Clark v. Clark and Barrett, 2021-NCCOA-653 (2021) Facts: A married couple, the Clarks, lived in North Carolina. In 2016, Husband began an affair with Ms. Barrett, in Virginia. That same year while home in North Carolina, Wife discovered text messages between Husband and Barrett. The couple argued and Wife ultimately…
North Carolina’s statutes include a provision, chapter 50B, for an individual who is in a personal relationship to apply for a protective order. The name given is domestic violence protective order, and it is an Order of the court that accomplishes three things; the defendant must avoid certain acts, they…
Friday December 17th is going to be National Underdogs Day. What is an underdog and why is it so fun supporting them? An underdog is the predicted loser in a competition. It stems from Old English, referring to the “beaten dog in a fight.” Presumably, the “fight” is a dog…
Scott v. Scott, 2021-NCCOA-636 (unpublished). In North Carolina, contempt is the avenue to enforce many domestic court orders, including those that were part of a separation agreement, but only if the agreement is later incorporated into a court order/judgment. That is the situation in the case below, where the father…
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/a-first-for-state-court-of-appeals-kona-mr-bear-dogs-divorce-visitation-rights/ Our pets and divorce saga continues. Today we have a tale from the state of Washington that continues this trend. A couple that separated in 2018 owned two dogs together: Kona and Mr. Bear. At the time, they co-parented the dogs extensively, texting each other schedules, grooming appointments, trainings,…
Unless your home is under a rock, you probably know that Adele released her fourth studio album on November 19, 2021. This is Adele’s first new music since the release of her third studio album in 2015. It has been six years since Adele fans have been graced with her…
Purvis v. Purvis, 2021-NCCOA-616 (2021). It can be safely said that a majority of the parents in North Carolina want to see their children succeed. And to ensure that success, parents often take on large burdens to provide their children with as many opportunities as possible, including helping them with…
Congress recently repealed I.R.C. §§ 71 and 215, which eliminated federal tax deductions for alimony. They have additionally repealed I.R.C. § 61(a)(8), which designated that alimony was taxable income. However, divorce and separation agreements that were executed after December 31, 2018 are the only ones this new law applies to.…
In a divorce that includes a retirement plan, a domestic relations order (DRO) is issued by the state court to assign benefits from the employer to another person (usually the employee’s spouse, known as the alternate payee). The retirement plan that administers these benefits must receive this order. Certain federal…
For those readers that are tech savvy and keep up to date with financial developments, the buzzwords cryptocurrency, bitcoin, and blockchain should immediately ring a bell. Another development called smart contracts should also be on your radar. Essentially built upon blockchain and distributed ledger technologies, these smart contracts are one…