Family Law

Get The Guidance That You Need

Divorce can be a difficult and stressful process, especially if children are involved.  In addition to the emotional issues you already face, navigating the legal process presents additional challenges.

At the Law Office of Shorty, Dooley, & Hall, we represent clients throughout Louisiana, including metropolitan New Orleans and southeast Louisiana, in divorce and related matters. Our attorneys will help you arrive at a desired resolution to your family law matter and ensure that your best interests are protected.

We understand that every family situation is different. Our attorneys will work closely with you to understand your unique goals and develop strategies to meet them.

Divorce and other family law matters involve some of the most complicated and important decisions you will ever make. These choices will have lasting effects for all parties involved. We believe it is essential to keep our clients informed so that they are fully advise of their options, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of each. To minimize the time, cost and emotional impact in matters such as these, we will advise you on alternatives means to litigation.

From start to finish you can rely on us to provide you the guidance you need.

Divorce

When considering filing for divorce, it is important that you get all the necessary information you need to make an informed and conscious decision. At the Law Office of Shorty, Dooley, & Hall, our attorneys will help you understand the issues and options in making that decision.

The information below is designed to enhance your understanding of general divorce issues. To discuss your specific case and needs during a free initial consultation, contact our office today.

A divorce is a method of terminating a marriage contract between two individuals. A divorce will give each person the legal right to marry someone else, divide the couple’s assets and debts and determine the future care and custody of their children. While each state has individual statutes that address these issues differently, the basic principles the courts follow when considering requests for divorce are relatively uniform.

Louisiana Divorce

In Louisiana a person may obtain a Divorce upon the filing of a Petition for Divorce by either spouse, and a showing that the requisite period of time has elapsed.  A divorce may be granted according to one of the following scenarios:

1. If the parties have minor children of the marriage, then the parties must live separate and apart continuously for 365 days before judgment of divorce can be rendered.
2. A.  If there are no minor children of the marriage, or upon a finding by the court that the other spouse has physically or sexually abused the spouse seeking a divorce or child of one of the spouses,
   
   Or
   
   B.  After a contradictory hearing, a protective order on an injunction has been issued against the other spouse and that the protective order is in effect at the time of filing the petition for divorce, then an order of divorce shall be rendered after a showing that the parties have lived separate and apart for 180 days.

Litigation Issues

Before a divorce may be granted, the typical issues that must be resolved are, spousal support, property division, and, if there are children, custody, visitation, and child support.

A divorcing couple who agrees in writing on all of those issues will likely be granted an uncontested divorce and avoid adversarial divorce litigation. Conversely, if there is disagreement on any of the basic issues, the couple may proceed through all phases of litigation including trial before a family court judge.

Divorce Litigation

The actual legal process for getting a divorce varies by state. However, most marital termination proceedings usually include some version of the following components:

• Petition.  The filing of some form of petition document formally initiates divorce proceedings.
• Summons and Response.  Formal notice to your spouse about your intent to pursue court action to obtain a legal divorce.  The response is the other parties’ acknowledgement the divorce procedure has a begun.
• Motions.  A formal request to the court to order some type of action before the trial.  For example, in situations involving domestic abuse it is not uncommon for a motion for a protective or restraining order to be filed.
• Discovery.  The phase of the proceeding where each side gathers information in support of their legal arguments.  It is an important phase in contested actions, particularly if you believe your spouse is hiding assets.  It includes depositions and interrogatories.
• Hearings and Temporary Orders.  In some instances there are questions or situations that need to be temporarily resolved before the final divorce agreement is reached or ordered by the court.  For example, if the couple can’t agree about where their children should live during the process they would ask the judge, during a hearing, to decide.  Temporary orders generally remain in effect until the final decision is made at the end of the divorce process.
• Trial.  A critical court appearance before the judge where the case will be decided. The trial may include witnesses, friends, financial experts, psychologists, as well as other types of evidence including financial records.
• Judgment.  The final decision is a judgment.  It is not a verdict in the sense the judge assigns blame to either party.  It is simply a legal statement of the judge’s rulings on all the issues in questions during the trial, such as custody, visitation, support and property division.

