Star Jones Files For Divorce
NEW YORK (AP) -- Three years after tying the knot in a spectacular, over-the-top affair that caused some backlash, Star Jones has decided to end her marriage to banker Al Reynolds.
Star Jones and Al Reynolds, here in 2006, married in late 2004.
The 46-year-old TV personality quietly filed divorce papers March 26 in New York Supreme Court in Manhattan. The records are sealed, syndicated entertainment show "Entertainment Tonight" reported Wednesday.
For more information on Arizona Divorce Lawyers, contact NRG.
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Ex-Wife of Former Beatle Explains Dousing of Opposing Counsel
LONDON, England (AP) -- The ex-wife of former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney said Friday that she snapped when she poured a jug of water over the head of her former husband's lawyer during their bitter divorce battle in Britain's courts.
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Wife of Entertainment Mogul Simmons Files for Divorce
LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- Kimora Lee Simmons has already moved on, but she took steps to make it official by filing for divorce from her husband of seven years, entertainment mogul Russell Simmons.
For information on Arizona divorce law, see NRG Family Law.
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Interesting Article For Military Personnel
The following is an article by Mark Sullivan, who is an expert on Military Issues in Family Law.
Mark Sullivan, is a retired Army Reserve JAG colonel who practices with Sullivan & Grace, P.A. in Raleigh, NC. A board-certified specialist in family law and past president of the North Carolina Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, he is chairman of the ABA Section of Family Law Military Committee. Mr. Sullivan is also the author of the Section's soon-to-be published, The Military Divorce Handbook, which will be available for distribution this Spring.
For Arizona military divorce issues, contact NRG.
Haven't Gotten Around to Changing Those Beneficiary Designations? A Word of Caution
Could life insurance or pension benefits meant for you go to a spouse from a previous marriage instead? A recent U. S. Supreme Court ruling (Egelhoff v. Egelhoff) makes this a potential cause for concern.
Continue Reading...Employee Who Kept Spouse Enrolled in Health Plan Five Years After Divorce Found Liable for Fraud
Under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reform Act of 1986 (COBRA), health insurance coverage provided by an employer can be continued for up to 36 months by an ex-spouse. Technically, this law applies only to employers with 20 or more employees. However, most states have laws that apply COBRA-type benefits to employees of smaller companies.
Continue Reading...Preparation of Pendente Lite Applications
The following article is a must read for anyone preparing to ask the court in a divorce action to issue temporary orders pending a final resolution of all issues at trial.
By Curtis J. Romanowski
Part One of a Two-Part Series.
The pendente lite phase of a case and the results of a pendente lite application are critical for setting the tone for the balance of the case, and often affect whatever final decisions or agreements are reached. An inequitable result could seriously compromise one party's case. Typically, pendente lite motions provide judges with an introduction to the parties, including the details of the marriage, separation, children and other relevant factors surrounding the case. As a rule, first impressions are usually important, and the pendente lite application is no exception.
Depending on the results, pendente lite applications have the potential to create leverage for the balance of the case, spur client management and relational problems, and escalate litigation costs attributable to the entrenchment of the "winner" and the commitment of the "loser" to retake lost ground.
It is, therefore, essential to provide judges with sound, hard evidence at the pendente lite phase, that will enable them to deal fairly with both sides pending the submission of final proofs. An unfairly skewed pendente lite award can thwart fair outcomes and is simply one of the worst things that can happen to both parties. What about voluntary arrangements? Money being paid or received voluntarily might quickly become the status quo. Consequently, if the arrangement is unacceptable to either party, a pendente lite support application should be filed to establish a more appropriate support amount.
Continue Reading...Forbes Article -- Top Financial Divorce Mistakes
Leah Hoffmann's article in Forbes magazine is a good read for anyone considering going through the divorce process, or even better, for anyone currently involved in the process.
In essence, she tells everyone that "getting a divorce is a messy business, both personally and financially". Her advice -- "don't be in such a hurry to reach a settlement that you make these costly financial mistakes". Click here for the full article.
Florida Divorce Raises Issues of Authority, Costs
Itir Yakar
Daily Business Review
02-22-2005
A Broward County, Fla., judge did not improperly delegate his decision-making authority on attorney fees in a hotly contested divorce case, because he gave oral instructions before the parties drafted their proposals and because his decision incorporated elements from both sides, Florida's 4th District Court of Appeal has ruled.
In its unanimous ruling last month, the 4th DCA distinguished the case of Rosenbloom v. Rosenbloom from that of Perlow v. Berg-Perlow. In Perlow, the Florida Supreme Court last year chastised a Palm Beach Circuit senior judge for letting the lawyer for one of the parties in a divorce case write the judge's order.
Continue Reading...Privacy On Assets In Divorce Case Challenged In Court
In Arizona, all records regarding a divorce action are public record. This is not necessarily the case in other states. For example, in New York only the parties and their attorneys of record are allowed access to the file.
For obvious reasons, Arizona's policy raises concerns for litigants going through the process of divorce. The following article addresses California's approach.
Continue Reading...Rush Limbaugh Divorce Finalized
Rush Limbaugh's divorce has been "signed and sealed" in a Florida courthouse, the Palm Beach Daily News reports.
