When parents used to divorce, the typical arrangement used to be that one parent (typically the mother) would be awarded primary custody of the children while the other parent would have visitation rights. The parent with visitation rights would then pay child support to the parent with primary custody. 

Today, however, it is widely accepted that divorcing parents should strive for a more balanced arrangement. As a result, some parents, often through agreement, have 50/50 parenting plans. In other words, each parent has the children 50% of the time. They may assume that since they equally share the parenting, neither would owe any child support to the other.

That, however, is generally not the case and often comes as an unpleasant surprise. Working with an experienced child custody lawyer, however, can help you plan for this possibility and ensure that the end result is fair for everyone

Many couples live together for a long time, accumulate property, and even have children, all without getting married. While this isn’t all that unusual, there are a number of misconceptions revolving around these situations and what it means when the couple separates. If you are unmarried but separating from a long-term partner, an experienced family law attorney can help you understand your rights. 

What is Common Law Marriage?

This is an old concept whereby a couple can become “married” simply by living together long-term and holding themselves out as a married couple. This can include doing things such as telling people they are married, holding property as a married couple, and having children. Although the couple is not legally married, the couple would be treated the same as any other married couple under common law marriage doctrine. 

Is There Common Law Marriage in Washington State?

A few states

Mediation is a way of sorting any differences between you and your ex-partner, with the help of a third person who won’t take sides. It facilitates the resolution of issues involving family breakdown, separation, divorce and its financial consequences, arrangements for children and any other kind of family dispute.

Experts, Rachel Oaks and Claire Colbert from Family Mediation & Mentoring are going to talk to us about different types of mediation so you can think of what will work for you. Different and common mediation dillemas will be discussed and you will have a chance to ask some questions too.

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This event and many others are included free for Divorce Club members. Members must register for this event below to receive the online events details and Zoom link.

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You might be feeling increasingly stressed, exhausted, frustrated, anxious, inadequate, and disconnected from your children. You are constantly dealing with power struggles, defiance, and living in chaotic households transitioning through a divorce.

You may have tried punishments, rewards, yelling and threats and nothing is working. What do parents do when traditional parenting methods are not working, but rather making things worse? Do they become more punitive or perhaps go the other way and become overly permissive? The answer is neither, but rather, somewhere in between.

Join Divorce Club Co-founder Isablle Hung & top parenting coach Janell Bitton to learn about effective and respectful parenting tools that are both firm and kind, help parents get to the core of their child’s misbehavior, reduce power struggles, build connection with their children, and ultimately help their children develop critical life and social skills.

At the end of this event you should have:

• An

Farhana is an experienced and accredited family specialist with over 18 years post qualification experience and has been recognized in both Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners. She has previously headed a leading family team in London and practiced in the City where she dealt with complex family cases often requiring a multi-disciplinary approach.

Farhana is a Resolution Accredited Specialist in both financial and children cases as well as being a Law Society Family Law Panel member. Additionally, Farhana is one of only 20 Directors of Resolution which is the leading organization for family lawyers which places her at forefront of family work in England & Wales.

To access this event:

This event and many others are included free for Divorce Club members. Members must register for this event below to receive the online events details and Zoom link.

To get 14 days free access & learn more about joining

Pet custody was recently in the local news in a story by Seattle Times reporter Erik Lacitis: Kona and Mr. Bear. In that Clark County case, the divorce court had originally given the wife visitation rights to two dogs that were primarily living with the husband. The Court of Appeals ruled, however, that as dogs are property, there is no allowance in the law for visitation rights. Therefore it is now up to the ex-husband to decide whether to allow the ex-wife any further contact with the dogs.

Apparently a few states (Alaska, Illinois and California) have passed laws allowing for joint ownership of animals in divorce, but not Washington State. The case may be appealed to the Washington Supreme Court, but I would not give good odds of the result changing there.

What does this mean for you? It means that if you are getting divorced and have

Whether a couple is divorced or still together, issues can arise that are difficult to resolve. These can be short or long term issues, and they might be about finances, parenting, or any number of other things. A short term financial issue could be around the purchase of a new car, while a long term financial issue could have more to do with working out different attitudes about spending in general.

Let’s say for instance that a couple is having trouble agreeing on where to go on their next vacation. We’ll call our couple Mickey and Minnie. Minnie is an outdoors sort, and would really like to go hiking and camping in Colorado. Mickey just wants to relax, and to him that means days on the beach in Hawaii doing absolutely nothing.

Tip 1 -Approach the issue as a joint problem to be jointly solved.

Problems arise quickly when each

When it comes to establishing a post-divorce parenting plan, there really is no “normal” or standard arrangement for custody and visitation. Parenting plans and visitation agreements should be drafted in the best interests of the child with the goal of reaching an arrangement where the child has a balanced relationship with both parents. That said, some people live in circumstances that are unusual when compared to most other people. As a result, they often face unique challenges that require special consideration when it comes to custody and visitation.

These situations often require expert guidance in order to reach a solution that is satisfactory for both parents and the child. Unfortunately, many parents assume that a “standard” custody arrangement will work well enough, only to discover its limitations soon after. Whether you are anticipating a divorce or need to modify an existing visitation schedule, the important thing to remember