Usually, the march towards divorce happens in small steps that go unnoticed for a significant period of time. Then, after enough minor irritants and recurring disagreements accumulate into larger disputes, couples start to realize they are unhappy and the marriage is in trouble. Before rushing to file for divorce and activating all the consequences of...

For many individuals who decide to file for bankruptcy, the a major motivating factor is stopping incessant calls and letters from unpaid creditors. Being bombarded by creditors with demands for money someone does not have is an awful situation that leads to many sleepless nights and constant anxiety. The stress created by this situation becomes...

When couples enter into marriage, it is usually with a long view of their futures together and the anticipated happiness they will share. Unless a couple executed a prenuptial agreement, it is unlikely they had conversations about who would get what in the event of a divorce. While the divorce rate has declined over the...

Being a single parent is hard and it requires a lot of additional energy and work to raise a child to be a responsible adult. Additional burdens faced by single parents can easily be multiplied if a stable income and/or sufficient financial support is not in the picture. The perpetually rising costs of raising a...

When a judge issues a protective order, that decision indicates that a serious set of circumstances exist that the judge believes endangers the life and safety of one or more individuals. These court orders are intended to protect to the rights of a person against threats or additional acts of abuse and violence by prohibiting...

The depiction of family pets on TV and societal perceptions of how pets fit into a person’s life have greatly changed over the past 25 years. Prior to this recent shift, pets were often seen as animals distinct from the family unit, and while they provided companionship and enjoyment to family members, especially children, they...

It is unlikely that anyone living in the U.S. today does not know at least one person that has been divorced, and most know many more. The leading causes of divorce should not be particularly surprising to most people – incompatibility, infidelity, and financial problems – with a combination of two or more of these...

Child custody fights between parents, while potentially sad, are not uncommon and are not likely to evoke a strong reaction from outsiders. When, however, individuals other than the parents seek custody of a child, people tend to pay more attention, noting that such an arrangement seems unusual and somewhat unnatural. There are certainly circumstances warranting...

People decide to move for any number of reasons – job, family, culture, or health being the most common – and they usually find the change to be a positive experience. However, when the person moving shares custody of their children with an ex-spouse, moving to another state or country has broader implications, and the...

One of the scariest and most vulnerable situations a person can find themselves in is being accused of committing domestic violence. This violence, called domestic battery under Indiana law, is an accusation that is often hard to shake and has long-lasting consequences. There is no stereotype for what an abuser or victim looks like, so...