Family Attorney
At H&T Legal Services, our goal is to assist clients in the Fort Wayne area with all aspects of their divorce and family law challenges in an atmosphere of support and encouragement. When you need a Fort Wayne family law attorney, our top rated family law practitioners are here to help represent you in your time of need. Some of the family law issues that our team has been able to assist with include the following:
- Child Custody
- Estate Planning
- Child Support
- CHINS
- Spousal Maintenance
Please contact our top family law representatives at 260-412-0020 or email info@handtlegalservices.com.
Family Law Can Be Painless. Family Law Can Be Painful.
Family law is a specialized area of the civil law dealing with domestic relationships and family matters. This area of the court system is a great deal more formalized in the US, although family law cases are almost always settled out of court. Settlements usually take place outside of court and are entered into between the two parties to the dispute, and often involve some kind of financial consideration or payment arrangement for either party. Settlements may also be informal arrangements made between relatives on a familial basis.
When you face the most painful and difficult decisions you may ever have to make, when our Fort Wayne families need clear law answers, frank perspectives, and affordable family law help. Our attorneys will review your situation in the detail it deserves, and address your questions and make sure that our clients understand their situation and options. Our attorneys can help our clients stay out of trouble by showing them the pitfalls in the road ahead, work with them to set achievable goals, and defend them against legal attacks.
A Fort Wayne Family Attorney Who Cares.
Our attorneys believe that informed clients are protected clients. This means making sure that they know exactly where they stand at all times, and what actions help move a case forward. Hiring a divorce attorney means that a former partner does not overstep without consequence. Our attorneys are always glad to work with the other party to negotiate a settlement agreement as an alternative to divorce litigation, but our attorneys never fear a fight. The goal is to help minimize the impact that a separation or a divorce may have on children. Our attorneys will tell you where your case is strong and where it might have challenges, and most important, our attorneys will work to help identify risks while maximizing opportunity.
Need Help with Child Custody. Our Family Law Team Can Help.
A joint physical custody arrangement may be granted by the courts, but the courts will not automatically give custody to both parents. To get a court order for joint physical custody, the parties must have a written agreement regarding their parenting plan. If the parents can’t come to an agreement, the court will then have to decide on the best interests of the child when deciding custody.
Courts Consider a Number of Factors in Child Custody
The court will also consider a number of factors when considering how to award custody. Some of the factors include:
- Age of the child
- Preferences of the child
- Religion
- Preference of the other parent
- Capability of each parent to care for the child
- Any other special family circumstances
The decision regarding joint custody will depend on all of these factors. One important consideration is the child’s preference regarding where they will live during the times of the parent with custody takes over their child’s time. If the child has special needs such as being permanently disabled, then their preference is especially important. The courts can also look at the child’s ability to be cared for by each parent and make a decision regarding joint custody based on their preferences.
Once the court has decided to give joint custody, then you will need to determine what type of visitation will be in the best interest of your child. Joint custody may mean shared time with each parent, frequent visits, holidays, spending time with each parent, etc. The visitation schedule should be worked out so that both parents get enough time with the child. You also want to make sure the child spends enough time with each parent so that they can develop a good relationship.
Indiana Spousal Maintenance
While alimony in Indiana does not exist, the state of Indiana has divorce laws that allow the judge to grant a formal request for temporary rehabilitative spousal maintenance for a time no more than three years from the date of the final divorce decree or indefinite spousal maintenance to a divorcing spouse who is unable to meet basic financial obligations due to under- or unemployment or who is unable to become employed at a level to be financially self-sufficient. When awarding indefinite spousal maintenance, the court considers the following four factors, which are:
- Educational level of each spouse at the time of marriage and at the time the divorce action is commenced
- Whether an interruption in the education, training, or employment of a spouse who is seeking maintenance occurred during the marriage as a result of child care responsibilities or homemaking duties, or both
- Earning capacity of each spouse, including:
- Educational background
- Training
- Employment skills
- Work experience
- Length of presence or the absence of time in the job market
- Expense and time required for the spouse requiring spousal maintenance to acquire adequate training or education to enable the spouse who is need of maintenance to find appropriate employment to obtain self sufficiency
Practical Guidance from a Fort Wayne Divorce Attorney
A good Fort Wayne divorce attorney will offer practical guidance and easy-to-understand advice while searching for solutions that fit your needs and your budget, and while helping to avoid unnecessary conflict. You need an attorney that will not shy away from a conflict, but we will always work to avoid creating needless battles that serve a divorce attorney’s interests at the client’s expense. Many Fort Wayne family law divorce cases settle without having to go to court, and our lawyers are ready to work with you to explore whether your goals can be attained without having to fight, and without leaving you vulnerable. Wherever the road takes you, we will stand by every step of the way from the initial consultation through the time the case either settles or goes to trial. Clients have high expectations of a family law firm, and it is important that those expectations are met.
Some people think that it’s holding on that makes one strong; sometimes it’s letting go.
– Unknown
A Family Law Firm that Works in Your Interests
Fort Wayne family attorneys, litigating difficult cases with the expertise to help you work through your family law matter.