Spousal Support

Spousal Support or maintenance is financial support paid by one spouse to another for the maintenance of that spouse. Each state determines spousal support differently. You should consult with an attorney to determine what factors will be considered when deciding if, how much, and to whom spousal support will be paid.

The court may award two different classifications of spousal support: interim periodic support and final periodic support. The court may award a party an interim periodic allowance based on the needs of that party, the ability of the other party to pay, and the standard of living of the parties during the marriage. Interim periodic spousal support terminates on the judgment of divorce. However, if a claim for final spousal support is pending when the divorce is rendered, interim spousal support thereafter terminates upon rendition of the judgment awarding or denying final spousal support or 180 days from the judgment of divorce, whichever occurs first.

Permanent spousal support is an allowance for support and maintenance (such as food, clothing, housing and other necessities) of a spouse. When a party requests permanent alimony, they must establish that they have a need for support and their spouse have sufficient means and abilities to provide for part or all of the need.  Final periodic spousal support is harder to get. The court must consider the following factors in determining the entitlement, amount, and duration of final support.

• Needs of the parties
• Income and means of the parties
• Financial obligations of the parties
• Earning capacity of the parties
• Effect of custody of the children on a party’s earning capacity
• Time necessary for the claimant to acquire appropriate education, training, and employment
• Health and age of the parties
• Duration of the marriage
• Tax consequences

The most important condition for an award of final support is the claimant’s freedom of fault prior to filing divorce proceedings by either party. Fault grounds include: adultery, conviction of a felony, habitual intemperance, cruel treatment or excesses that make living together insupportable, public defamation, abandonment, and intentional non-support.

Whether you are the spouse seeking spousal support or the spouse that is expected to pay alimony, our firm can assess your case and ensure that you are treated fairly by the court. We also represent clients in modification and/or enforcement of alimony orders.

Child Support

Whether you are seeking an award of child support or you dispute payment, the Law Office of Shorty, Dooley, & Hall can assist you in understanding your rights.

Child Support is based upon the premise that children should not be financially prejudiced by their parents’ separation. Fathers and mothers upon the birth of the child, inherit the obligation of supporting, maintaining, and educating their children. Biological paternity or maternity obliges each parent to support children as well.

When the parent paying child support can no longer give the support, or when the child receiving it is no longer in need of it, an action may be commenced so that, if granted, the support requirement will be discharged or its amount reduced. Once child support has been set by a court order, there must be a material change in circumstances in either party’s financial position or in the children’s needs to modify the award.

Louisiana has established Guidelines to be used in any child support proceeding. The Guidelines were enacted to address two problems: inconsistency in support awards and inadequate awards. The Guidelines are essentially a mathematical formula that calculates the amount of child support. Although the formula is not difficult to calculate, there are complex rules on what constitutes income for purposes of child support calculation. Our firm is well versed on the child support rules. We make sure our clients receive the proper amount of child support or ensure they pay only their appropriate amount.

We also help clients to bring enforcement and/or modification actions when support payments either are not being made or the amount is inappropriate. The Law Office of Shorty, Dooley, & Hall offers a free initial consultation. Call us toll free today at 504-949-2545 or 1-877-377-8443 to have a free child support calculation made.

Child Custody

When a court considers a child custody matter, whether within or outside of the context of a divorce, the primary benchmark in determining custody is the best interests of the child. The Law Office of Shorty, Dooley & Hall, LLC understands the delicate balance hat our clients must strike between their interests and the best interests of their children. We attempt to resolve matters in a manner that benefit our clients and their children.

It is our belief that custody matters are best resolved when the parties are able to agree. If the parties reach a custody agreement, the court will award custody in accordance with their agreement unless the best interest of the child requires a different award. The parents’ agreement could be for sole or joint custody or even custody to a third person. A plan agreed to between the parties is preferable to a court-ordered plan, provided the best interest of the child is met.

