Monmouth County Divorce Lawyer
If you are going through a divorce, you are likely facing many important decisions about your family’s future. The legal process of ending a marriage will lead to agreements that will impact you for years to come, and the involvement of children will require you to resolve even more complicated issues.
Making these arrangements can cause stress and confusion. To protect your best interests, you should enlist the help of a Monmouth County divorce lawyer. A skilled and compassionate attorney can evaluate your case and advocate for terms that will suit your family’s unique needs.
Property Division and Support Payments
Married couples often jointly own their home, cars, and other significant assets. When the individuals plan to go their separate ways, they will have to decide how to distribute this property. In New Jersey, courts will evaluate the estate’s assets and work to reach what they believe is an equitable distribution of that property. This will not necessarily be an equal split of the assets, but an experienced attorney can help work toward a fair one.
In some cases, one spouse may have to pay alimony to the other party after their divorce. Alimony payments help support a dependent spouse either for a certain period of time or time of open duration while providing them a chance to obtain financial independence. A Monmouth County divorce lawyer can determine whether spousal support payments should apply in a particular case.
New Jersey Custody Cases
Divorces that involve minor children are often more complicated than are those that do not involve children. The Court makes custody decisions with the children’s best interests in mind.
If parents cannot agree on any major decisions regarding a child’s wellbeing, a court might award sole legal custody to only one parent. That parent would then have the ability to determine medical care, education, and religious questions that impact the children. Most parents who share custody will share decision making responsibilities and will have to work together on these matters. This is called joint legal custody.
Physical custody and dividing parenting time between the parents is another factor that must be decided in these cases. The courts may try to arrange a schedule that allows the children plenty of quality time with each parent. The location of the parents’ homes, their relationships with their children, and many other factors will play into the creation of these schedules. Parents may need to enlist the assistance of a Monmouth County attorney who can advocate for a custody agreement that will meet the needs of the family.
Child Support and Divorce Cases
Divorced parents will almost always need to pay or will receive child support. These payments are separate from any alimony that a court awards as spousal support. When courts set the amount of child support, they will look at the parties’ financial circumstances, the parenting time schedule, and in most cases, will use New Jersey’s Child Support Guidelines to calculate child support.
A parent with more time with the children will almost always receive support from the other parent. Other expenses, including medical insurance, childcare, and education costs, may also influence the total amount of support. For instance, if one parent pays all of the insurance costs, they might owe less child support.
Courts take child support obligations seriously, and a parent who neglects to make their payments could face serious legal consequences. A Monmouth County divorce attorney can ensure that divorcing spouses fully understand their children’s support rights and responsibilities.
Consult a Monmouth County Divorce Attorney for Advice
Divorces can be messy and emotionally overwhelming. Regardless of the specific circumstances of the divorce, the parties involved should have qualified legal advocates protecting their rights. When issues involving your children, finances, and property are on the line, the help of a Monmouth divorce lawyer could be crucial. Call today to schedule an initial consultation.
