All posts by BowTieLawyer

Matthew operates the Thompson Law Firm, pllc, a Mississippi based Family Law firm emphasizing; Divorce, Child Custody, Child Support, Modification, Contempt and Appeals, handling family law cases throughout Mississippi. (601) 850-8000 Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms www.BowTieLawyer.ms
Divorce

MS Bar Convention; Day 3= “Free Junk”

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It’s Day 3 of the MS Bar Convention. This means “summer school” is wrapping up by noon and the vendors/exhibits are being set up!

Starting at noon on the 3rd day, dozens of vendors set up a dizzying array of exhibits. Banks, Insurance, and Legal Research companies are vying for attorney business. And, how do they woo you? Free junk.

Totes, pens, pencils, pop sockets, glasses cloths, zippy pouches, beach balls, frisbees, stress balls, candy, t-shirts, sunglasses, sanitizer, sun screen, hats, note pads, cups, first aid kits, among other items that you cannot possibly live without…

All you have to do is visit with the vendor, make eye contact and sometimes just be standing nearby to gain some loot. A visit to a vendor also gets you in the running for the good stuff.

The good stuff is dealt out via a raffle. You enter it by visiting a certain number of vendors, getting the corresponding sticker or stamp and turning in your card.

These prizes are good; Yeti coolers, RayBans, iPads, drones, remote control doo-dads, gigantic stuffed animals, autographed footballs, and gift cards.

Day 3 also brings on the Welcome Reception. This is a family-friendly event with a kid’s dinner served in a beach pail; hot dogs and chips and such, and there are heavy hors d’oeuvres and drinks for the adults. This party always has a theme, usually related to whatever family movie is playing on one end of the ball room.

Attendees mix and mingle and have a good time. Lawyers, Judges and their families from all over the state attend. It really is a fun event.

Matthew Thompson is a family law attorney and regular attendee of the Mississippi Bar Convention.

General Legal

MS Bar Convention; On the 2nd Day…CLE

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The Mississippi Bar Convention is the annual meeting where lawyers attend mandatory Continuing Legal Education (CLE).

2019 Agenda (partial)

Lawyers are required to attend 12 hours of CLE each year including an hour of ethics. Typically lawyers attend a session that coincides with their practice area.

The attorneys at TLF routinely are presenters at CLEs throughout the year for the MS Bar Center, MC Law, Ole Miss law, MVLP and the MS Center for Legal Services, among others.

Matthew Thompson is a frequent speaker at CLEs throughout the state and speaks on Family Law, Ethics and Gun Law.

http://www.BowTieLawyer.ms

(601)850-8000

General Legal

The Mississippi Bar Convention…Lawyers, Judges and Barristers, oh my!

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Who would want to go on vacation with a bunch of lawyers?!

The Mississippi Bar Convention is the annual meeting where the Bar, the entity that oversees all lawyers admitted to practice law in Mississippi, conducts its installation of incoming officers, celebrates those lawyer & judges that have done praiseworthy acts, and hosts general family fun.

Lawyers can complete their annual requirements for Continuing Legal Education, meet other lawyers from different parts of the state and/or different practice areas and see your judges with their “hair down.”

There are parties, receptions, lunches, dinners, events and games. And all of this is happens on the sunny, sandy beaches of san Destin, FL.

So, who has two thumbs and wants to vacation with a bunch of lawyers? This guy.

Matthew Thompson is a family law attorney in Mississippi and has attended the convention for 13 years.

Crime, Divorce, General Legal

Divorce Court vs. Criminal Court

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Sometimes divorcing parties act like criminals, but Divorce Court is NOT Criminal Court (typically).

Divorce court, a.k.a. Chancery Court, is a civil court. The Court’s function is to legally divorce parties that are entitled to be divorced and divide property. The Court has the authority to deal with and punish conduct that is violative of its Orders or disruptive conduct that occurs directly in its presence. Other than those instances it is not a punitive Court. You typically are not punished for marital fault…

Criminal court, which can be Circuit, County, Municipal, or Justice, among others, can punish. These Courts have prosecutors whose job is to prove the accused committed a crime/violated a law. The Judge or a jury determines if the matter was proven and a punishment, including; incarceration, fines, and other remedies.

However, sometimes these can relate or overlap. Conduct that could serve as grounds for divorce, such as domestic violence, is also a crime. The Court’s are independent of one another and you can be punished in Criminal Court and divorced in Chancery Court over the same facts.

Interestingly, your right to plead the fifth, invoking the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution can be done in both Courts. While it cannot be used against you in Criminal Court, it can be used to make an adverse inference in Chancery Court. So, if you are accused of adultery/habitual fornication in Criminal Court, which IS a crime in Mississippi, you may invoke the fifth and the prosecutor must prove a violation of the law by beyond a reasonable doubt, however in Divorce Court, while you may invoke the fifth, the Court can treat that as an adverse inference/admission and could find such to be enough to rise to clear and convincing evidence of adultery. Confused yet?

