Assisted reproductive technology, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), has become increasingly accessible and common over the last two decades, helping millions of people worldwide build their families. While these scientific advances have been largely beneficial for couples struggling with infertility, IVF and the resulting frozen embryos present some challenging legal issues when it comes to divorce, straddling the intersection of contract law, family law, and reproductive rights.

Most divorce cases center around the distribution of shared assets (e.g., real estate or investments, etc.) and custody issues, when children are involved. Embryos do not legally fit comfortably into either category, which leaves family courts to make difficult and emotionally-charged decisions. There is no standardized answer and no federal law regarding the disposition of embryos, so states differ in their approaches, but the following are the most common legal approaches and considerations:  

Contractual Approach

Before a couple begins the IVF process, most fertility clinics require a signed contract or Disposition of Embryos Agreement that outlines the couple’s wishes regarding what happens to any frozen embryos that they cannot use as originally intended (e.g., if one or both parents die or their relationship is dissolved, etc.). Possible choices include that the embryos be:

• Given to one partner alone to be used for procreation
• Donated for medical research
• Transferred to another couple
• Discarded or destroyed

Where a signed contract or agreement exists, and clearly states the intent of both partners, family courts will often rely heavily on these contracts and uphold them, even if one partner has changed their mind. However, the approach varies by state as well, with some states more strictly adhering to a contractual approach than others. 

Balancing of Interests

In cases where there is no signed agreement, the agreement was vague or outdated, or the state focuses more on reproductive and/or constitutional rights, the family court will most likely weigh each party’s competing interests. 

Disputes about frozen embryos often come down to competing, deeply personal, constitutionally protected interests: the right to procreate and have a biological child and the right to avoid becoming a genetic parent. Depending on the public policy of the state of residence, family courts often prioritize the latter since forcing parenthood on a person results in lifelong consequences.

However, if the partner who wants to have a biological child does not have other avenues open to them to have children, the court must also consider their interests fairly.

The Importance of Legal Guidance

Although working with experienced family law attorneys can always be helpful in divorce, when cases are complicated by emotional issues that are not clear-cut, such as IVF and embryo disputes, it can be even more important to consult with legal experts. The Family Law Group at Lonich Patton Ehrlich Policastri (LPEP Law) has years of experience helping clients navigate through complex divorce and family law matters.

If you are considering divorce but are worried about the disposition of frozen embryos or other issues related to distribution of assets or custody, please schedule a free consultation to discuss your case with LPEP Law today.

Disclaimer: This article does not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter. 

Usually, when people think about dissolving a marriage, divorce is the first thing that comes to mind. In some cases, though, an annulment might be more appropriate. Unlike divorce, which legally ends a marriage, an annulment means the marriage was never valid in the first place. How long the annulment process takes will vary widely depending on whether your spouse agrees or objects as well as how complicated the case is, however, the following outline provides some general guidance.

Types of Annulment

When it comes to civil annulments (as opposed to religious annulments, which are handled through the Catholic church), you will have either an uncontested annulment or a contested annulment.

Uncontested Annulments

In an uncontested annulment, both parties agree to the annulment, and there are no disputed issues related to grounds for filing, assets, or child custody. Usually, a judge will simply review the request, and you might also be required to attend a hearing. An uncontested civil annulment can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months, depending on the case workload of the family court involved.

Contested Annulments

Contested annulments, on the other hand, generally take longer (i.e., 6 months to over a year), depending on the reason your spouse contests the annulment. For instance, if you allege fraud or coercion as the grounds for the annulment, you will need to provide evidence to the court. 

The Annulment Process

First, you need to make sure that your marriage qualifies for an annulment. Although each state has specific legal grounds for annulments, common grounds include:

• Fraud or misrepresentation
• Coercion or force
• Underage spouse
• Incest
• Bigamy
• Mental incapacity
• Spouse concealed information such as impotence, criminal history, or addiction

File a Petition and Notify Your Spouse

If you qualify for an annulment in your state, your next step would be to file a petition for annulment in the family court in your jurisdiction. Most states require you to notify your spouse that you have begun the annulment process. They generally have 30 days to respond by either agreeing or contesting.

Gather Documents and Evidence

Before you attend a hearing with a judge, you will need to gather relevant documents like your marriage certificate and identification. You will also likely need to provide evidence to support your reason for requesting the annulment such as texts, photographs, emails, expert witness statements, medical documentation, etc.

