Must married couples be separated for one year before starting the divorce process?
Married couples must wait one year before an uncontested divorce, but can permanently resolve all issues between them much earlier than this....
Property Division is Permanent
SC Court of Appeals re-affirms the rule that final property division agreements cannot be modified. On August 7, 2019 in the matter of Thompson v Thompson the SC Court of Appeals overturned the Trial Court which had granted relief to the Appellee pursuant to Rule 60(b)(5) of the SC Rules of Ci...
Can alimony be terminated when a supported spouse lives with a romantic companion?
It is settled law that alimony will terminate upon the remarriage of the recipient. Several years ago our legislature added a new rule permitting the termination of alimony should the recipient cohabit with a romantic companion for a period of 90 or more consecutive days. But what if a two people ...
Is sexting grounds for adultery?
“Sexting” and other forms of electronically recorded erotic behavior sometimes is alleged by a person against his or her spouse in a divorce case as evidence of adultery. This kind of evidence, as hurtful and offensive as it is, may not rise to the level required to prove adultery. Proof...
What is the consequence of a finding of Adultery in the South Carolina Family Court?
Extramarital relationships have become common place. An emphasis on fidelity and morality has long disappeared and is considered “old fashioned”. While our president models for us a new “standard” of morality, our Family Courts still take marriage vows seriously. Adultery in ...
What constitutes “income” when determining an appropriate award of alimony?
Alimony is not an exact science in South Carolina. 13 separate factors must be separately analyzed and each one specifically addressed when making an alimony order. It is usually a simple matter to accurately determine income by examining tax returns, W-2’s, 1099’s, etc. But when i...
Keeping Legal Fees Down in Domestic Relations Cases
Divorce cases can be some of the most expensive legal disputes in which most people will be involved. Fixed fees can keep their costs under control. The billable hour has become the norm in legal billing, but it wasn’t always this way. There was a time when a person went to the lawyer, told th...
What should therapists do when they get a request to release their client’s mental health file to a divorce lawyer?
Therapists and others in the mental health community are often unsure what to do when confronted with a request for a client’s therapy records from a divorce lawyer. Here are a few practice pointers based on what I have learned over the years in this evolving area of law. First, how was the re...