Frequently Asked Questions Why should I consider retaining Haspel & McLeod, P.C. to represent me in my divorce?Will Haspel & McLeod, P.C. represent me in matters other than divorce or family law? What does a divorce cost? Can I get a divorce based on irreconcilable differences? What are the grounds for divorce? Can I get a divorce if my spouse and I are not sharing a bedroom but live in the same house? If my spouse and I have not yet been separated for a year, can I get any help from the Court ? How can I find out how much child support I will receive? Do the same child support guidelines apply if I do not have the children living with me full time? What happens if the other parent does not pay child support as ordered? What happens if the other parent quits a job in order to pay less child support? Can a parent deny visitation to another parent who is not paying child support? What happens if the other parent's income goes up after the amount of child support is decided by the court or by an agreement? When does a parent's obligation to pay child support end? Does a parent have to pay for a child's college education? What is the difference between physical and legal custody? What does a court consider in deciding who has physical custody of the children? What does the court consider in deciding whether to grant joint legal custody of the children? What can I do to have the best chance at getting joint legal custody of my children? What can I do to have the best chance at getting sole physical custody? If I am awarded custody of our children, can I remain in the marital home with the children? If I an awarded physical custody of my children can I move to another state and take them with me? Is Maryland a community property state? What is marital property? Is my pension marital property? How does the court deal with marital property? Can an asset be marital even if it is titled in the name of one spouse? Can an asset be both marital and non-marital? What is a use and possession order? Why should I consider retaining Haspel & McLeod, P.C. to represent me in my divorce? When you are going through a divorce, it is difficult to be objective. If you do not have any training in family law, you will not know how to protect yourself. You need smart, tough, hard working lawyers to protect your interests. You need attorneys who can advise you about all the options that may be available to you and who can give you good sound advice. The partners in our law firm are very experienced family law attorneys. We fight hard to get the best results for our clients. Gwendolen McLeod and Linda Haspel have been highly rated by Martindale Hubbell for their skill, experience and ethical standards. Linda Haspel has also been cited by Washingtonian Magazine as one of the top Fifty Divorce Lawyers in the Washington Metropolitan area. Our firm also has three associate attorneys who have extensive experience in family law. All our clients benefit from a team approach where a partner and an associate work together on each case and are familiar with the client's case. The client is never charged for the second attorney when both attorneys are working together on the same matter. This gives the client the benefit of having two people who are familiar with their case so that the client can get the quickest possible response to problems or questions.
Family law is a complex area of the law. We believe it is in our client's best interests to concentrate on family law so we can provide clients with
the best possible representation. For this reason the firm focuses its
practice on divorce and family law. In this manner we can offer our clients
more extensive expertise in family law than that available from general
practice attorneys who also represent clients in personal injury,
criminal/DWI, probate and similar matters. If the need arises, we would be happy to refer you to a highly competent attorney with a practice in other areas of the law (the one exception is that Ms. McLeod does accept a few Social Security disability cases to assist disabled individuals who have been denied Social Security disability benefits).
It is not possible to predict what your divorce will cost. We charge for the time we actually spend on your case. Although a partner and an associate will work on your case you will not be charged for the second attorney when both attorneys are working together on the same matter. If your case settles without the need for a trial your fee will be substantially less than it would be if a trial was required. We are committed to providing you with the best possible representation at a reasonable cost. We are always willing to discuss with clients any questions they may have about their bill for legal services.
To get a divorce in Maryland you must have a ground for divorce. The state of Maryland does not recognize irreconcilable differences as a ground for divorce. You can get a divorce based on a mutual and voluntary separation that has lasted for at least one year.
