Posted by Steven A. Harris | Divorce, Family Law
No — Alabama is not a community property state. Alabama is an equitable distribution state, which means that in a divorce, marital property is divided based on what is fair under all the circumstances, not split automatically fifty-fifty. That one-sentence answer settles the question most people came here asking, and it also opens the door …
Posted by Steven A. Harris | Divorce, Family Law
Divorcing after fifty — what demographers call “gray divorce” — is the fastest-growing kind of divorce in America. The divorce rate for adults over fifty has roughly doubled since 1990, and for those over sixty-five it has climbed even faster, at the same time that divorce rates for younger couples have actually fallen. If you …
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Posted by Steven A. Harris | Divorce, Family Law
Yes, the Alabama Rules of Civil Procedure apply to divorces — fully. A divorce is a civil lawsuit, and from the day the Complaint is filed to the day the decree is signed, the same rulebook that governs a car-wreck case or a contract dispute governs your divorce: how the case starts, how each side …
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Posted by Steven A. Harris | Divorce, Family Law
Having your spouse “served” in a divorce means one specific thing: formally delivering the Complaint for Divorce and a court-issued summons to them, in a manner Alabama law recognizes, so that the court has proof they know about the case. It sounds like a formality. It is actually one of the load-bearing walls of the …
Continue reading "What Does it Mean to Have My Spouse Served in a Divorce"
Posted by Steven A. Harris | Divorce, Family Law
Yes, you can divorce a spouse with a substance abuse problem in Alabama — and you do not have to prove the addiction to do it. Alabama’s no-fault grounds mean the divorce itself is available to you regardless of whether you can document a single thing. But addiction changes almost everything else about the case: …
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Posted by Steven A. Harris | Divorce, Family Law
The difference between legal separation and divorce comes down to one fact with a hundred consequences: a divorce ends the marriage, and a legal separation does not. Legally separated spouses have a court decree dividing their lives — support, custody, property rights, even separate finances going forward — but they are still married. They cannot …
Continue reading "What is the Difference Between Legal Separation and Getting a Divorce"
Posted by Steven A. Harris | Divorce
The first meeting with a divorce lawyer is an interview that runs in both directions. The lawyer is evaluating your case; you are evaluating the person who will steer some of the most consequential months of your life. Most people walk in with their story and walk out having asked almost nothing — then discover …
Continue reading "What Kinds of Questions Should I Ask My Divorce Lawyer at Our First Meeting"
Posted by Steven A. Harris | Divorce, Family Law
If you suspect your spouse has a secret bank account, there are two phases to finding out — and they work very differently. Before a divorce is filed, you are limited to the evidence trail a hidden account leaves through everyday life: the mail, the pay stubs, the tax return, the pattern of money that …
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Posted by Steven A. Harris | Divorce
After a divorce, the parent who gets the Child Tax Credit is the custodial parent — and for the IRS, “custodial” has nothing to do with what your decree calls the custody arrangement. It means the parent with whom the child spent the greater number of nights during the tax year. Count the overnights, and …
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Posted by Steven A. Harris | Divorce
The first legal step to getting a divorce in Alabama is filing a Complaint for Divorce in the circuit court — but the first real step happens before any paperwork exists: deciding whether your divorce will be contested or uncontested. That single fork determines what you file, what it costs, how long it takes, and …
Continue reading "What is the First Step to Getting a Divorce"
