The Taunton Trial Court recently opened and it includes several different courts including, Taunton Juvenile Court, Taunton District Court, the Housing Court and a branch of the Bristol Probate and Family Court.  Here are some of the contact information:   Taunton District Court 40 Broadway Street Taunton, MA 02780   Main Telephone Number: (508) […]

The new, Massachusetts alimony law was signed by Governor Patrick on October 4, 2011 after winning approval in both the House and Senate. The changes establish guidelines for alimony payments and include limits on the duration of the payments. The new law essentially will eliminate lifetime alimony in many cases and will in part be […]

           A question I do get asked a reasonable amount of time, is can children be emancipated in Massachusetts?  What emancipation means is that the parents right to control his or her minor child or participate in that decision making and that the parents no longer have the right to determine where the child lives […]

            What is an Annulment? An Annulment undoes a marriage by treating the couple as if a marriage did not even occurred. What that means, is that the party was not legally able to enter a party because that some reason that marriage would be considered void from the very beginning.               For example, […]

              You need to get a copy of your Divorce Decree; you can do that by mail.  The fee has been $20.00 for a certified copy, plus $1.00 per page for every page except for the first.  You do need to contact the Probate Court County where the divorce was filed, so for example, it […]

            There is an explanation and it might be a little bit antiquated, but basically the final divorce does not occur on that date. If the Judge find the facts support the true breakdown of the marriage and approves that agreement; that Order would be entered right away.  Thirty (30) days after the Order is […]

            Right now it appears that the new Alimony Bill maybe passed.  It was by the House and the Senate has it next week.  Some of the potential issues are: one that long term marriages will end at retirement age is defined by the Social Security Act.  Second, maximum alimony is 50% of the number […]

            I just had recently had a Clerk Magistrate’s hearing and it would be important for both adults and students to realize the potential consequences that if you knowingly transport someone with alcohol, even if you are not drinking or under the influence or holding onto the alcohol that there is a strong likelihood that […]

            Right now I am in the middle of a very contentious guardianship case.  It is also dealing with an issue of Do not Resuscitate (“DNR”). One hand the family is arguing that the elder is a practicing catholic and has a viewpoint that she did not want a DNR and has told friends this.  […]

That the court had reached a decision that a Defendant facing evidence against him or her has to be able to cross-examine a person and not just a piece of paper.  What has to happen is that the people that did the drug testing to confirm that the drugs were actually found to be drugs need […]