Attend Court Hearings

For uncontested annulments, there will likely only be one, short hearing, or the judge may sign the petition without a hearing. For contested annulments, you might be required to attend several hearings. Both sides will present evidence, and the judge will review the case and decide whether the grounds have been proven or not. 

If the judge approves, you will receive a Decree of Annulment, which legally voids your marriage as if it never existed.

Get Help With the Annulment Process

Even for uncontested annulments, it’s a good idea to work with a family law attorney who is familiar with annulments in your state to make sure the process goes smoothly. The family law group at Lonich Patton Ehrlich Policastri has decades of experience helping couples through the annulment process. Schedule a free consultation today to discuss your case with us to find out how we can best represent you and your interests.

Disclaimer: this article does not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter.

Relocation and custody disputes are nothing new. Family courts have been adjudicating these types of cases for years. Parents need (or want) to move for a variety of reasons such as pursuing new job opportunities or wanting to be closer to their family. But what happens if the relocation request is due to environmental factors stemming from climate change?

Climate change is no longer relegated to melting ice caps far away and air pollution in big cities. Extreme weather events, flooding, wildfires, and heat waves, among other things, are affecting more and more families, forcing parents to make life-altering decisions about how to deal with evacuations, where to live, and how to keep their children healthy and safe. 

If one parent wants to move to another city or even another country to escape the effects of climate change but the other wants to stay, they should first try to reach a mutual agreement to revise their child custody agreement. However, if they cannot agree, the parent who wants to move will likely need to file a relocation or move-away case in family court.

Factors the Court Considers

In most relocation disputes, a judge will consider several factors, including: 

• The reason for the requested move
• The child’s relationship with both parents
• The impact on the child’s wellbeing (i.e., what’s in the child’s best interests?)
• Practical implications on the custody arrangement (i.e., will the child be able to maintain a relationship with both parents?)

How Climate Change Affects Relocation Disputes

Relocation due to environmental factors is not a preference but a matter of survival for some parents. For instance, California residents struggling in the wake of wildfires or families living in coastal areas that are being threatened by sea-level rise might feel like environmental risks outweigh the benefits of their current living situation. Safety and stability for their family, rather than a lifestyle choice or convenience, is at the root of these types of climate-driven relocation decisions.

Legal Questions to Be Answered

If the relocation and custody dispute ends up in family court, judges will likely need to answer some difficult legal questions. How real is the risk? When does a move actually become necessary as opposed to preferred? What if one parent can’t move away from the area of concern? Does that mean the child will not maintain contact with that parent? As with other relocation disputes, the court will always prioritize the best interests of the child; however, in cases where climate change is the driving factor, lawmakers will likely need to present scientific evidence such as climate risk assessments.

Get Help With Your Relocation and Custody Dispute

Are you considering a relocation due to environmental factors such as the threat of natural disasters, storms, pollution, or flooding and having trouble agreeing on changes to your custody agreement? Don’t hesitate to put your family’s health, safety, and security first. Schedule a free consultation with the family law experts at Lonich Patton Ehrlich Policastri (LPEP Law). We have years of experience in helping parents navigate difficult child custody issues. Get the help you need with your relocation and custody dispute today.

Disclaimer: this article does not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter.

Currently, all 50 states recognize no-fault divorce as a viable option for couples to dissolve their marriages. However, several states and legislators have proposed changes that would limit or prohibit no-fault divorces, moving toward a system that would require a spouse to prove fault or wrongdoing as a basis for divorce. What would an end of no-fault divorce look like?

What is No-Fault Divorce?

First, it’s important to understand what we mean when we talk about “no-fault” divorce. As the name suggests, no-fault divorce means that neither spouse needs to prove any sort of fault or misconduct, such as adultery, cruelty, abandonment, abuse, etc., as a basis for seeking divorce and can instead cite “irreconcilable differences.” The advantages of no-fault divorce usually include reduced conflict and strain between former spouses, which leads to quicker resolution and greater opportunities for cooperative co-parenting. In addition, both parties are better able to maintain their privacy and dignity throughout a stressful and emotional legal process.

Legal Implications of Ending No-Fault Divorce

To understand the legal implications of ending no-fault divorce, we can look at the legal landscape prior to the establishment of no-fault divorce laws. Generally speaking, obtaining a divorce was significantly more challenging, especially for women. 

