Maine Divorce Law Blog

Maine Appeals Blog

I have long been remiss in not mentioning an excellent Maine blog written by Catherine Connors over at Pierce Atwood.  The blog is called Maine Appeals Blog and focuses on, well, Appeals and the Appellate law practice in Maine.

If the blog is so good, you might ask, why haven’t I mentioned it before since it has been around for almost a year?

The truth is that I haven’t known about it. Not because it isn’t a great resource for that area of practice — because it is. The reason it hasn’t been on my radar is that I just don’t do many appeals. So, unfortunately, I’ve overlooked it.

My mistake.

If you have any interest in the area of appellate practice, read and learn from someone who clearly knows the ropes. 

Maine Governor Signs Gay Rights Bill Into Law

Governor Baldacci surprised lots of folks by signing into law the right of gays to marry in Maine.  By doing so, Maine becomes the 5^th state in the U.S. to legalize same sex marriage.

Opponents vow to have a petition to force a state-wide referendum on the issue.  They hope to overturn the Governor’s decision and the vote of the Maine House and Senate.

According to the Press Herald, if opponents get the necessary signatures (about 55,000) to hold a referendum in November, the law won’t take effect until it is upheld by the popular vote.

My prediction is that the vote will be close — very close.

 

Gay Marriage Bill In Maine Gets Nod

The Maine House enacted a bill allowing gay marriages in Maine by a vote of 89-57 today.  This follows a vote in favor of the bill last week by the Maine Senate. 

Now the bill is sent to Governor John Baldacci for his signature.  The Governor has not indicated for certain what he’ll do.  If he signs it, Maine will be the 5^th state in the country to allow gay marriages.

Governor, the ball is in  your court.

10 Crazy Divorce Stories

Check out this site for Ten Divorce Stories Too Strange To Make Up.  What do you think, all legit?

Preparing for a child custody fight

Interesting article here on preparing for a child custody battle.  Those are sound ideas — many times easier said than done.

One thing that’s important to recognize is that good parenting skills should begin early in the case and continue right up to the hearing (and beyond, of course). 

To suddenly become a great parent 2 weeks before trial won’t be helpful to your case.  You need to show a pattern of good parenting behavior.

How to Choose a Personal Injury Lawyer

How to Choose a Personal Injury Lawyer

 

One of the worst things that can happen to a person is to be involved in a serious accident – especially if it's not your fault.  You may have never dealt with an insurance company in your life (other than to pay your premiums).  But now, the insurance company is demanding that you do all kinds of things before they'll help pay your medical bills.  Fill out forms, see certain doctors, and have your property inspected by their recommended expert (your automobile, for example).  They may want to tape a telephone interview with you and any manner of other things.

 

And after doing all that you've been told to do, the insurance company may still not be willing to pay for all your bills and properly compensate you.  Or they may offer an immediate check that sounds tempting at first, but might not be in your best interest if you have lingering injuries.

 

Many lawyers would advise you not to do or say anything without having a lawyer by your side.  For relatively minor injuries, that's probably not necessary.  But I do agree that the more serious your injury, the better it is to see a lawyer before negotiating in any detailed way with the insurance company. 

 

Despite your best efforts at working with the insurance company, you may be forced to hire a lawyer for any number of reasons.

 

So how do you choose the right lawyer?

 

As a lawyer myself, the first thing that I'd recommend is that you NOT automatically hire the lawyers that constantly advertise on TV or the radio.  These lawyers are typically not held in high regard by other lawyers.  Sometimes, these types of firms seem to mostly be ready to settle your case, not litigate it.

 

I'm not saying that some of the lawyers you see advertising all the time on TV aren't good lawyers.  Like all things in life, some are better than others.  The important thing to know is that you have options.

 

First, personal referrals are better than any advertisement.  Ask around.  Talk to friends, family and neighbors and ask them if they've used a personal injury lawyer or someone they know has used one.  Take down any names that come up and see if anyone is mentioned more than once.

 

Check on-line.  Look carefully – and with a somewhat of a skeptical eye – at a lawyer's or law firm's website.  Don't forget that the site was made by the lawyer or firm specifically to help generate business.

 

You often see the suggestion to call the local or state bar association for referrals.  My experience is that this advice is unjustified.  I've never heard of a bar association that would recommend a couple of lawyers and indicate that "they're the best."  At best, they provide you will a list of lawyers – but not much more information than you could get from the phone book or on-line.

 

Take a look at some of the legal sites that rate lawyers: Avvo is the most well known, but others like LawyerRatingz and uReview.net also exist.  You can also find lawyers in martindale.com – but those listings don't have reviews and are sometimes little more than another legal website for the firm.

 

You can also look in the yellow pages – but again I would caution against assuming that the bigger the ad, the better the lawyer.  (Often the same lawyers appearing on TV and the radio all the time are the same lawyers with the big yellow page ads.)  Your primary goal is to find lawyers with lots of experience in handling your type of case – whether it is an auto accident, a workplace injury, medical malpractice, a slip and fall or any other type of injury.

 

Once you have several lawyers you think my be appropriate, call them up and schedule an appointment.  The initial meeting should be free and it's your opportunity to evaluate both the lawyer and his or her practice.  Does she practice out of her home, or is the firm so large it takes up half a downtown building?  Some people feel more comfortable with having a small firm handle their case.  Others want to know that the firm has dozens or perhaps hundreds of lawyers that can be available to review and consult on the case.

