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A. If the divorce is not contested, it can be final in
as little as four months from the date a complaint is filed in court. In
a contested divorce it customarily takes a lot longer for all matters in
the divorce to be finalized. It is possible, however, to proceed with
the actual divorce itself and then resolve any other economic issues
after the divorce decree has been entered. |
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| Q. What are the economic
issues in a divorce? |
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A. Other than child support, which is discussed below,
there are two economic issues that arise in most divorces: alimony and
equitable distribution. Alimony is a monthly payment made by the
non-dependent spouse to the dependent spouse for a period of time
following the divorce. The monthly amount and the duration of the
payments depend on a number of factors such as the length of the
marriage, the abilities of the parties to earn income, the roles of the
parties in the marriage and other similar factors. Pennsylvania courts
do not generally award alimony on a permanent basis. If the parties
cannot agree on an amount and duration, the court will conduct a
hearing, and issue an order regarding alimony.
Equitable distribution is the process of dividing the assets the parties
have accumulated during the marriage. Assets which must be addressed in
equitable distribution may include bank and investment accounts, the
parties’ residence, their pensions or other retirement accounts, cars,
household furnishings and any other item of property that they obtained
during the marriage. Some items, such as inheritances or gifts, may be
excluded from distribution. Debts of the parties are also considered. As
with alimony, the parties can agree how their property will be divided
or, if they cannot, then a court will decide after a hearing and through
the application of a number of factors similar to those applied in
determining alimony. |
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Q. How is child custody determined in
Pennsylvania? |
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A. The law in Pennsylvania requires that a court
determine custody based upon the best interest of the child. While many
custody cases are resolved through court supervised mediation and
conciliation prior to any hearings before a judge, other cases require
court involvement either to establish custody or to enforce existing
custody agreements or orders. When the parents cannot reach an agreement
on custody issues, custody will be decided by a judge after a trial.
Each party will be permitted to present evidence as to his or her
fitness as a parent and the other parent’s lack of fitness. The court
also will consider a psychological evaluation of the parties and the
child or children performed by experts appointed by the judge. The judge
may also order evaluations of the homes where the child or children will
live. Custody orders and agreements are always subject to modification
by a judge if the parent seeking the modification can establish good
cause for the change. |
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| Q. Can the parent with
custody move the children a long distance from the parent without
custody? |
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A. Any change in location, whether out of the state or
across the state, will require court approval absent an agreement of the
parents. Where there is an existing custody order or agreement, the
party wanting to move must petition a court for an order permitting the
move. The court will only permit the move if it is satisfied that the
move will benefit both the parent and the children. A judge will want to
be sure that the move is not motivated by a desire to harm the child’s
relationship with the other parent and if reasonable substitute
visitation arrangements are possible. Even where there has not yet been
an order or agreement regarding custody, the best practice is to seek a
court order because judges do not approve of parents making such
important decisions unilaterally. |
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| Q. Can you explain the
obligation for payment of support? |
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A. There are two kinds of support: child and spousal.
Spousal support is payable from one spouse to the other after they begin
living in separate residences. Spousal support will continue until the
parties are divorced or they cohabit with another person. In some
circumstances support can be ordered even while the parties live
together. Spousal support can be denied by a court if it determines that
the spouse seeking support abandoned the other spouse without good
reason. Child support is paid by the parent who does not have custody to
the parent who has custody. It is payable by any parent to the person
with custody of the child as long as paternity is established. |
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| Q. How is the amount of
support determined? |
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A. Child support in Pennsylvania is determined by a set
of guidelines used by the courts. These guidelines use the net incomes
of the parties to determine how much the non-custodial parent must pay
to the custodial parent. Using the combined monthly net incomes of the
parties, the guidelines provide a pre-determined amount that parents
would be expected to spend to support a child. The non-custodial parent
would then pay a percentage of this pre-determined amount which is equal
to his or her percentage share of the combined net monthly income. For
example, if the pre-determined amount for the support of one child is
$1000.00 and the non-custodial parent earns sixty percent (60%) of the
combined monthly net income, then that parent will pay $600.00 in child
support. Spousal support is determined after the child support amount is
determined and uses a different formula. The net income of the custodial
parent is deducted from the net income of the non-custodial parent. The
amount the non-custodial parent pays in child support is also then
deducted. The non-custodial parent will then pay an amount equal to
thirty percent (30%) of this amount as spousal support. Where there is
no child support being paid, spousal support is equal to forty percent
(40%) of the difference between the parties’ net incomes. |
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| Q. Can a court order the
payment of support over the amount provided for in the guidelines
towards the cost of medical insurance, medical expenses not covered by
insurance, day care expenses or other similar expenses? |
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A. The non-custodial parent will generally be ordered to
provide health care coverage for the children if it is provided through
work. If such coverage is not provided the court can order contribution
from that parent towards the cost of coverage. For medical expenses not
covered by available insurance, the court will usually require the
parties to pay for those expenses in proportion to their relative
incomes. It is also common for the non-custodial parent to be directed
to pay a proportionate share of childcare expenses. Other extraordinary
expenses can also be considered by the court and can justify an order
above the guideline amount. |
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| Q. How long is child
support payable? |
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A. In Pennsylvania, child support will terminate either
on the eighteenth birthday of the dependent child or when that child
graduates high school, whichever occurs later. Absent an agreement
between the parents, Pennsylvania does not recognize an obligation of a
parent to support a child in college either through payments to the
child or through the payment of tuition or other expenses. |
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| Q. Can the custodial
parent deny visitation with the children to the non-custodial parent who
is not paying child support? |
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A. No. These are two separate matters and the court will
not normally deprive a parent of visitation because of support
arrearages. |
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| Q. What is a PFA order? |
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A. PFA stands for Protection From Abuse. Pennsylvania
enacted a law called the Protection From Abuse Act to allow a person
abused by a family member or intimate partner to seek court intervention
to end the abuse. A court will enter a temporary PFA protective order
simply on the word of a person who claims to have been abused or
threatened with abuse. If the other party contests the allegation of
abuse, then the court will hold a hearing at which both parties can
appear and present evidence. If the Court determines that the person
seeking the PFA order is in need of protection, it can enter an order
barring abuse and directing the alleged abuser to move from the shared
residence and to not have any contact with the person seeking the PFA
order. The order can remain in effect for as long as two years. If a
violation of the PFA order is reported, police officers are required by
law to take the alleged violator into custody. A violation can result in
a jail sentence of up to six months and fine of up to $5,000. It is
important to have legal representation at all stages of PFA proceedings,
because of the remedies provided. |
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| Q. How much can I expect
to pay in attorney fees in a divorce? |
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A. The amount of fees charged in any divorce or other
family law case depends upon the complexity of the issues and the amount
of work required. Our firm would generally charge a single flat fee for
appearances at support conferences, Protection from Abuse (“PFA”)
hearings, or for handling uncontested divorces. All other domestic
relations matters will be charged on an hourly basis. In such
situations, a retainer is required and the client normally receives
monthly statements indicating how much work has been done and how much
of the retainer remains, and any additional fees due. There are also
some costs involved in divorces that have to be paid by the client.
These include filing fees, the costs of expert reports, the costs of
transcripts and other similar items. |
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