see wives make more than their husbands. Research suggests that this could be a problem in some relationships. One study found that a couple is 33% more likely to get a divorce when the wife makes more than the husband. While women have more leeway to determine what they would like to do with their lives, men are still expected to be financially stable.

There are many reasons why this may be the case. For example, researchers believe that limited opportunities for women at work cause men to believe that they should be the primary breadwinner at home. Men may also feel pressure from others in society to be the top earner in their households. If a person is getting married for a second or third time, financial security may be more attractive than looks or charm.

Social media in divorce cases

On behalf of Williams & Bell, PC posted in divorce on Monday, October 21, 2019.

Most Virginia residents are active on at least one social media platform, and the messages and photographs they share with their friends and followers are often quite candid. This kind of sharing has become so common that it is now considered a normal part of daily life, and it is also a source of evidence in about two-thirds of divorce cases. Scouring the social media accounts of divorcing spouses leads to the discovery of evidence worth presenting in court 81% of the time, and about a third of all divorces are initiated by spouses who discovered evidence of infidelity online.

Checking social media can reveal more than evidence of affairs. People often show off on platforms like Facebook and Instagram by posting images of themselves enjoying sumptuous meals or wearing expensive watches or jewelry, but this kind of photo could be difficult to explain when spouses claim during divorce negotiations that they are struggling financially and cannot afford to pay spousal support.

House buyout process during divorce when refinancing mortgage

On behalf of Williams & Bell, PC posted in divorce on Thursday, October 10, 2019.

Divorces in Virginia do not always involve selling the marital home. Sometimes, the splitting spouses agree that one should buy out the other's half of the house. The desire to keep children in a familiar environment often motivates this decision. For a home that has a mortgage, the person retaining sole ownership of the house needs to obtain a new mortgage without the ex-spouse's name on it. The newly single person will need to have sufficient income and credit history to gain approval of new financing.

To initiate the buyout, the two parties must determine the property's current market value and their equity shares. A professional home appraiser can calculate the home's value by examining its features and the recent sales of comparable homes. A report from a home inspector also enters into the equation if the property requires significant repairs that influence its value. After establishing the value, the amount owed on the house must be subtracted to calculate equity. The two people will then determine their share by dividing the remaining equity equally. This amount represents what one spouse must pay the other spouse, either in cash or in the exchange of other marital property, to buy the house.

Ways to take control of finances after divorce

On behalf of Williams & Bell, PC posted in divorce on Tuesday, September 24, 2019.

The divorce process can create financial challenges for Virginia residents. As a person tries to rebuild their new life, they want to make sure that they get control of their finances as quickly as possible after the divorce. Being proactive is essential in order to put financial struggles to an end.

Many who have gone through the divorce process quickly realize that they have to put old spending habits to an end unless they want to experience financial disaster. Since many are dealing with less income and more expenses after a divorce, it is important to create a new budget as quickly as possible. It is likely that a person may now have one income and be dealing with new financial obligations, like paying alimony or child support.

Reasons why law enforcement may stop a Virginia driver

On behalf of Williams & Bell, PC on Friday, September 20, 2019.

Perhaps you've been out with some friends at a local hangout, or maybe you are on your way home from an enjoyable dinner with family. Seeing flashing lights in your rearview mirror can ruin any evening, especially if it results in an arrest and DUI charge. Before you know it, you are facing the possibility of serious criminal penalties and other consequences that can impact your life.

As a Virginia driver, you may find it especially useful to be aware of the reasons why law enforcement may pull someone over for suspected drunk driving. Police must have a valid reason to stop a driver, and without one, your entire case may be invalid. In preparation of your defense, you may want to carefully evaluate the circumstances of the original traffic stop.

Assuming a mortgage after divorce

On behalf of Williams & Bell, PC posted in divorce on Monday, September 9, 2019.

Virginia couples may face a difficult decision about how to deal with the family home during a divorce. The family home can come with a significant amount of emotional baggage, especially if children are involved and feel an attachment to the house and their community. There are also major financial costs involved, especially because the marital home is often one of the largest assets divided in the divorce. This is particularly true if the couple have accumulated a large amount of equity in the home.

In some cases, divorcing spouses may decide to sell off the home, pay outstanding debts and divide the proceeds equitably as part of the property division process. This can be one way of avoiding one spouse holding a home that they are unable to afford on one income. When neither spouse is emotionally attached, this can be a smart financial decision. However, many people feel very strongly about the marital home and one spouse may want to keep it. In most cases, that spouse will need not only to buy out the other spouse but also to refinance or assume the mortgage in his or her name alone.

Abuse and alienation in child custody cases

On behalf of Williams & Bell, PC posted in divorce on Tuesday, August 27, 2019.

Despite the widely-held belief that fathers face discrimination in family courts in Virginia and across the country, some research indicates that they are actually favored, even when credible allegations of abused are raised by mothers. According to one study of over 2,000 child custody cases involving allegations of child abuse, domestic violence and parental alienation, researchers found that allegations of parental alienation were frequently held to trump abuse claims, even when children spoke about their own experiences of abuse. In the past, mothers were often assumed by default to be the more appropriate caregiver for a child. In seeking to correct that bias, some courts may overcorrect, even when abusive fathers are involved.

Research indicates that around 58,000 children each year are placed into custody or unsupervised visitation with abusive parents. This may be particularly common when the parent accused of abuse, often the father, is wealthy or prominent. Child custody disputes can be costly, especially when they stretch out over multiple rounds of appeals or new claims filed in court. The wealthier parent may have more assets to keep fighting when the other parent's pocketbook is depleted. Some of the cases studied involved hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs.

Virginia ranks 12th in the nation over DUI laws

On behalf of Williams & Bell, PC on Tuesday, August 27, 2019.

A WalletHub survey shows Virginia has some of the toughest laws in the country for driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI). The 2017 study places the Old Dominion state 12th for taking the most aggressive stance against drunk driving.

Alcohol-related crashes in 2017 killed 248 people and injured 7,285 others, according to the Virginia Highway Safety Office. Drivers can be charged with DUI if their blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is 0.08% or higher.

The main reasons couples get divorced

On behalf of Williams & Bell, PC posted in divorce on Friday, August 16, 2019.

Divorce is often looked at in a very negative light, but there is nothing shameful about a couple going their separate ways if their relationship isn't working. According to a recent survey, the top reason why spouses in Virginia and throughout the U.S. decide to divorce is a lack of love and intimacy. Some partners said that they no longer had any feelings for their spouse while others reported that they felt no intimacy from the other party.

The second most cited cause of divorce was a lack of communication. This can involve everything from the inability to resolve emotional disputes to not talking about ongoing financial issues. By not communicating, issues could fester until they can no longer be tolerated. When partners are unable to resolve problems, they often believe that there is no other course of action other than divorce.

How social media posts could be used in divorce cases

On behalf of Williams & Bell, PC posted in divorce on Tuesday, July 30, 2019.

Posting on social media has become an intrinsic part of daily life for many Virginia residents. Facebook pages and Twitter feeds often paint a telling picture of how a person feels and thinks. Many divorcing spouses turn to social media to vent when the emotional strain of the process begins to take a toll, but they would be wise to think carefully before they post. Everything they say is likely to be read by their spouses and their attorneys.

One way to prevent this is to revise privacy settings and make social media feeds private. However, this is not likely to provide much of a deterrent to individuals with advanced computer skills. Curating social media accounts and eliminating potentially embarrassing content may also be of little use. This is because just about everything that is posted on the internet can be found in online archives by those who know where to look.