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Understanding Mass. Law

There has always been a lot of controversy about college contribution responsibilities for divorced or divorcing parents. As it is getting more and more expensive for students to attend college, parental financial contribution can end up being a crucial element in the divorce settlement and in a further modification after the settlement. The courts have […]

There is relatively new law regarding children in foster care or residential treatment.  There is a presumption that child should go to the same school( school of origin) and DCF has a meeting to make this determination.   Parents and children should have a voice as many times DCF will aim for having child go […]

The costs of insurance can be prohibitive and is a very important factor in may divorces both for the spouse and children. For the spouse and children most issues are similar: 1. The policy effect 2. What is the obligation of the coverage 3. The duration of that obligation 4. what happens if policy changes […]

You can file something called a “contempt” action saying that the other side has violated the court order. You need to show what the court order is and how it was violated. There are technical requirements but the order should be clear and the violation should be straightforward. The court has a lot of remedies […]

In many counties in Massachusetts an ARC attorney can be appointed to represent the child’s voice. It is a pro bono program ( there is no costs to the parties). The ARC attorney acts as the child’s voice in court. This is not available in DCF C&P cases( child counsel may be appointed through CPCS) […]

There are some big changes surrounding child support in Massachusetts and it may impact people in a variety of ways. It does make sense to re-calculate child support now versus at the time of any order. The new calculations can be used to change or modify by agreement or contested. The updates impact new cases. […]

As a pet lover with two cats and two dogs, I understand how pets become part of the family.  The law allowing pet trusts makes it easy to plan for the care of your pets if you become disabled or die.  The pet trust became a law in Massachusetts on April 7, 2011.  It allows […]

As most people are aware there are a lot of concerns about social media with issues of privacy and concerns about who you and your children might be “friending”.   In today’s legal climate there are a lot of legal risks associated with the internet that people are not aware of.  It is a fairly common […]

There are a lot of misconceptions about criminal records in MA.  There is for all practical purposes no expunging of records in MA.  CWOF, not guilty, dismissals and the like do continue to appear on your CORI and CARI.  There are different levels of people who can have access to your records and  who will […]