As in the past, courts would likely require one spouse to prove fault, such as:

• Infidelity
• Physical or emotional abuse or neglect
• Abandonment
• Criminal conviction
• Substance abuse

The requirement to prove fault often led to contentious, drawn-out legal battles that were time-consuming, costly, and potentially embarrassing for both sides. Some couples even resorted to making up evidence in order to meet the legal requirements of proof.

Failure to establish fault could lead to the denial of the divorce.

Social Implications of Ending No-Fault Divorce

Given the stricter legal requirements noted above, the end of no-fault divorce would also likely have a significant social impact. Women’s groups in particular worry that returning to a fault-based divorce system will force many people to stay in abusive marriages because they will be unable, or reluctant, to produce evidence of abuse.

Other people might choose to stay in unhappy marriages rather than publicly air their private issues. In these cases, the mental and emotional wellbeing of both parties, as well as any children involved, would be negatively affected.

Even successful divorces would probably carry an increased social stigma, since the “fault” established would be equated with moral wrongdoing.

Practical Implications 

The requirement to establish fault would necessarily have practical implications, including more expensive divorces and a slower, more congested legal system. Spouses would need to gather evidence that could be presented in court, which could be costly as well as emotionally draining. An increased financial burden of hiring lawyers would make divorce difficult for lower-income families. “Fault” could unduly influence child custody or visitation rights as well as division of assets since the “at-fault” spouse might be denied custody or visitation or receive reduced spousal support or marital assets.

Need Help With Your Divorce?

If you are considering divorce for any reason, it helps to have experienced legal professionals on your side. The family law firm group at Lonich Patton Ehrlich Policastri (LPEP Law)  has over 100 years of combined litigation experience to walk you through the process and seek out the best possible outcome. Call us today to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss your case and go over all your options.

Disclaimer: this article does not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter.

Most people think about divorce as the ending of a marriage, but under certain circumstances, an annulment is more appropriate. Legally, an annulment nullifies a marriage so that it’s as if it never occurred.

If your spouse has died, and you are dealing with inheritance issues, spousal debts, or other issues related to you or your spouse’s estate you might be wondering if an annulment, rather than a divorce, could be an option.

The short answer is that when your spouse dies, the marriage is legally ended by their death, so an annulment is not usually an option since that process applies while both parties are alive. However, if an annulment is necessary to protect the rights and the best interests of heirs, family members can sometimes pursue an annulment if certain conditions are true and provable. 

What circumstances precipitate an annulment?

Legal Reasons for Annulments

There are several legal reasons for which a judge would grant an annulment of a marriage. In California, for example, a family court judge would grant an annulment in cases of:

• Bigamy – one of the spouses is married to someone else
• Incest – you are close relatives
• Underage marriage – one spouse was under 18 at the time of marriage and did not obtain parental permission
• Fraud – one spouse was tricked into the marriage
• Unsound mind – a spouse lacked the mental capacity to agree to the marriage (including due to inebriation)
• Forced marriage – one spouse was forced into the marriage
• Lack of consummation – one spouse is physically unable to consummate the marriage

Declaration of Invalidity

In lieu of an annulment, you might be able to seek a declaration of invalidity through the family court system, which is similar to an annulment, to try to challenge or clarify the legal status of the marriage. You would need to present significant evidence that the marriage was void from the beginning and therefore never valid legally. Void marriages involve issues similar to those required for annulment, including bigamy, fraud, lack of consent, mental incapacity, incest, and fraud. Similar to an annulment, the process to declare a marriage invalid usually occurs while both spouses are alive, but some jurisdictions might consider it after the death of a spouse.

Key Things to Consider

Embarking on a legal challenge after the death of a spouse can take a huge personal toll on you mentally, emotionally, and financially. You should weigh these costs and recognize all the potential outcomes and their impacts on your family, especially if you have children.  

Since family laws related to annulments, declarations of invalidity, inheritance, spousal support, and more vary widely by jurisdiction, it’s important to consult with a family law attorney who specializes in this specific area of a law in your state of residence. 

Get Help from Family Law Attorneys

The family law attorneys at Lonich Patton Ehrlich Policastri (LPEP Law) have years of experience helping families work through complex issues related to annulments, pre-nuptial agreements, property division, and inheritance. Schedule a free, no-obligation consultation to speak with our team about your case. Let LPEP help you protect your rights and your family. 

Disclaimer: this article does not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter.