Family Law Special Section
Divorced - And Then Bankrupt
By JESSICA GROSSARTH
Imagine this scenario: You represent a spouse in a divorce proceeding in which the couple has co-owned credit card debt. Your client never made a single purchase in connection with that credit card. After the divorce is finalized, the other spouse files for bankruptcy. Your client becomes the target for the credit card company to pursue for the full balance due on that credit card, and the separation agreement you drafted did not specifically account for this possibility. How could this situation have been avoided?
Special Needs Children Create Special Challenges
By TARA C. DUGO
In recent years, there has been a noted trend towards an increase of children diagnosed as special needs. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as of 2011 one in six children are diagnosed as having developmental delays. These staggering numbers reflect that raising and supporting a special needs child has become a reality for many families. Accordingly, divorce professionals must be aware of the rights and obligations of both the parents and the special needs children.
The Myth Of Alimony Reform
By ARNOLD H. RUTKIN and ALEXANDER J. CUDA
A good starting question for the debate on alimony reform in Connecticut is: What, if anything, about Connecticut law on alimony actually needs to be changed? It is already gender neutral. Complaints about lifetime alimony awards make for a good sound bite, but actual lifetime awards are increasingly rare. Even where lifetime alimony is awarded, the preference under Connecticut law is for modifiability. The tone of the debate on alimony reform should not be set by the complaints and anecdotes of an angry, unrepresentative few. To embrace that agenda would be to cheapen the obligations attendant on the institution of marriage itself in order to allow former spouses to be cast aside with greater ease.
Bar Members Benefit From Multimedia Productions
By MONIQUE M. FERRARO
The Family Law Section of the Connecticut Bar Association hasn't exactly been known for their high-tech trailblazing. Yet, Case Flash, a multimedia continuing legal education offering developed by Samuel V. Schoonmaker IV, of Schoonmaker Legal Group in Stamford, with the assistance of retired Superior Court Judge Elaine Gordon, of Gordon ADR in Westbrook, and Allen Gary Palmer, of Halloran & Sage in Westport, is quite possibly the most significant technology contribution the state bar has seen in many years. Case Flash marries continuing legal education and technology in order to bring Family Law Section members the latest state Supreme Court decisions to their email boxes.
Properly Pricing Businesses In Divorce Proceedings
By JOHN M. DelGREGO
Business valuations are performed for a number of purposes, but are often a central, and difficult, issue in a divorce proceeding. When marital property includes an interest in a privately-held business, the valuation and distribution of the business can become even more complex. To appropriately address this issue, attorneys and their clients often retain the services of an expert in the field of business valuation.
