Tag Archives: custody
Alabama Grandparent Visitation Statute Held to be Unconstitutional
Posted on 16. Dec, 2011 by Alabama Divorce Lawyer, Jim Jeffries.
The Alabama Supreme Court held in June of this year that the State’s grandparent visitation statute (§30-3-4.1, Ala. Code 1975) is unconstitutional and therefore unenforceable. As a result, there may be no viable way for grandparents to obtain visitation rights with their grandchildren through a divorce court.
In Ex parte E.R.G., [Ms. 1090883, June 10, 2011] ___ So. [...]
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Skype and “Virtual Visitation” in Alabama
Posted on 25. Feb, 2011 by Alabama Divorce Lawyer, Jim Jeffries.
I was walking down the hallway of my house the other night and I heard my 14 year old daughter having a conversation with what sounded like another boy in her room. It was late and I knew no one was there but, of course, I immediately headed that way. When I opened the door to her [...]
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A Kid’s Guide to Divorce
Posted on 05. May, 2009 by Alabama Divorce Lawyer, Jim Jeffries.
Just a short note today about a nice divorce resource I found. If you have read the Alabama Family Law Blog long, you know that I care a lot about the kids of divorce. Having been one myself, I am always concerned about how my client’s divorce case is affecting their children. That is why [...]
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Can I have my spouse tested for drugs?
Posted on 24. Apr, 2009 by Alabama Divorce Lawyer, Jim Jeffries.
If one spouse in a divorce case wants to have the other spouse tested for drugs, they can file a motion and the Judge will decide whether to grant the request. Generally speaking, if custody or visitation is an issue, and there is some reason for suspecting abuse, the Judge will grant the request and [...]
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Alabama Court Overturns One Year with Mom, One Year with Dad
Posted on 03. Apr, 2009 by Alabama Divorce Lawyer, Jim Jeffries.
The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals recently overturned a trial court that awarded the parties to a divorce joint physical custody of their child with the mother to exercise custody one year and the father to exercise custody the next year. The case is Headrick v. Headrick, Case No. 2030690 (Ala. Civ. App. June 17, [...]
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Articles on Reducing Conflict in Divorce
Posted on 03. Apr, 2009 by Alabama Divorce Lawyer, Jim Jeffries.
I recently came across this site that contains a number of articles on reducing conflict in divorce. They are written by Canadian social worker and counselor, Gary Direnfeld. There is a wealth of great information here, and I agree with most everything that I have read of Gary’s so far (though I’ve not yet read [...]
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It is Up to Parents
Posted on 03. Apr, 2009 by Alabama Divorce Lawyer, Jim Jeffries.
There is nothing worse in the area of divorce and family law than to witness the disasterous effects that a divorce can have on children. Of course, it doesn’t have to be that way. A big part of our focus is devoted to trying to reduce the pain of the divorce process by taking a [...]
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Create a “conflict-free zone” for children of divorce
Posted on 03. Apr, 2009 by Alabama Divorce Lawyer, Jim Jeffries.
My friend and fellow family law blogger, Grant Griffiths of the Kansas Family and Divorce Lawyer, has an excellent post today from the Billings Gazette. The article address steps that parents can take to protect their children from the conflict that often arises in the context of a divorce. It should be mandatory reading for [...]
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New Alabama Case re: Religious Practice & Custody Rights
Posted on 03. Apr, 2009 by Alabama Divorce Lawyer, Jim Jeffries.
The Alabama Supreme Court recently entered a ruling in the case, Snider v. Mashburn which affirmed a trial court’s change of custody from Mother to Father based on the conduct of Mother’s new husband, providing an extraordinary discussion of the limits of a trial court’s ability to consider religious practices and training when those practices [...]
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How to Make the Holidays Easier on Children in Separated Families
Posted on 03. Apr, 2009 by Alabama Divorce Lawyer, Jim Jeffries.
The Bozeman Daily Chronicle recently published an article entitled “Holidays tough on children in separated families.” The article describes how children whose parents are separated or divorced often face great tension trying to juggle visitation schedules and the stress that often come with it. This is particularly the case where the parents fail to communicate [...]