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Category Archives: Divorce
Massachusetts Divorce & Taxes
By Massachusetts divorce lawyer and mediator Katherine Thomas Forget abut death and taxes, what about divorce and taxes? If you are getting a Massachusetts divorce, you have a lot to think about. To make matters even more interesting, tax season is here. Please curtail your excitement. Tax commercials flood the airwaves, people stand in silly costumes by the side of the road, and the W2s have arrived. CPAs retreat to the dark, deep chambers of their lairs. Completing and filing taxes can be painful enough (especially when you find out you owe more money to Uncle Sam), but couples who [...]
Massachusetts Divorce – What takes so long?
By Colleen Cunnally & Stephen McDonough – Massachusetts divorce lawyers and mediators at The Divorce Collaborative LLC. Prior to entering into a marriage ceremony in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, couples must apply for a marriage license at a town or city hall. The application takes about 10-15 minutes to complete. There is a mandatory three-day waiting period before the license is issued. That’s the easy part! The Massachusetts divorce process is neither quick nor simple. Unless a couple is without assets or children, the divorce process is more involved than sometimes portrayed. Although someone might take years to decide to initiate a [...]
Posted in Divorce, Divorce Procedures, Litigation and Court -based divorce
Tagged Collaborative Divorce, collaborative divorce massachusetts, contested divorce, Divorce, divorce litigation, Divorce Mediation, divorce mediation massachusetts, massachusetts divorce, uncontested divorce
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Home Alone – Should You Really Keep the House After Your Massachusetts Divorce?
By Massachusetts divorce lawyer and mediator Stephen McDonough of The Divorce Collaborative LLC The marital home is oftentimes a couple’s largest financial asset. Unfortunately, home values remain depressed and your real estate is also probably your largest expense. Part of property settlement discussions surrounding a divorce whether you are in divorce mediation or having a litigated, court-based case, involves whether one spouse or the other – or neither – should stay in the house. Before agreeing to take over the house, also known as the marital home, do your homework and consider these helpful pointers: First, check your credit score. [...]
Pets and Your Massachusetts Divorce
By Colleen Cunnally, Esq. – Divorce Lawyer and Mediator at The Divorce Collaborative Thanksgiving is over and now it’s time for Christmas! My house is decorated and it’s time to start my Christmas shopping. The usual suspects on my list include the hubby, my siblings, the nephews and nieces and last but not least my beloved DOG! Yes, the dog gets her own stocking and assorted Christmas presents. She even gets presents from her “cousins” Oreo and Angus. I admit, my family is a little dog crazy. Our dog obsession is not unusual. I recently read Americans spend 50 BILLION dollars [...]
Posted in Divorce, Divorce Legal Information, Property Division
Tagged Divorce, Divorce Mediation, Family, massachusetts divorce, Pet, pets, Property Division
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The Wrong Way to Find a Collaborative Divorce Lawyer in Massachusetts
By Stephen McDonough, Esq. Before I continue with explaining the wrong way for you to find a collaborative divorce lawyer in Massachusetts, you may be asking yourself this question: “Self, just what is collaborative divorce?” Collaborative divorce is an out of court process involving a cooperative, team-based approach. Both parties have their own attorney that received special training in the collaborative dispute resolution process. For more information on collaborative divorce, please click here to be transported through the interweb to our section about collaborative divorce. Although the collaborative process is definitely more cooperative than a court-based divorce, each party [...]
Parenting Plan Challenges – Boston Divorce Lawyer
If you are a separated or divorced parent in Massachusetts, you are likely dealing with some disruption today. I know this because today is Monday, and ends in a “y.” Of course as parents, disruption is the norm, and we can handle it! Parenting is certainly rewarding, but also presents challenges – especially during and after a divorce. Combine the regular parenting and custody issues such as communications and coordinating transportation and swirl in a Hurricane/Nor’easter for even more excitement! The power just went off for the record. Seriously. Sandy is wreaking havoc with power lines, tree branches, [...]
Massachusetts Divorce – Don’t Try This At Home!
By Stephen McDonough, Massachusetts divorce lawyer and mediator serving the Lexington, Medfield, and Worcester areas. The September 2012 issue of the trusted Consumer Reports magazine did an interesting piece about some of the web-based do it yourself services that claim to allow people to complete their own legal documents. To read the article, click here. So what did Consumer Reports think about service such as Legal Zoom, Nolo, Quicken’s WillMaker and Rocket Lawyer? In a nutshell they were not impressed and concluded that many consumers would be better served by consulting with their own lawyer. Yeah, I know. I am a lawyer so you [...]
Cohabitation, Alimony and Modifications in Massachusetts – Three’s Company
By Katherine Thomas, Esq. In case you missed it, a new Massachusetts alimony law went into effect in March of 2012. The Alimony Reform Act brought many changes to spousal support in Massachusetts, not the least of which being the official introduction of cohabitation to the statute. Under the new alimony statute, “general term alimony may be suspended, reduced, or terminated upon the cohabitation of the recipient spouse when the payor shows that the recipient spouse has maintained a common household…with another person for a continuous period of at least 3 months.” M.G. L. Ch. 208 s.49. Gone are the [...]
Same Sex Marriage in Massachusetts and Beyond
By Colleen Cunnally, Esq. As of July 2012, eight states (including Massachusetts) allow same-sex couples to marry. As a Massachusetts divorce and family law lawyer and mediator, I’m proud to say Massachusetts was the first state in the nation to declare in the landmark decision Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, 798 N.E. 2d 941 (2003), same sex couples have a fundamental right to marry. Since 2003, seven more states have passed laws to afford their citizens that same right. I believe it’s a matter of time before more states pass similar legislation. In the meantime, divorce and family law [...]
Posted in Collaborative Divorce, Divorce, Divorce Legal Information, Gay Marriage, same-sex divorce, Same-sex Marriage
Tagged collaborative divorce massachusetts, Divorce, Divorce Mediation, divorce mediation massachusetts, Gay Marriage, massachusetts divorce, same-sex divorce, Same-sex marriage
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Divorce Mediator – Bedford, Concord, Lexington, & Franklin MA Areas
If you need a divorce mediator in the Bedford, Concord, Lexington, or Franklin, MA areas, your options just increased! The Massachusetts divorce and family law firm The Divorce Collaborative LLC is pleased to announce that Attorney Katherine Thomas recently completed her divorce and family mediation training in Boston. Attorney Thomas, a graduate of Holy Cross and the University of Connecticut Law School, joined The Divorce Collaborative LLC in the Spring of 2011. She volunteers with the Domestic Violence Services Network (DVSN) and is a member of the Bedford Education Foundation. During the last year, Katherine has represented divorce clients [...]
