You Tube and Divorce

Would you post your marital problems on You Tube? With the ability to post anything about yourself all over the Internet, it was just a matter of time before a person posted rants about their divorce on You Tube for all the world to see. I originally saw the story of Tricia Walsh-Smith and her divorce on The Today Show, and then out of my own curiosity checked it out on You Tube. I'm not sure what she was trying to accomplish by posting this web blog, but it created quite a stir and also encouraged a judge to rule that she couldn't video her web blogs in the apartment in which she shared with her husband. I'm sure there will be many more rants from Ms. Walsh-Smith and even more people airing their dirty laundry all over the Internet.

To read the story upon which this blog is based, visit: http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23536595-663,00.html

Gay Divorce

One of the problems with the fact that gay couples can get married in some states, but can't get married in others is that they can only dissolve their marriages or unions in a state that recognizes that they have a union to begin with. In order to dissolve a marriage, you usually have to satisfy a state's residency requirement, which means in some situations, its impossible to formerly dissolve a civil union or gay marriage unless you live in a state that recognizes the union. The following article addresses this issue:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080415/ap_on_re_us/gay_divorce

Those Financial Cheating Hearts

There is no question that financial infidelity can lead to divorce. I'm always shocked by the number of people who either hide financial indiscretions from their spouse, or the number of people who are totally unaware of debt and/or assets until there is financial disclosure in divorce. The following article addresses the dangers of not being fully truthful with your finances with your spouse:

http://www.gainesville.com/article/20080414/NEWS/804130310/1002/NEWS

Should We Get A Guardian Ad Litem?

I often times have clients request that a Guardian Ad Litem be appointed for their children in a divorce. Sometimes there are disputes between the attorneys' as to whether or not they are necessary. In case you are unaware, a Guardian Ad Litem ("GAL") is an attorney who is appointed by the court to represent the children in a divorce or other case involving children. Their job is to independently review the case, gather information, and speak with the children. Once they have conducted their investigation, they submit their report and recommendations to the Court, and generally speaking the Court's give great weight to the report of the GAL. Therefore, if a GAL report is not in your favor, it could mean the end of your custody fight. Therefore, if you wish to have a GAL appointed, you should be forewarned that if you are alienating your children from your spouse, do not have a proper living environment or have made attempts in the past to put the children in the middle of your divorce or custody battle, a GAL will definitely pick up on this and it can work against you. I would hope that all parents keep their children's best interests in the forefront of their thoughts when going through a divorce, however, I am not naive enough to believe that this is always the case. So, the question about whether or not a GAL is necessary in a custody dispute is whether you believe that your children's rights are not being recognized or you feel that the court needs an independent third party opinion to ensure that you get the custody results you want. GAL's are tremendously helpful in custody disputes, but an unfavorable GAL report is detrimental to a custody case. While I am always in favor of a GAL in custody disputes, when I am slightly fearful that a GAL report may not come out in favor of my client, I advise my client about this before we agree or request a GAL.

Florida Information

The Florida Bar website is a wonderful place for you to go to if you are looking for information concerning an attorney that you are getting ready to hire, or have already hired. In addition, the Florida Bar offers a series of pamphlets about divorce, adoption, guardianship and other popular areas of law. If you are looking for general information about divorce, guardianship, adoption, wills, etc., follow this link:

http://www.floridabar.org/tfb/TFBConsum.nsf/48e76203493b82ad852567090070c9b9/7adaf9c3481ead7685256b2f006c53fa?OpenDocument