Legal Questions and Answers

Read legal questions and answers from experienced African American lawyers and legal professionals.

Can a prenup divide assets based on how long you stay married?

I went through a bad divorce and didn’t have a prenup. I lost a lot of the assets I spent years working for. I’m engaged to marry again and I want to protect what I have from that same situation if the marriage doesn’t work. My fiancé and I have talked about doing a prenup that lets me keep everything I have if we divorce within the first 5 years of marriage, but gradually gives my fiancé/wife more interest the longer we are married. Is it legal to put these kinds of terms in a prenup and can my fiancé and I draft it ourselves or should we have a lawyer do it?

Richmond, VA

Mar 15, 2021

What are a father’s rights in a Richmond divorce and custody case?

I’m a father and I want to know my rights in a divorce and custody case. The mother is asking for alimony and full custody of our kids. I don’t agree with either of those things. She can get a job and support herself and I’m a good dad who should at least have 50/50 custody. What rights do I have to fight alimony and get shared custody of my kids? I’ve heard that courts in Virginia always favor the mom and men are required to pay alimony if they make more money than the wife. I need an aggressive lawyer who understands father’s rights and will fight for me in court.

Richmond, VA

Mar 15, 2021

How do I pay child support if I’m not working?

My ex-girlfriend had a baby 3 months ago. I just received a notice from North Carolina Child Support Services that she is coming after me for child support. The paperwork also says she wants me to pay some of her hospital bills for having the baby. I’m currently unemployed and I am not even sure the child is mine. Can she get child support or medical expenses from me if I’m not working? I also need to know how I go about getting a paternity test. Will she have to pay for it since she’s the one asking for child support?

Charlotte, NC

Mar 15, 2021

Should I have a lawyer for child custody mediation?

My kids’ mother and I are fighting over custody. She filed a custody complaint in Charlotte family court and I just received a notice that I’m required to go to mediation with her. I have strong evidence that I want to be able to use against her in court and I don’t want her knowing what I have before we go to a custody trial. Do I have to share everything I have on her in mediation and should I have a lawyer present with me?

Charlotte, NC

Mar 15, 2021

Do I have to respond to an uncontested divorce filing?

My ex dropped off a complaint for uncontested divorce at my apartment. We’ve been separated for 6 months and aren’t fighting over anything. Do I have to do anything with this paperwork or respond to it in some way? I don’t contest the divorce but I don’t want him to get something he shouldn’t get in the divorce because I don’t assert my rights. The other issue I have is some of my personal belongings are still at his house. I’ve asked him to bring them back to me or let me come get them several times but he puts me off. Should I request my stuff back in the divorce process? I don’t want him to get a final divorce and then refuse to give me my things.

Washington, DC

Mar 15, 2021

Can I stop my husband from getting a divorce?

My husband moved out of our house about a year ago and now says he is filing for divorce. We’ve tried to get back together a few times since he left and he’s stayed here at the house with me several times. I read online that we have to be separated for a year before he can get a divorce if I contest it. We’ve had sex as recently as two months ago. I want to contest the divorce because I still think we can work it out. What do I need to do if he serves me with divorce papers and how can I prove that we have not really been truly separated for the one year period?

Washington, DC

Mar 15, 2021

Will a prenup protect me from my wife’s debt?

My girlfriend and I are due to be married in a few months and I am thinking about asking her to sign a prenup. I discovered recently that she has a lot of debt – credit cards, a student loan, and back property taxes for a house she owns in Memphis. I’m worried that once we get married, if she doesn’t stay current with her payments the creditors may come after me. Are prenups legal in Tennessee and will a prenup keep me from being responsible for her bills after we get married? I’d also like to know how I find a lawyer near me who has a lot of experience with prenups.

Memphis, TN

Mar 15, 2021

Can I adopt my stepbrother and get some financial assistance?

