Divorce Advice for Men | Fathers Rights Divorce | Child Custody

By Jennifer L. Hartstein, PsyD.

Author of Princess Recovery: A How-To Guide to Raising Strong, Empowered Girls Who Can Create Their Own Happily Ever Afters

The holidays are filled with so many wonderful things: family, friends, parties, religious endeavors, and, of course, gifts.

All of these things can bring us joy (along with the requisite stress), but it is the gifts that often create the greatest source of concern, especially if you have to worry about what people around you are going to be purchasing for your daughter.

Very often, people buy things that are meaningful to them, and not as meaningful to the receiver. Additionally, not everyone will respect your desire to promote your daughter's empowerment.

Situations involving gifts do pose a unique challenge. People in your life may not have the level of awareness you do, nor will they share your concerns or have the same values about what will promote a positive sense of self and confidence in your daughter.

Question:

I owe back child support payments due to an arrearage building up when my children were younger and I was unable to pay.

Recently, the child support agency has notified me of my outstanding balance for past child support obligations, even though my children are in their 40s now.

Since I am now retired, can the state intercept and garnish my social security payments for purposes of paying off my child support arrears?

By Matt Allen

Editor, DadsDivorce.com

If you live in New Hampshire and want a quickie divorce, you're in luck. But if you live just over the state line in Vermont, then settle in for a long, drawn-out case.

That's how varied divorce laws are in the U.S. as these two border states rank as the easiest and hardest states, respectively, to get a divorce, according to a report from Bloomberg Rankings.

In New Hampshire there is no minimum processing time or residency requirement, but in Vermont a divorce will take a minimum of 15 months.

Question:

I'm curious if there are divorce laws regarding how long the divorce process can last.

It seems like every time my ex-wife and I are about to finalize our divorce, she finds something new and continues to drag the case on.

When will my divorce be over?

By Matt Allen

Editor, DadsDivorce.com

It's official. Massachusetts' long-awaited alimony reform is now reality following Gov. Deval Patrick's signature that mostly eradicates lifetime alimony awards.

The new law allows judges to put an end date to alimony, establishes a formula, and sets guidelines to help determine the amount of alimony.

Judges were hamstrung by the state’s previous archaic laws that did not allow them to cap the duration of alimony even when they felt alimony should end, among other shortcomings.