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Judi Rossabi, Communications Director

If you are experiencing loneliness during divorce, getting a pet can help. A pet can be a great companion and can help cheer you up. Today is national puppy day and national cuddly kitten day. Both animals make great pets and definitely make things a little livelier around the house! Coming home to an empty house is a huge challenge for newly separated and divorced people and having a furry friend to greet you can brighten your day. Continue reading →

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Tiger Woods and Erica Herman were a couple for nearly six years.  The couple split in October 2022.  While together, the couple resided in Woods’ home in Jupiter, Florida.  Herman has sued the Jupiter Island Irrevocable Homestead Trust for at least $30 million after Woods asked her to move out of his home following the split.  Herman claims Woods controls the trust.  Woods filed a Motion to Intervene as a defendant in the matter Herman filed with the 19th Judicial Circuit Court in Martin County, Florida.     Continue reading →

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Ivana Moral and her ex-husband were married for 25 years.  Recently, a Spanish judge ordered Moral’s ex-husband to pay her $215,000.00 as compensation for 25 years of housework handled by Moral throughout the couple’s marriage.   

 

Moral won the judgment after arguing before the Spanish judge that she had been burdened with chores and raising the couple’s two daughters while her husband built a successful gym business.  Moral argued she was exclusively dedicated to the home and family while her husband continued to build his career, accumulating and increasing his assets.  Moral also argued that the 25 years of marriage left her feeling “economically threatened, worthless, and dependent.”   

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AMAN V. NICHOLSON, 2023-NCCOA-________ (2023). 

  1. Facts:  Plaintiff and Defendant are parents of a minor child. They separated in fall of 2019. Plaintiff filed for custody, and a temporary order was entered. The temporary order granted joint legal custody (decision making) and primary physical custody to the Plaintiff, visitation to Defendant. It further required each party to obtain and exchange psychological evaluations and to attend counseling. Eventually, the custody matter was set for trial in spring of 2021. On the first day of trial, Defendant provided a list of three expert witnesses that he planned on calling to testify. Plaintiff objected and wanted to exclude the expert testimony. The trial court agreed, and entered an Order that excluded Defendant’s three expert witnesses from testifying. Defendant appealed. 

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AMAN V. NICHOLSON, 2023-NCCOA-________ (2023). 

  1. Facts:  Plaintiff and Defendant are parents of a minor child. They separated in fall of 2019. Plaintiff filed for custody, and a temporary order was entered. The temporary order granted joint legal custody (decision making) and primary physical custody to Plaintiff, visitation to Defendant. It further required each party to obtain and exchange psychological evaluations and to attend counseling. Eventually, the custody matter was set for trial in spring of 2021. On the first day of trial, Defendant provided a list to Plaintiff containing three expert witnesses that he planned on calling to testify. Defendant also provided the witnesses’ CVs and the written reports of two of the witnesses.  Plaintiff objected and wanted to exclude the expert testimony. The trial court agreed, and entered an Order that excluded Defendant’s three expert witnesses from testifying. When trying to settle the record on appeal, Defendant wanted the CVs and written reports of the experts included, while Plaintiff objected to their inclusion. In judicial settlement of the record, the trial court ordered that the reports and CVs not be included. Defendant appealed. 

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LIMERICK V. ROJO-LIMERICK, 2023-NCCOA-________ (2023). 

  1. Facts:  Plaintiff and Defendant are parents of a minor child. In August of 2020, Plaintiff filed for divorce from bed and board, child custody and child support, and attorney fees. Defendant counterclaimed for custody, child support, equitable distribution, alimony, and attorney fees. Defendant then voluntarily dismissed his counterclaims for equitable distribution, postseparation support, alimony, and attorney fees. However, Defendant’s claims for custody and child support remained open. Plaintiff then dismissed his claims except for child custody and child support. The trial court eventually entered into a consent order for permanent child custody, temporary child support, and attorney fees. The remaining issues for child support and fees were heard in November of 2021. Plaintiff’s claim for fees was granted. Defendant appealed. 