 

Above all else, see how you are treated by the staff the attorney that you meet with.  I have people talk to me all the time about how unhappy they are with their lawyer.  My immediate advice is "change lawyers."  There are too many lawyers in this country – good lawyers – for you to put up with a lawyer that isn't doing what you want or expect in your case.

 

And you don't need to put up with shoddy service from a lawyer.  If your attorney isn't returning your calls, isn't answering your questions, doesn't respond to your emails promptly – heck, even if you find that something about your lawyer's personality grates on you every time you speak with him – fire him!  Find someone else that suits you. 

 

But keep in mind that justice often moves at glacial speed – in other words, so slowly that it seems that nothing is happening.  Often your lawyer doesn't immediately accept or return calls because there is nothing new to report in your case.  Still, your attorney should be able to take a minute and bring you up to date.

 

When you speak with each lawyer, find out how much experience he or she has in cases like yours.  Ask the attorney to estimate what percentage of her practice is devoted to personal injury cases.  If the answer is less than 50%, keep looking.

 

You also want a lawyer that has gone to trial a number of times.  Anyone can settle a personal injury claim.  But if the case requires a trial, you want to be sure that you lawyer has done more than just settle hundreds of cases.  In my experience, there are very few lawyers who are excellent litigators. 

 

Lawyers generally handle personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis.  What this means is that the lawyer pays all the major fees associated with your case and then collects those expenses and a fee based upon a percentage (typically 1/3) of what your case settles for or the judgment you receive at trial.  This contingency fee agreement should be put in writing and signed by you and your lawyer.  If the attorney you speak with isn't willing to do this, again, keep looking for someone else.

 

Hiring the right lawyer is a decision that will have a profound impact on your case.  Take your time and choose wisely.

 

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This article was written in association with Personal Injury Experts.

Tips On Telling Children

Here is a link to a site that lists 12 tips for telling your children that mom and dad are getting a divorce.

Five Estate Planning Tips For AFTER Your Divorce

So you’re finally divorced, or at least your divorce is only a few days or weeks away — now what?  Follow these tips to be sure that your assets are protected:

1) Change the beneficiaries on all your life insurance policies, 401(k) plans, IRAs, and any other accounts that may have had your former spouse named. 

2) If you haven’t done so already, close any type of joint account or joint credit card with your former spouse.

3) Get a new Will prepared.  Most married couples leave their estate to each other.  Now that you’re divorced, that’s probably the last thing you want to happen.  If you have children, real estate, or substantial assets, have a new Will done so your wishes on how you want your estate to be distributed will be followed.

4) Have a Durable Power of Attorney prepared.  (If you already have one naming your former spouse, destroy it or revoke it.)  This document gives someone you designate the authority to do things on your behalf, like transfer assets, deal with the IRS, sign agreements, make gifts, and other matters.  A Durable Power of Attorney is helpful if you’re away on business or vacation and want someone to act on your behalf.

5) Get a Health Care Power of Attorney prepared.  (If you already have one naming your former spouse, destroy it or revoke it.)  This document (sometimes called a “Living Will”) deals with your medical care and the type of treatment you want if you’re unable to communicate with your doctor or loved ones.  In this document you indicate what your end-of-life decisions are and give another person the authority to make your wishes know to your treating physician.

Do these 5 things after your divorce to assure that your financial wishes will be carried out. 

For those with substantial assets or unique circumstances, you may need other documents and should consult with an estate-planning attorney in Maine who can advise you properly.

Divorce in difficult financial times

I don’t mean to ignore the other important aspects that often occur in a divorce — custody and visitation of minor children, spousal abuse, marital infidelity, and the very real pain of just being rejected by your spouse — but looking only at finances, should you get divorced in today’s difficult economy? 

There are several pro and cons depending on your situation.

If you’re the primary financial earner, you may be in a position to have to contribute less to your spouse because either your income may be lower (if your job itself isn’t in jeopardy), your retirement has probably declined with the stock market losses, and the value of your home is probably less.

If you’re still capable of earing a good income, this may be the perfect time to get divorced as it relates to a division of your assets.  (Again, I’m ONLY dealing with the financial impact of a divorce.)

If you’re the primary bread winner, the difficult thing about divorcing in today’s economy is that you’re losing the value of your possessions in the recession AND then giving away 1/2 of what you have left to your spouse.  It can feel as if you’ve worked hard to earn all these things and are being left after a divorce with little to show for it.

What about if you’re not the primary breadwinner — is this a good time for a divorce?  If you’re short on income, probably not.  The real problem is going to be that you don’t get as much of a financial cushion if you get divorced. 

Would you rather split a 401(k) that has $1 million or one that has $500,000?  Would you rather have a house worth $400,000 or one that is worth $250,000? 

Clearly if you don’t have a high earning capacity that will allow you to “make up” some of this loss of value due to the economy, it’s probably not in your best interest to get divorced now.

The flip side is that if you’re awarded the house and you’re able to keep it due to a low mortgage, you’re probably getting it at an excellent time that will allow it to appreciate when the economy turns around.  So if you have enough earning capacity to keep your marital home, you may be able to reap substantial rewards when the economy improves.  Of course, no one knows if that is going to happen this year — or in 5 years!

Is divorce the right decision for you in today’s tough economic times?  It all depends on how you look at it.

 

Divorce Calculator

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