The popular radio host returns to bachelor status after ending his marriage with his third wife, Marta.
Continue Reading...Alimony Payments Have Tax Implications
By IRS Newswire
Feb 15, 2005
From the IRS, here is Tax Tip 2005-32.
When the end of matrimony leads to the start of alimony, how does it affect your taxes? Alimony payments you receive are taxable to you in the year received, according to the Internal Revenue Service.
The amount is reported on line 11 of Form 1040. You cannot use Form 1040A or Form 1040EZ. The person making the payment may claim a deduction in the year paid on Form 1040. You must give the person who paid the alimony your Social Security number or you may have to pay a $50 penalty.
If your decree or agreement calls for both alimony and child support and specifies amounts for each, only the alimony is taxable. Because no taxes are withheld from alimony payments, you may need to make estimated tax payments or increase the amount withheld from your paycheck.
For more information, see Publication 504, Divorced or Separated Individuals, Tax Topics 406, Alimony Received, and 452, Alimony Paid. Publications and forms may be downloaded or ordered by calling toll free 1-800-TAX-FORM (1-800-829-3676).
Helpful Links:
Publication 504, Divorced or Separated Individuals (PDF 171K)
Tax Topic 406, Alimony Received
Tax Topic 452, Alimony Paid
Spyware Evidence Not Permitted In Divorce Case
A Florida appeals court has refused to allow a woman to use evidence obtained by illegally planting spyware on her husband's computer to support her case in their bitter divorce proceedings.
Beverley Ann O'Brian installed a surveillance program called Spector on the computer used by her husband James. She obtained transcripts of private on-line chats between James and another woman with whom he was playing Yahoo Dominoes, according to court papers.
The Circuit Court for Orange County, Florida, found that evidence obtained in this way could not be used in court because it had been intercepted - an offence under federal wiretapping regulations and the Florida Security of Communications Act 2003. It banned Mrs O'Brian from using spyware in the future and from disclosing any information obtained from the surveillance.
Mrs. O'Brian appealed, arguing that the evidence should have been admissible, as it had been obtained by copying information stored on the computer, and not through the interception of electronic communications.
Continue Reading...Employers May Now Charge for QDRO Approval
In a little noticed change, the US Department of Labor issued a "field assistance bulletin" in May, 2003, that permits employers and administrators of ERISA-regulated defined contribution retirement plans (such as 401(k) plans) to charge QDRO processing expenses. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that one large plan administrator (Fidelity Investments) now charges for QDROs for 40 of its 200 plans for which Fidelity processes QDRO documents. The decision to charge is made by each individual employer.
Continue Reading...DR Rules Committee to Submit Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure to AJC in March 2005
The Committee on the Rules of Procedure in Domestic Relations Cases is nearing completion of the first draft of the Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure (ARFLP) and plans to submit a report of its findings and recommendations and the rules for approval to the Committee on Superior Courts (COSC) in February, 2005 and the Arizona Judicial Council (AJC) in March, 2005. If the Rules are approved by AJC, the Committee will submit the Rules for approval during the Justices' Rules Agenda in June, 2005 and circulate them for public comment until August, 2005. The DR Rules Committee is hopeful to have the ARFLP effective on January 1, 2006.
Continue Reading...Post-Decree Bankruptcy Basis To Set Aside Decree
This case has great implications to those spouses out their who think that they can beat the divorce court by taking all of the debt in a divorce action and then run over to the bankruptcy court and have it discharged.
In Birt v. Birt, the Husband's filing of a Chapter 7 Bankrutpcy approximately two months after the entry of the parties Decree of Dissolution resulting in Wife being obligated to pay all community debt and remaining liable for property equalization payments to Husband, created "such a substantial injustice that it overrides the committment to finality of judgments and on the factsof this case call for relief under Rule 60(c)(6).".
The trial court on remand, was directed to determine: (1) Whether to affirm an award of attorney's fees and clarify whether it is in the nature of nondischargeable maintenance or support rather than part of a property division; (2) Whether the bankruptcy discharge resulting in the doubling of Wife's ultimate liability on community debts requires an award of spousal maintenance to Wife; (3) Whether the discharged creditors have reached any agreements with Wife to limit the Wife's obligation on the debts; (4) Whether to reallocate property, debts or equalization payments; and (5) Whether the original allocations were in the nature of spousal maintenance or child support rather than a simple division of property and debt.
Invalid Mexican Marriage Recognized in Arizona
A marriage that is invalid under the law where the ceremony occurred may nevertheless be recognized as valid in Arizona if it would have been valid had the ceremony been performed there, the Arizona Court of Appeals decided in Donlann v. Macgurn, Ariz. Ct. App., No. 1 CA-CV 01-0095, 9/12/02).
The parties participated in a marriage ceremony in 1990 during a vacation in Puerto Vallerta, Jalisco, Mexico. They obtained the necessary blood tests and marriage certificate in Mexico. Their marriage certificate was signed by a civil registry official; however, the marriage ceremony was performed by a woman who was not an authorized member of the civil registry office.
The couple returned to Arizona and resided together after the wedding. When the wife petitioned for divorce in 1997, the husband claimed that their marriage was invalid under Jalisco law because the wedding was not performed by a civil registry official. The trial court agreed and the wife appealed.
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