Maryland has "no-fault" and "fault" grounds for divorce. The no fault grounds are:
(a) mutual and voluntary separation for one year,
(a) desertion, Mutual and Voluntary separation for one year: To get a divorce based on a mutual and voluntary separation the parties must have agreed to separate with the intention of ending their marriage. In many cases where the separation does not begin as a mutual and voluntary separation, the parties later agree that it is mutual and voluntary and can proceed with a divorce based on this ground. Two Year Separation: If the parties are separated but one party did not agree to the separation, the party who wants a divorce will be able to get one after two years have passed. Desertion: To obtain a divorce based on desertion (or abandonment) a person must prove that the parties have been living apart for one year, the other spouse moved out with the intention of ending the marriage and without justification. Constructive Desertion: To obtain a divorce based on constructive desertion, a person must prove that in order to preserve his or her health, safety or self respect he or she had to move out due to the treatment of the other spouse and that the parties have been living separate and apart for one year Cruelty: To prove this ground for divorce you must show there has been cruelty of treatment and there is no reasonable expectation of reconciliation. This ground for divorce is a recent addition to the grounds for absolute divorce. It requires proof of misconduct by one spouse that creates a reasonable apprehension that it will endanger the safety or health of the other spouse to a degree rendering it physically or mentally impractical to remain in the marriage. This ground for divorce does not require a one year separation and requires more serious acts than constructive desertion. Adultery: This ground for divorce requires proof that your spouse had sexual relations with a person of the opposite sex. You do not have to have pictures or video tapes showing the actual adultery. Adultery can be proved by circumstantial evidence and does not have to be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. The circumstantial evidence must be enough to lead a reasonable person to the conclusion that adultery has occurred. Usually to prove adultery you must show that the parties demonstrated affection in public and that they were alone together for a sufficient time that they had the opportunity to commit adultery. Often private investigators are used to obtain this evidence. Warning, often E-mail and cell phone records can lead to information that will help in proving or investigating adultery.
Most grounds for divorce require the parties to live separate and apart in separate houses. To get a divorce based on the grounds of mutual and voluntary separation, two-year separation, desertion or constructive desertion, the parties must be separated. That means they cannot live under the same roof, even if one stays in the basement and the other lives in the main part of the house. A divorce can be granted to parties who still live under the same roof if the grounds for divorce are adultery or cruelty.
If you have not been separated for a year, you can file for a Limited Divorce. This allows you to ask the court to decide custody, visitation and support matters, including alimony and child support. Once you have met the time requirement for getting an Absolute Divorce, you can amend your case and ask for an Absolute Divorce.
A parent who has either sole custody or shared custody of the children will receive child support based on the Maryland child support guidelines. The guidelines are based on a formula which establishes the amount of monthly child support. To determine the amount of child support the following information is inserted into the formula:
each parent's gross income,
any income received by either parent from any other source,
the cost of health insurance for the children,
alimony obligations,
child support obligations for other children,
the cost of work related day care,
extraordinary medical expenses,
private school tuition.
The child support guidelines chart stops at a combined family income of $120,000 per year. For families with higher incomes the court will either extrapolate based on the guidelines or will determine the needs of the children and apportion the payment of these expenses based on the parent's respective incomes.
In a shared custody case the number of overnights the children spend with each parent is also a factor.
If the children spend more than 35% of the overnights per year with the other parent, you will receive less child support because that parent will pay child support based on the shared child support guidelines. Often this will affect custody or visitation negotiations because your spouse may want to manipulate the access schedule to be sure the amount of overnights will result in a reduced amount of child support based on the shared child support guidelines.
You can ask the court to issue an earning withholding order. This will direct the other parent's employer to deduct child support from his or her paycheck and sent the deducted amount to you. You can also file an action with the court to enforce the payment of child support and ask to have the other parent held in contempt of court. This will give you extra leverage as the court could sentence the other parent to some time in jail as a result of the failure to pay support when there is an ability to pay.
If the other parent has quit a job or intentionally taken a reduction in income, the court can impute income to the other parent. This means that although the other parent is earning less, the court may treat the other parent as though he or she is earning the higher income. Child support will be calculated based on that higher income.
Visitation is not dependent on the payment of child support so you cannot deny the other parent the opportunity to visit the children even if child support is unpaid. The court will not condone the denial of visitation simply because child support is not paid. If your child's parent is not paying court ordered child support, file an action to enforce the support order.
Child support can always be modified by the court when there is a significant change in the income of either parent, a change in the cost of work related child care or extraordinary medical expenses or a change in the schedule from sole custody guidelines to shared custody guidelines.
Child support terminates when the child reaches age eighteen unless the child is still in high school. In that case child support will continue until the child graduates high school, but no later than the child's nineteenth birthday.
Once the child reaches age eighteen, a parent has no legal obligation to support a child unless the child is still in high school. Parents will often sign a separation agreement where they agree to pay for college. This creates a contractual obligation that can be enforced.
A parent who has legal custody of the children can make all the decisions relating to the children's health, education, safety, religion and welfare. When parents have joint legal custody, each parent has an equal voice in making these decisions and they must make joint decisions. Physical custody gives a parent the right to have the children live in that parent's home. If the children live mainly with one parent, that parent has sole physical custody or is the primary physical custodial. If the children spend a significant amount of overnights with both parents, the living arrangement will be considered as a joint physical custody arrangement.
