Author Archives: Jay Butchko
Deciding and Allocating Extracurricular Activities Post-Divorce
Children today are expected, and some demand, to be involved in a number of extracurricular activities. These endeavors are tied to better sociability, self-esteem, and overall development into a productive adult. Coordinating work, school, and after-school activities as an intact couple is challenging for all parents, logistically and financially. These challenges are even greater… Read More »
Expunging vs. Sealing Your Criminal Record
No one is perfect, and part of being human is making mistakes. However, some mistakes, especially those that result in a criminal conviction, can haunt a person for the rest of his/her life. Denial of employment, licensure, places to live, and access to one’s child are all possible repercussions of having a criminal record…. Read More »
An Unwed Father’s Rights to His Child
The birth of a new baby is a cause for celebration for most couples, with both parents present, invested, and engaged in the new child’s life. For unmarried fathers, this celebration may be short-lived, or may not occur at all because under Florida paternity law, the unmarried father has no official right to see… Read More »
Child Custody Across Borders
Negotiating child custody is fraught with opportunities for disagreement and conflict. The farther apart parents live, the more likely they will come to odds over where the child should spend the majority of his/her time. When disputes over the terms of child custody, or the enforcement of a standing order, arise, and parents live… Read More »
Coping with Parental Alienation in Shared Custody
Children almost always benefit from having active and consistent involvement from both parents. To facilitate this dynamic when child custody is shared, both parents must be willing to work together to encourage and foster the relationship with the other parent. Parents that badmouth a former spouse in the front of their child are known… Read More »
Temporary Relief While a Divorce Is Pending
Divorces take at least a few months to complete, and this timeline assumes the parties are pretty much in agreement about all the issues. If conflict exists, the amount of time needed to finish the process could be considerably longer. However, most couples want to start untangling their collective lives as soon as the… Read More »
Locating a Parent Delinquent on Child Support
The practical realities of child custody mean one parent will inevitably be the primary caretaker for the child, and exercise a greater amount of the parenting time. All parents know how expensive it is to raise a child, and how critical regular child support payments are to fully meeting a child’s needs. However, while… Read More »
How Do Grandparents Factor into Divorce?
Grandparents play a special role in children’s lives, and often provide a gentle guidance and adoration that parents cannot due to other demands and priorities. When parents divorce, grandparents are among the most closely affected by this decision outside the central family unit, and may have concerns that access to their grandchildren may be… Read More »
New Law on Child Custody for Deployed Parents
Active members of the military on deployment who share child custody often have limited availability to communicate, and logistically, are unable to be present for events and face-to-face time until the tour is over. How to deal with this situation, particularly to ensure relatives related to the deployed parent have adequate time with the… Read More »
Why Everyone Should Consider a Prenuptial Agreement
Deciding to get married is a wonderful experience, but this decision, without adequate financial planning for future possibilities, can produce large amounts of conflict in the event of divorce. No one wants to contemplate the end of a relationship before it even really begins, but couples put themselves at considerable risk of protracted litigation… Read More »
