Articles Tagged with divorce

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In recent celebrity news, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West have decided to get divorced. Undoubtedly, the couple signed a prenuptial agreement that handles much of the property division claims. But one aspect that is interesting about their eventual property settlement, is the issue of royalties. It is likely that the couple have a provision about their royalties and other intellectual property (IP) in their prenuptial agreement, but let us consider how it would play out in North Carolina if they did not. Continue reading →

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Everyone knows how COVID has affected our daily routine and forced an increase in the use of technology. The court system and attorneys have adopted technology to keep cases moving forward. At the beginning of this process, attorneys discovered that using virtual meetings to conduct client consults and client meetings was not only effective in preventing exposure to COVID but, in the long run, could increase productivity without losing the human interaction or attorney-client bond. Continue reading →

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Despite the name, a final judgment from a trial court is not always the end of a case. Appeal of the trial court judgment is often the next step in the timeline of a case. On appeal, typically, the Courts of Appeal are only restricted to the issues and factual record that were present in the trial court. That means no new evidence can be presented, and outside of a few exceptions, no new legal issues can be presented. Sometimes the appeal is based in a misinterpretation or a misapplication of law. Thus, many appeals focus on legal arguments and rely on old legal cases to argue how the law was misapplied. But at other times, the appellate court has an opportunity to set a new precedent or to distinguish the application of law to a set of facts. In these instances, there lies potential for far-ranging consequences of the Court’s decision. In such cases, interested organizations and attorneys will often want to weigh in on the matter, and attempt to persuade the Court. Remember that on appeal it is still plaintiff versus defendant, so these outside parties’ opinions may not always have any effect. Continue reading →

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We are all keenly aware of the emotional effects that separation and divorce can have on our families and ourselves. People at the beginning of a separation or divorce often overlook the physical effects of this process. While the issues listed in this article mostly mirror the issues experienced by women, the focus of this article will be on men. Continue reading →

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You have probably heard the recent story of the theft of Lady Gaga’s French bulldogs and the shooting of her dog walker. If you have not, on February 24, 2021, around 9:40 p.m., Lady Gaga’s dog walker, Ryan Fischer, was accosted and shot, and two of her three French bulldogs were stolen. A local home security camera recorded the altercation. Lady Gaga offered a $500,000 no-questions-asked reward for the safe return of her dogs. Continue reading →

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In North Carolina, we see cases where one spouse is primarily a breadwinner for the family, often bringing in most if not all of the income. In those case, the other spouse is the homemaker, the one that cares for the children and/or pets and maintains the home. And when it comes to separation and divorce, dollar values become important. So how do you value a homemaker spouse’s contribution to the marriage? Continue reading →

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As part of Women’s History Month, I would like to revisit the Supreme Court’s first woman Justice: Sandra Day O’Connor. She is so much more than the historical trivia note to which she is often reduced. Educated at Stanford and appointed to the Court by then President Reagan, she served from 1981 to her retirement in 2006. She was as much an active voice behind the scenes as she was on the bench; apparently, she insisted that the Justices all eat lunch together, and would not take no for an answer. Continue reading →

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North Carolina General Statute § 14-39 defines kidnapping as the unlawful confining, restraining, or removing from one place to another, anyone 16 years of age or older without their consent and holding them for ransom, in furtherance of or fleeing a felony, causing serious bodily harm or terrorizing or holding that person in involuntary or sexual servitude. When a person is under the age of 16, it requires the parent’s or legal guardian’s consent before the minor can be restrained, confined, or removed from one place to another. Continue reading →

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Susie Marshall Sharp was born in 1907 in Rocky Mount. Her family relocated to Reidsville, where her father became a lawyer. She attended Reidsville High School, followed by the North Carolina College for Women, now known as UNC-Greensboro, and ultimately entered law school in 1926 at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. Before Justice Sharp’s enrollment, only three women had graduated UNC School of Law since 1911. Continue reading →

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Madar v. Madar, No.COA20-28 (Dec. 2020).

In North Carolina, alimony is a type of spousal support that provides for the maintenance of a dependent spouse, by the supporting spouse. Dependent and supporting are legal terms, with incredible significance. In order to receive alimony, one must be a dependent spouse, the other party must be a supporting spouse, and the alimony must be fair after considering a set of factors in our statutes and case law. Below is a simple case outlining how a court determined dependent/supporting spouse. Continue reading →