The court will always try to determine what living arrangement is in the best interests of the children. To decide this the court will consider who has been the primary caretaker of the children and what each parent has done to contribute to the physical well being of the children. If both parents are fit, the court will try to ensure that children maintain a close relationship with each parent. In deciding custody cases, the needs of the children will always come before the needs of the parents.
The court will grant joint legal custody if the parties can communicate well enough to make joint decisions in the best interests of their children. They do not have to agree on every issue, but they must share enough common values and agree on the important issues relating to the children. The ability of the parents to make joint decisions in the past is a very important consideration. The court recognizes that the if the parents are unable to communicate or if they have fundamental disagreements about what decisions are in the children's best interests, joint legal custody will be unworkable.
Try to communicate with the other parent. Keep a log of all joint decisions that were made in the past (ie. selection of the pediatrician, selection of a day care provider or baby sitter, selection of the preschool, decisions regarding emergency medical care, decision regarding braces, etc.) Also keep a log of any times the other parent has tried to exclude you from making a joint decision regarding the children. The court will not tolerate excluding a fit parent from the decision making process. Keep a log of any discussions between yourself and the other parent. Email makes a good record of communications between you. Be CAREFUL what you write in an Email. It can be used in court. Also be VERY CAREFUL about any messages you leave on the other parent's voice mail or telephone answering machine. It is illegal to tape record another person's conversation if they do not know it is being recorded, but a message left on a telephone answering machine is fair game and can be played in court.
To get physical custody you must be willing to do the parenting and should be able to show some track record of doing things for your children such as:
If I am awarded custody of our children, can I remain in the marital home with the children? The court may award a use and possession order to a parent who is awarded custody of the parties' minor child in a divorce action. The use and possession is granted if the court determines it is necessary for the children to remain in the marital home. The order allows the custodial parent and the children to remain in the marital home for up to three years after the divorce. The court will decide how long the use and possession order should be. If the custodial parent marries during the use and possession period, the use and possession order will terminate.
When a custodial parent moves out of the area, it is considered a change of circumstance that could allow the other parent to seek a change in the custodial arrangement. In deciding whether a custodial parent can move out of the area, the court will apply the best interests of the child standard. The court will want to see if the move to another area is in the children's best interests. The court will also want to make certain that the move is not being made simply to deny the other parent access to the children. If you are going to have to move out of the area, be sure you have a lot of good information about the new area to prove to the court that the children will have access to good schools, a nice neighborhood, similar extracurricular activities, and a source of friends.
Maryland is not a community property state. Our courts decide property issues by applying various factors to reach an equitable distribution of marital property. After the court considers various factors such as the cause of the break up of the marriage, the monetary and non monetary contributions of each party, the age and health of each party, and each party's other resources, the court will determine what share of property each party will receive. Unless the case is very unusual the court will try to give each party an equal amount of the marital assets.
Marital property is any property acquired during the marriage unless:
the asset was a gift to one party from a third party, or
it was inherited by one party, or
it is traceable to an asset owned by a party before the marriage, or
it is excluded from marital assets by a valid agreement between the parties.
The portion of your pension earned during the marriage is marital property. The court will use a formula to determine what portion of your pension is to be divided.
The court must identify which assets are marital property and determine the value of the marital property. The Court will order the sale of jointly titled assets that are not subject to a use and possession order. The proceeds from the sale of the jointly titled asset will be equally divided. Since the court cannot transfer title of an asset from one spouse to another (except for pension benefits), the court will grant a monetary award to the spouse who does not receive an equitable share of the marital assets. For example, if the wife has many marital assets titled in her name alone, the court cannot make her transfer an asset to the husband, but the court can order the wife to pay the husband a monetary award which is designed to create an equitable division. This will usually result in an equal division of the marital assets.
Title does not determine whether an asset is marital. The source of the funds used to acquire the asset is the factor the court considers in determining whether an asset is marital. If a car was purchased during the marriage with marital funds, but titled in the name of the husband alone, it is still marital property and will be treated as marital property. Since the court cannot transfer title between the spouses, the husband will retain the car and the court will consider the marital value of the car when making a monetary award to the wife.
Yes, an assets can be partially marital and partially non-marital. For example, if the husband put a down payment on a car before the marriage, the portion paid before the marriage creates a non-marital interest. If he continues to make car payments after the marriage using marital money such as a pay check, then a marital interest is also created in the car.
This is an order that permits a parent who is awarded custody of the minor child in a divorce action to remain in the marital home for up to three years after the divorce. The court will decide how long the use and possession order should be. If the custodial parent marries during the use and possession period, the use and possession order terminates.
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