North Carolina Divorce Lawyers Blog

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Warren DSS v. Gerrelts, No.COA20-868 (June 2021).

This is an oddity of a case. Civil procedure has an interesting quirk called choice of law. It is an intensely fact-driven area of law that is still being actively researched and written about. Just the mere mention of the Erie Doctrine is probably enough to evoke trauma induced flashbacks to law school for many practicing attorneys. Put simply, since the state courts are courts of general jurisdiction, a state court sometimes has to apply another state’s law. Below is an interesting case about artificial insemination, paternity, and child support arising from a case where there are multiple states involved. Continue reading →

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Handerson v. Wittig, No.COA20-924 (July 2021).

Modifications to child custody orders require a substantial change in circumstances affecting the welfare of the child. The change in circumstance is the gatekeeper. That alone will not amount to modification; the court still needs to determine if the change in circumstance affects the welfare of the child and if modification is in the child’s best interest. We see below that the Court has written about what kind of evidence is insufficient to support a change in circumstance when it fails to link with the welfare of the child. Continue reading →

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Craven County o/b/o Jessica L. Wooten v. Adel Hageb (No. COA20-442)

 

Defendant Adel Hageb (“Father”) and Plaintiff Jessica L. Wooten (“Mother”) were never married but were involved in a romantic relationship. Mother gave birth to a child in 2016 and another child in 2017. After it was determined that Adel was the biological father of both children, the court consolidated the two child support cases and ordered Father to provide health insurance coverage for both children and pay Mother $2,554.00 per month in child support. Then, on September 9, 2019, the issue of permanent child support came on for hearing.  The court found Father to have a gross income of $19,454.39 per month. Additionally, although two children born of another relationship lived full-time with Father, the court gave Father credit for one child because Father’s name was not listed on the birth certificate of the other child.  Father timely appealed.  Continue reading →

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Graham v. Jones, 270 N.C. App. 674 (2020).

In North Carolina, grandparents have the ability to have their concerns for custody and visitation heard by the courts. Our statutes allow any parent, relative, or other person claiming a right to custody to institute an action for child custody. Grandparents are relatives of the minor child, and thus have standing to file for custody. But the laws surrounding grandparent custody and visitation are extremely nuanced as a result of being developed over many years of case law. Below is one case that summarizes this area of law. Continue reading →

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The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (hereinafter “Plan”), also called the COVID-19 Stimulus Package, was passed by Congress and officially signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 11, 2021.  The Plan seeks to aid the economy in recovering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. One significant change the Plan provides for is a new federal enhanced child tax credit beginning July 15, 2021. Statistics show that the credit will go to roughly 39 million households with about 65 million children. For the 2021 tax year, the enhanced maximum child tax credit is $3,600 for children younger than age six (6) and $3,000 for children between the ages of six (6) and seventeen (17).

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Browne v. Browne, 101 N.C. App. 617 (1991).

Child support in North Carolina is most commonly determined by using the presumptive guidelines. We have written about the use of the guidelines in the past, such as here. But not every case will be a guideline case. The guidelines themselves indicate that certain high earning families (as of today the upper limit is $360,000) are automatically removed from guideline consideration. But what if you believe your custody case – which is not a high-income case – ought to be nonguideline? Continue reading →

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A lawsuit is initiated the day it is filed with the court. But the rules of law usually require that before your requested relief can be granted the other side gets their day in court. This is the fundamental basis of our legal system. It is one predicated not only on the laws and statutes developed, but also on providing fair and adequate notice for the party being complained of to come to court and answer the allegations. Therefore, the first big hurdle for getting legal remedy is giving the defendant notice that they are the subject of a lawsuit. This first hurdle is often called process and service of process. Continue reading →

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Child support and child custody are frequent issues when spouses are planning to divorce. Today we will discuss some of the most basic aspects behind these two broad and complex issues. How do you file a claim for custody and/or support? What are the governing laws in North Carolina? And what are the types of child support you could receive? Continue reading →

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June is National Children’s Awareness Month.  This month brings awareness to children’s safety and well-being and provides the perfect opportunity to generate awareness on child abuse and neglect.  Just recently, U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.) and Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), co-chairs of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption, announced that they have reintroduced the Safe Home Act to protect adopted children from unregulated custody transfers (UCTs). Continue reading →

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Family law and child custody have once again been brought to the forefront of Hollywood news with the recent announcement that Judge John Ouderkirk has decided to award Brad Pitt joint custody of his children with Angelina Jolie.  The decision applies to five Jolie-Pitt children who are all under the age of eighteen (18).  A recent filing revealed that Jolie planned to appeal the decision, although sources say she does not object to the joint custody decision but instead objects to “other issues that are of concern.” Continue reading →