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John S Davis, NCCP

The nature lovers here at Woodruff Family Law Group, which presumably is all of us, were delighted last year to discover that a pair of Mourning Doves had built a nest under our back door awning. Despite constant daytime traffic, the birds stayed there for the entire nesting season, and it is likely that they raised more than one brood. When the nest was abandoned in the fall, we left it alone and are again delighted to find that the nest is again in use, and it is safe to assume it is the same pair of birds.

Mourning Doves, also called Carolina Turtle Doves, are prolific breeders, a quality that helps offset their position as prey to other birds and to man. Four broods per season is a common number and some pairs manage up to six. The couples do not mate for life but do frequently re-pair from one season to the next. In warmer regions a couple will stay together throughout the year, essentially becoming lifelong mates.

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CHOCIEJ V. RICHBURG, 2023-NCCOA-________ (2023). 

Facts: Plaintiff and Defendant dated. On May 31, 2021, there was a fight between the couple, and Defendant broke Plaintiff’s nose with his fists and/or forehead. Another fight broke out between the couple in the bedroom, wherein Defendant used his belt and household items, such as a lamp, to hit Plaintiff. This caused black-eyes and bruising on Plaintiff. The police were called, but Defendant fled.

Eventually, the police arrested him in July 2021 and charged him with assault on a female. After the arrest, Defendant called Plaintiff’s work and reported that Plaintiff had wrongfully disclosed his confidential medical records to a third party. This resulted in Plaintiff’s termination by her employer. That same day, Plaintiff sought a Domestic Violence Protective Order (DVPO). At the hearing, there was ample evidence of the assaults and damage done to Plaintiff by the Defendant.

The trial court also took into consideration the time between the assaults and Plaintiff’s filing for the DVPO as well as the timing of the filing with her termination. In the trial court’s denial of a DVPO, it specifically noted that the court did not believe that Plaintiff would have sought a DVPO if she had not been terminated, essentially saying that the filing was in retaliation to Defendant’s whistleblowing. Plaintiff appealed. Continue reading →

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In re J.J.H., Supreme Court of North Carolina, No. 430A19, December 18, 2020

This is Respondent Mother’s Appeal to the termination of her parental rights.

  • Facts: Guilford County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) filed petitions alleging that three of the five minor children involved were neglected and dependent juveniles. The remaining two minor children were alleged to be neglected juveniles. The agency reported receiving eleven reports on this family between October 2011 and February 2016. DHHS had substantiated nine of these reports. The reports alleged inadequate supervision. DHHS found that the two-year-old female was taken to the hospital twice for burns to her hands, arms, and buttocks. The five-year-old male received a school suspension for hitting and kicking daycare teachers. The Respondent Mother’s elderly grandmother, who suffered from seizures, reported that the mother had left the children in her care without permission. DHHS found that the respondent-mother left the children alone in the home only supervised by a five-year-old. Reports included the child drawing pictures of sexual acts, explaining human anatomy to classmates, attempting to engage in sexually inappropriate conduct with siblings, and describing acts of sexual abuse by an older cousin, who also acted as an overnight caregiver. The respondent-mother missed multiple medical appointments for one minor child that suffered from a large mass in his nose. The children were returned to school when the respondent mother failed to be present when they arrived home on the bus. DHHS reports noted the home’s utility services were disconnected.

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by Judi Rossabi

You may have heard of the popular swing dances that occur almost nightly somewhere in North Carolina. From beginner lessons to complex dances, there are many offerings to help you learn something new or perfect your swing dance steps.

What you may not know is that swing dance originated in Harlem in the 1920s. This February, in honor of Black History Month, we remember the great men and women that created this original and exciting form of dance. The Savoy Ballroom in Harlem featured some of the best jazz musicians of all time, and their music inspired the moves that became Swing Dance and encompassed the Lindy Hop, the East Coast Swing, and more. Continue reading →