In the absence of an agreement, the court shall award custody to the parents jointly.

If joint custody is decreed, the court will establish, or the parties should present to the court, a joint custody plain. This plan sets forth the periods during which each parent has physical custody of the child. The plan should be designed to assure continued contact with both parents. It should allocate the legal authority and responsibility of each parent, such as decision making. Our firm has developed and gained judicial approval of numerous custody plans. When the time comes we will develop a plan for you.

A judgment of custody is never permanent; it can be modified under certain circumstances. A parent seeking modification of a stipulated custody order must prove that there has been a material change of circumstances since the original custody decree was entered. A considered decree is an award of custody in which the court receives evidence of parental fitness of a parent to exercise custody of a child. When a considered decree is at issue, the party seeking a change of custody must prove that a continuation of the present custody is so deleterious to the child as to justify a modification of custody.

A parent not granted custody or joint custody of a child is entitled to reasonable visitation rights to his or her child. The law recognizes the non-custodial parents’ entitlement to reasonable visitation unless it is shown it would seriously endanger the child’s mental, moral, or emotional health.  If you are being deprived of visitation with your child, give us a call and we will ensure that you get your proper visitation. 

Frequently Asked Divorce Questions

Whether you should end your marriage is one of the most important and difficult decisions you will ever encounter. It is important to approach the question from a rational perspective rather than solely an emotional one. In many ways it is a business decision that requires you to evaluate many issues. Once you review this list of questions, you may rethink the direction you are headed, or you will be better prepared to move forward while working with an attorney.

1. Children
• Who will the children live with?
• What type of custody arrangement is best?
• What type of visitation arrangement schedule is best?
• How will you and your ex-spouse make decisions about the children, such as their health, education and welfare?
• Who pays for the children’s living expenses? Their education? Travel?
• How are the children’s expenses paid for and by whom? Are they shared?
2. Support
• Am I entitled? Will you receive it or need to pay it? How much and for how long?
• Will the support payments to be made by one of the parties to the other? Will either of the other parties’ support or the support of their children increase or decrease in the future due to the changed financial circumstances of either of the parties, economic conditions or other factors?
• Who will be entitled to claim the children as exemptions for income tax purposes?
3. Your Home
• Who will live in the marital home during the divorce process?
• Will one of the spouses keep the marital home or will it be sold? How will the proceeds be divided?
• If someone keeps the home, will one of the parties deed their interest in it to the other?
• If you decide to sell the home, will both spouses be involved in the sale and closing? Who decides the selling price or if a broker will be used?
• Who will be responsible for major repairs and the costs of preparing the home for sale?
• Who will be entitled to deduct the mortgage interest charges and real estate taxes for income tax purpose?
• Who will be responsible for any income (capital gains) taxes, which may be imposed as a result of the sale of the home?
4. Insurance
• Will you keep life insurance for the benefit of your children?
• Who will be the beneficiary of such insurance?
• Will either party be obligated to provide medical or other insurance for the benefit of the other and if so, for how long?
• Will either party be obligated to provide medical or other insurance for the benefit of the children and if so, for how long?
• Who will be responsible to pay for any medical, dental, drug or hospital expenses of the children that are not reimbursed by any policies of insurance that either of the parties may have?
5. Income Tax
• Who will be entitled to receive any refund that may be due on any past joint income tax returns filed by the parties?
• If there is a deficiency on any past joint income tax returns, who will be responsible for it?
• If you file joint income tax returns for the present year who will be responsible to pay any taxes due and who will be entitled to receive any amount refunded?

The above list is not exhaustive but it does give you an idea about the issues that should be considered. It is always in your best interest to consult with a family law attorney to make sure you understand all the relevant issues and their legal impact on you. It’s in your best interest to think rationally and strategically about this enormous emotional issue in your life.