Question: What is the real meaning of adultery when you’re married? Does it have to be a physical relationship or can someone commit “mental adultery”?

Answer submitted by family law attorney, Brian Craig of Cordell & Cordell, P.C.

Question:

Can anyone tell me if having a girlfriend while going through a divorce would have any negative impact on court proceedings? Custody? Settlement?

Answer:

That is a great question and one that I am asked nearly every day. To answer the question simply, yes, having a girlfriend can negatively impact the outcome of divorce proceedings. There are literally thousands of scenarios of this question and each could individually impact the proceedings very differently. For purposes of this response, I will focus on two generalized possibilities though...

Question:

My soon to be ex-wife, has decided that she is now a lesbian and has a 40 yr old lover (she is 26). Our daughter is 17 months and currently living with her mother at her mother's parents'.

I am looking to take sole/primary custody legally and I am curious as to what my chances are with the homosexuality & adultery under NC laws & statutes.

Divorce attorney, Dan Cuneo, JD (Cordell & Cordell, PC) answers your "Ask A Lawyer" questions.

How will the courts deal with the awarding of maintenance when one of the main reasons for the divorce was an affair?

What if she refuses to work? How can you prove if she is able to earn her own living and how much she is expected to be making?