My stepbrother came to live with me full-time after his dad was found guilty of abusing him. Our mom took the dad’s side and my stepbrother didn’t want to be around either one of them anymore. He’s 14 and I’m 23. My boyfriend and I are doing the best we can to take care of him and support him financially but it’s hard and we could use some help. Is there any way I could formally adopt my stepbrother and get some financial support for him from the state? Or could I take legal guardianship of him and seek child support from my mother and stepdad?

Memphis, TN

Mar 15, 2021

How do I start the divorce process in New Orleans?

I caught my husband cheating and I want a divorce. I’ve been married for ten years and we own a restaurant together. He keeps threatening that he’ll push me out of the restaurant and run it without me. I need an aggressive lawyer to make sure he doesn’t get any part of the business and I get his name off of it. What do I need to do to get the divorce started and is there any way I can keep him from working at the restaurant while our divorce is pending?

New Orleans, LA

Mar 15, 2021

Do I still get my kids if I can’t pay the full child support?

My ex won’t let me see my kids because I’m late on child support. In our divorce decree, I have partial custody of the kids and she’s supposed to drop them off to me on Fridays. Since my work cut my hours back due to Covid, I’m making a lot less and having trouble paying the full child support. I pay what I can but she’s still refusing to bring the kids to me. She has done this before and I want it to stop. The lawyer I had during my divorce told me custody and child support have nothing to do with each other, and that I should get my time with my kids regardless. Is this true and what do I need to do to force her to abide by the custody schedule?

New Orleans, LA

Mar 15, 2021

Where do I file my child custody case?

I filed a child custody modification in Cleveland Domestic Relations Court. The case was dismissed because they said I filed in the wrong court. My children’s mom is abusive toward them and I want full custody. I’m willing to get a lawyer now because things are getting worse for my kids with their mom and I don’t want to waste more time filing in the wrong place. I have taken pictures of the marks on my kids when they come back from her house and they are begging me not to make them go back. Where does my case need to be filed and can I get emergency custody based on the abuse?

Cleveland, OH

Mar 15, 2021

Do I have to cooperate in a child abuse investigation?

The Cuyahoga County Division of Children and Family Services in Cleveland contacted my boyfriend and me about a child abuse investigation regarding my mom. She runs a daycare out of our house and apparently one of the kids says he was abused by another kid at daycare. They want to talk to my boyfriend and me because we live there. Can we refuse to talk to them? I don’t want to get my mom in any kind of trouble. I told them I wasn’t comfortable talking with them without a lawyer and they said it was ok to have one at the interview if we do agree to answer their questions.

Cleveland, OH

Mar 15, 2021

Do my wife and I have to live separately to get an uncontested divorce?

My wife and I don’t want to be married anymore but we are on good terms. We still live together for financial reasons but we are basically just friends at this point and live our own lives. I went to the courthouse in Baltimore City to file for an uncontested divorce but when I filled out the paperwork I put the same address down for both of us. The court clerk told me that we couldn’t get an uncontested divorce if we were still living together. Is there any way we can get a divorce while we are still living in the same house and are not romantically involved at all?

Baltimore, MD

Mar 15, 2021

What expenses can my wife and I pay the birth mom in an adoption?

A lifelong friend of ours has a teenage daughter who is pregnant. She is willing to let us adopt her baby but says she needs us to pay her expenses during the pregnancy, as well as all the expenses relating to her labor and delivery. We are fine with paying her medical expenses, but we aren’t sure if it’s legal for us to pay for the groceries, car insurance, etc. that she’s asking us to pay. She lives with her boyfriend and we suspect she’ll use some of any money we give her to support him. What are we allowed to pay for and do we need to put any agreement we make with her about expenses and payment in writing?

Baltimore, MD

Mar 15, 2021

Will a prenup protect my inheritance in a divorce?

I’m due to get a large inheritance when my dad’s estate settles. I’m engaged and after we get married, I want to use some of that money to buy a house for my husband and I here in Detroit, where we both are from. My family is concerned that if I do that, the inheritance money I put into the house will become marital money and if my husband and I divorce, he’ll get a share of it. Can I use a prenup to protect my inheritance even if I put some of it into a house titled in both my name and my husband’s?

Detroit, MI

Mar 15, 2021

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