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FAMILY LAW

THE BURTON FIRM > FAMILY LAW

PREMARITAL AGREEMENTS

Maryland Family Law Attorney

The world we live in currently is in stark contrast to the one our parents grew up in, and one of the biggest changes in American society has been scene in the institution of marriage. Less people are getting married, those marriages aren’t lasting as long, and the divorce rate has skyrocketed. In this age of divorce, a formerly obscure legal document, the premarital (prenuptial) agreement, has come into almost standard use....

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QUALIFIED DOMESTIC RELATION ORDERS

Maryland Family Law Attorney

During divorce, assets, properties and debts are divided between the two parties. It can be quite complicated to separate two lives that have been entangled for multiple years, even more so for relationships that lasted decades. Besides physical property and basic finances, many assets may be on the table for sharing or forfeiting when spouses divorce. Additional assets that may be involved in a divorce is a pension or retirement plan. The state of Maryland permits retirement assets to be transferred from one spouse to another during divorce which a Maryland family law attorney can explain more depending on your...

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MARYLAND PRENUPTIAL AGREEMENTS

Maryland Divorce Lawyer

In the State of Maryland, agreements made prior to the time of the ceremony between spouses-to-be is called a prenuptial contract or agreement. Typically, valid prenuptial agreements remain enforceable after divorce. Precedent shows us that prenuptial agreements are very difficult to void. However, this may change. In March of 2013, a Brooklyn court invalidated a prenuptial agreement that a Long Island woman had signed with her millionaire husband before their 1998 wedding. This is a precedent-setting move, and divorce lawyers in every state are sitting up and taking notice....

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FAMILY LAW MEDIATION

Maryland Family Law Attorney

Mediation is an alternative process to solve family disputes that does not require court involvement. It involves using a neutral third party, the mediator, who will facilitate and assist the parties in coming with their resolution to mutually satisfy all parties. The role of a mediator includes facilitating communication between the parties, assisting in identifying the real issues of the dispute and the parties’ interests, and generating options for settlement. Most people have the ability to solve their own disputes but it’s important to hire a mediator to help facilitate the discussion....

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FAMILY LAW MEDIATION

Maryland Family Law Mediation

Mediation is a process in which the parties appear before an impartial third party who does not have authority to adjudicate (make a formal decision) the dispute; however, by applying mediation techniques generally accepted within the professional mediation community, assists the parties by identifying the issues and interests of both parties, exploring settlement alternatives, and fashioning the basis of an agreement....

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HOW & WHY TO ESTABLISH PATERNITY

Paternity is defined by Webster’s dictionary as “the state of being someone’s father”. This seems simple enough, but what does father really mean? Does father represent the individual who’s genetic material was used during conception? Does it represent the man that was married to the mother of the child at the time – what if they aren’t one in the same? What happens if the couple wasn’t married and they weren’t sexually exclusive? As the questions above cause confusion with many individuals, you may now understand why the concept of paternity can be so difficult to understand. Fortunately, the reasons to...

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PARENTAL ALIENATION SIGNS & SYMPTOMS

MARYLAND FAMILY LAW LAWYER When a couple is going through a divorce or separation, the entire family is affected and those affects can be lasting and significant. Children are often times the most affected because they have not had the years of experience that it takes to understand and deal with emotional trauma. In the same way that their young minds are more susceptible to emotional stress, they are also far more susceptible to manipulation. Parental Alienation is the process, and the result, of the psychological manipulation of a child into showing unwarranted fear, disrespect or hostility towards a parent and/or other family...

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Child Enticement in Maryland

On average, 33 children every day are abducted by a non-family member and most of them are sexually assaulted before being released. Child enticement is a serious crime and something every parent needs to be on the look out for. Child enticement is conduct (including an attempt or conspiracy to commit conduct) that equates to criminal sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, or anything else of this sort. Any adult that persuades, solicits, entices or lures by words, actions or through any sort of communication any minor for the purpose of engaging in sexual conduct may be found guilty...

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Unmarried Cohabitatnts’ Benefits

In the state of Maryland, when you marry whether it’s same-sex or opposite-sex, the couple will have all benefits as determined by its legal status. But what if one unmarried cohabitant dies? Does the surviving cohabitant receive any benefits? The answer depends on the different categories and the controlling law in each. When a person dies from an injury that arose out of his or her employment, that employee’s survivors are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits if the act covers the particular situation. An unmarried cohabitant who can show that he or she was wholly or partly dependent on...

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