Divorce Court and Criminal Court are different animals, with different standards and different outcomes. However, all are serious and your rights may be infringed if the Court determines they should be.

Matthew Thompson is a Divorce Court lawyer and encourages those charged with a crime to confer with an experienced Criminal Defense attorney.

General Legal, Opinion

Rule 11. Sanctions: Party or Attorney Misconduct

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“Sanction” is a penalty or punishment provided as a means of enforcing obedience to a law.  thelawdictionary.org

The Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure, that all attorneys and parties have to abide by in litigation, include a specific rule that an attorney or a party may NOT file a motion that is frivolous or for the purpose of harassment or delay. M.R.C.P 11.

“Frivolous” means a claim or defense made ‘without hope of success.’” See In re Spencer, 985 So. 2d 330, 338 (Miss. 2008). M.R.C.P 11

(b) Sanctions…For wilful violation of this rule an attorney may be subjected to appropriate disciplinary action. Similar action may be taken if scandalous or indecent matter is inserted. If any party files a motion or pleading which, in the opinion of the court, is frivolous or is filed for the purpose of harassment or delay, the court may order such a party, or his attorney, or both, to pay to the opposing party or parties the reasonable expenses incurred by such other parties and by their attorneys, including reasonable attorneys’ fees. [Amended effective March 13, 1991; amended effective January 16, 2003] M.R.C.P 11

Rule 11 provides two alternative grounds for the imposition of sanctions—the filing of a frivolous motion or pleading, and the filing of a motion or pleading for the purpose of harassment or delay. See Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co. v. Evans, 553 So. 2d 1117, 1120 (Miss. 1989). M.R.C.P 11

Although a finding of bad faith is necessary to sustain the imposition of sanctions based on purposeful harassment or delay, a finding of bad faith is not necessary to sustain the imposition of sanctions based upon frivolous pleadings or motions. M.R.C.P. 11.

A pleading is “frivolous” if its “insufficiency…is so manifest upon a bare inspection of the pleadings, that the court or judge is able to determine its character without argument or research.” In re Estate of Smith, 69 So. 3d 1, 6 (Miss. 2011). M.R.C.P 11

Sanctions against a party are improper in cases where the party relied strictly on advice of counsel and could not be expected to know whether the complaint was supported by law, where the party relied on advice of counsel in filing the pleading and played no significant role in prosecution of the action; or where the party was unaware and lacked responsibility for any bad faith harassment or delay. See Stevens v. Lake, 615 So. 2d 1177, 1184 (Miss. 1993). M.R.C.P 11

Let Rule 11 serve as a warning against filing things you know are untrue and/or that you cannot prove.

Matthew Thompson is a Chancery Court attorney in Mississippi and doesn’t often seek sanctions, but does when it’s warranted.

humor

Happy Father’s Day!

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(601)850-8000 http://www.BowTieLawyer.ms

Divorce, General Legal, Irreconcilable differences

60 Days = Divorce?

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Sixty days and you are divorced is NOT the law in Mississippi.

§ 93-5-2 – Divorce on ground of irreconcilable differences

“(4) Complaints for divorce on the ground of irreconcilable differences must have been on file for sixty (60) days before being heard... the provisions of Section 93-5-17 to the contrary notwithstanding.”

60 days is NOT a deadline. It is a minimum, mandatory waiting period. It provides sufficient time for a cooling-off period and typically sufficient time to do all of the things necessary to complete the paperwork required in an Irreconcilable Differences divorce.

You are NOT automatically divorced on day 60 or 61. It means that AFTER 60 days the completed paperwork may be presented to the Chancellor for their review and approval.

Additionally, all of the paperwork does NOT have to be completed before you file and the Court will keep the file open for at least 12 months with no additional activity. This means at any point after the initial filing and 60 days, a divorce may be presented and finalized.

Matthew Thompson is a “No Fault” divorce attorney in Mississippi.

Divorce, General Legal, Opinion

MS Bar Exam: 3 strikes and back to law school

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The Mississippi Supreme Court just enacted a new rule, effective 2020, for hopeful attorneys-to-be.

Matthew Thompson was interviewed by WLBT while attending Scout Camp regarding the new MS Bar Exam Rule change. It’s hard to take a good picture of a video…

There is now a rule regarding the number of times you may take the bar exam unsuccessfully before remedial education is mandatory. Upon 3 unsuccessful attempts, a test-taker must attend 12 additional hours of law school before sitting for the bar exam again.

Previously there was no set limit. Two Supreme Court Justices disagreed with the rule change, but not because it was too tough. One justice was in favor of a 3-strikes your’re out and another supported 5-strikes and you’re out.

There have been mixed responses to this rule change and the above link features area attorney’s reactions, including your truly.

Matthew Thompson is a Family Law attorney in Mississippi, passed the bar exam on his first attempt and if all goes to plan will not have to take another bar exam – – ever…