paternity, time-sharing, parenting plans

04 February

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How to Live with Your Spouse While Going Through a Divorce

in Child Custody, Divorce Law News, Family Law, Laws and Women, Lawyer’s Advice, Legal Advice, Parenting

Living with a spouse while going through a divorce is rarely an easy thing to do. To begin with, the very fact you and your spouse have deemed your marriage irrevocably broken means you no longer desire to be together permanently. This being said, it would not usually be the desire of a couple to continue to live together in the same home. In most instances, each party has his or her own residence while going through a divorce and most certainly after the divorce is finalized. Occasionally, however, some circumstances make it necessary for a couple to continue to...

16 January

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Social Media Posts and Photos Can Be Used Against You in Court

Posted by Grant Gisondo

in Alimony, Child Custody, Divorce Law News, Family Law, Legal Advice, Parenting, Time Sharing

Social media, the blessing, and curse of the modern world. YouTube, Facebook, Tumbler, Twitter, Snapchat, Instant Messenger, Linkedin, Instagram, and Pinterest are examples of social media options. It is amazing to be able to talk with and see people around the world. You can take videos of activities, people, and just about anything the mind can think up. Information is non-ending, and music and art abound. Authors Marisa A. Tradatti and Anna C. Horevay write, “There is a whole generation of people for whom tweeting is as natural as breathing, for whom the word ‘friend’ has become a verb and...

07 January

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What is a Retainer? Why Do I Have to Pay One?

Posted by Grant Gisondo

in Alimony, Child Custody, Divorce Law News, Family Law, Legal Advice, Parenting, Time Sharing

A retainer, in the legal sense, is an up-front fee paid by a potential client to ‘’retain” or hold the time and expenses an attorney may need to litigate a case properly. The definition of payment by retainer provided by the Legal Information Institute is “A fee that the client pays up-front to an attorney before the attorney has begun work for the client.” A specific outcome is not guaranteed, but rather the attorney will be working on the client’s behalf until an outcome is reached. There are three types of retainers: Retaining fee: an up-front retaining fee held by...

28 December

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How Might Virtual Learning and Working from Home Affect Shared Parenting and Child Support?

Posted by Grant Gisondo

in Child Support, COVID l9, Family Law, Parenting, Time Sharing

Due to the COVID pandemic, working from home and virtual learning has now been in effect for many months and, in some areas, is still an everyday occurrence. In fact, some soothsayers are predicting that this change in the way we live is becoming the new norm. In many instances, schools and businesses are finding it financially beneficial to keep doors closed, and students and employees studying and working from home. For some, this change in venue is welcomed, but for many, especially those who depend on parenting plans and child support, there are and will continue to be possible...

18 December

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What Should You Bring to Your Initial Consultation?

Posted by Grant Gisondo

in Divorce Law News, Family Law, Lawyer’s Advice, Legal Advice, Parenting

To better understand what you should bring to your initial consultation, it Is necessary to understand what an initial consultation with an attorney is designed to accomplish. There are several things to consider: An initial consultation is not a time when an attorney will be giving direct advice involving your potential case. Instead, it a time for you to present the reasons you need an attorney and for the attorney to listen and make suggestions as to how he or she can be of help in getting you the outcome you hope for. As no one can know the mind...

08 December

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Why an Attorney Will Not Give You Legal Advice in a FREE Consultation

Posted by Grant Gisondo

in Alimony, Divorce Law News, Family Law, Lawyer’s Advice, Legal Advice, Parenting

When considering this question, the first thing to clarify is the difference between advice and information. Advice: as defined by online Find Law states, “Legal advice refers to the written or oral counsel about a legal matter that would affect the rights and responsibilities of the person receiving the advice. In addition, actual legal advice requires careful analysis of the law as it applies to a person’s specific situation—as opposed for speculation based on generic facts.” Here an attorney would learn the specific facts of a client’s case and do research to determine how best to proceed. Often just getting ready...

02 December

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What to Know When a Minor Child Must Fly to Visit Parents in Different States During COVID

Posted by Grant Gisondo

in COVID l9, Divorce Law News, Family Law, Lawyer’s Advice, Parenting

Life must go on even during the current COVID pandemic. This life includes the timesharing orders between parents of minor children. When it is nice if both parents live in the same geographical area, it today’s transient society, it often happens that parents live miles and sometimes states apart. As most parental timesharing plans include instructions on allowing minor children to visit, even when many miles separate them, it is important to understand how a minor child can fly between parents. If a minor child needs to fly without an accompanying adult, the child is considered an unaccompanied minor, and...

08 October

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Meaning of Continuity of a Stable, Satisfactory Environment Regarding Timesharing

Posted by Grant Gisondo

in Child Support, COVID l9, Family Law, Parenting, Time Sharing

Parental timesharing - Family law attorney Gisondolaw

Parental timesharing for minor children has, in most states, including Florida, replaced the practice of custody for minor children where there is a primary or residential parent and a secondary or nonresidential parent. Over the years of experience and research, it has been proven that children develop to their best potential when they are cared for and nurtured by both parents. Unfortunately, in perhaps the majority of families in the US, both parents are not together whether in marriage or a living arrangement. The practice of primary and secondary custody simply does not allow a child equal access to and...

07 September

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Preparing for the Holiday Timesharing-Review

Posted by Grant Gisondo

in Family Law, Lawyer’s Advice, Legal Advice, Parenting, Time Sharing

It’s hard to believe that another year, particularly such a difficult one, is fast approaching what is called the “holiday season.” These special times of celebration include Labor Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. All these events are traditionally family-oriented, and children play a large part in the celebrations. All ages of children, young and old, usually participate, but those children under the age of l8 and those unable to provide for themselves due to physical or mental challenges, have a particularly important role to play. And, of course, it is not unusual for both parents to want to spend these...

27 August

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Can We Settle the Case Without Attending Mediation?

Posted by Grant Gisondo

in Child Support, Family Law, Lawyer’s Advice, Mediation, Parenting, Time Sharing

For a direct answer to the question, “Can we settle the case without attending mediation?” the answer is “yes.” Mediation, according to The Free Dictionary by Farlex, is “a settlement of a dispute or controversy by setting up an independent person between two contending parties in order to aid them in the settlement of their disagreements” For example, mediation is used in Family Law for such cases as dissolution of marriage (divorce), child support, parental timesharing, parenting plan, and modification of alimony, child support, and parental timesharing and parenting plan. In fact, in some states such as Florida, mediation is...