Category Archives: Divorce

Prenuptial Agreements:The Good, Bad & Ugly

09/23/2016 BowTieLawyer 1 Comment

I do not think this is what Benjamin Franklin had in mind…

pre·nup·tial a·gree·ment- an agreement made by a couple before they marry concerning the ownership of their respective assets should the marriage dissolve.

Also known as a Premarital agreement or “prenup” is a fairly common legal step taken before marriage. A prenup establishes the property and financial rights of each spouse in the event of a divorce. Prenups are often used to protect the assets of wealthy spouses but also can protect family businesses and serve other important functions. FindLaw

Prenups can be GOOD, especially in a second marriage. They can protect the rights of the children from the first marriage and serve a useful and legitimate purpose. Prenups can also define, with great specificity what happens in the event of a divorce or death of a party of the marriage. Knowing your rights can be a very good thing.

Prenups can be BAD. If you agree to a bad deal and the process used otherwise complies with the requirements of a valid prenup; sufficient time between presentation, execution and the marriage; reasonable opportunity to have independent counsel of your choosing; and full financial disclosures, even a bad deal would be enforceable.

Prenups can be UGLY. It is a hard “sale” when asking your one true soulmate to consider what happens if your union is dissolved. Also, if the prenup is so one-sided that it is deemed unconscionable (totally unfair on its face) it can be invalidated.

Matthew Thompson is a Family Law attorney in Mississippi and reminds you of the words of Kanye West in Gold Digger, “if you ain’t no punk holla we want prenup.”

Follow the blog: BowTieLawyer. You may also contact Matthew with your family law case, question or concern at (601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Child Support, Divorce, General Legal, Opinion

Always Get a Receipt: Proof of Payment

09/15/2016 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

Cash is King, but only when you can prove you paid it!

When a party alleges that the other has not paid their support obligations the Court looks to the payor to prove what was paid, not the payee to prove what was not. In simple terms, if you owed $500 per month in child support and I sued you for contempt and said you had not paid, that’s all I have to do, and the burden shifts to you to prove you did pay what was Ordered and owed. If you cannot prove it, you may be out of luck.

“But I paid cash…,”are famous last words. She is not going to admit that you paid cash or if you did it was because you owed her money, not that it was the child support payment.

Get a receipt. Everytime. Hand write it on notebook paper if you have to. Keep good records. How much was paid and on what date it was paid. Your wallet and your freedom, at least temporarily, may depend on it.

Matthew Thompson is a Family Law attorney in Mississippi and advises you to get a receipt.

Follow the blog: BowTieLawyer Visit the website: Thompson Law Firm You may also contact Matthew with your family law case, question or concern at

(601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Child Custody, Divorce, General Legal, Marriage, Modifications, Opinion

Child Testimony No-no; When having your child testify is the Wrong move.

08/19/2016 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

Sometimes family law is the pits.

Master isolated images /freedigital photos.net

You are in the fight of your life against the one person who promised before God and everybody to always love and cherish you. Where’s the love now?

But dragging others into the fight may be the wrong move. I routinely see parents wanting to bring the kids in to testify, while stating that they do not want to bring the kids in to testify. Kind of a sorry-not sorry attitude.

Child testimony is permissible. There are some Gate-keeping obligations of the Court to apply prior to actual testimony being allowed. There are also various methods used by various Judges on taking child testimony. However, more basic than the trustworthiness of the testimomy and whether it should be in chambers or in open Court, is whether the child should be in that position at all.

The Mississippi Supreme Court stated, “We reiterate that parents in a divorce proceeding should if at all possible refrain from calling any of the children of their marriage…as witnesses, and counsel should advise their clients against doing so except in the most exigent cases.” Jethrow v. Jethrow, 571 So. 2d 270, 274 (Miss. 1990).

If there are not exigent circumstances, i.e.; abuse, criminal activity involving the child, physically dangerous activity and there is no other means to corroborate these facts, testimony may be required, but if it’s run of the mill dad did this or didn’t do that, or dad let the girlfriend give her a makeover, or mom’s boyfriend took them to Chik-fil-a, and these persons are not dangerous persons nor prohibited from being around per a Court Order, child testimony should be avoided.

Think about it from the child’s perspective, not your own. Your job is to do what is best for them, every time.

Matthew Thompson is a Child Custody attorney and cautions you on relying on child testimony when it’s not necessary.

Follow the blog: BowTieLawyer Visit the website: Thompson Law Firm You may also contact Matthew with your family law case, question or concern at

(601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Divorce, General Legal, humor

Don’t Be a Jerk

08/16/2016 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

We have the chance everyday to be a jerk.

Sometimes being the jerk is fun. Telling that so-and-so what you think of them can really be cathartic, but so can not telling them. What you do NOT know is what they have just been through. Maybe them deserving the jerk treatment really has nothing to do with you, the whole “a mile in their shoes” line of thought.

Today, I thought about being the jerk, but decided against it. I am glad I did.

Matthew Thompson is a divorce attorney and gets paid to be a jerk!

Follow the blog: BowTieLawyer Visit the website: Thompson Law Firm You may also contact Matthew with your family law case, question or concern at

(601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Divorce, General Legal

Make Good Choices.

08/12/2016 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

Life is about the choices we make.

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Becris/freedigitalphotos.net

You have the option today of choosing to do things that will make your life, family and case better, or worse. Choose those things that make it better.

Sometimes we get in the habit of making bad decisions. It’s easy, maybe even fun, but it is not the right choice. The great thing about family law is that if you do not know what the “right” legal answer is, so long as you do what is right you will be ok.

Stop making bad decisions. Stop the bad habits. Make good choices.

Follow the blog: BowTieLawyer Visit the website: Thompson Law Firm You may also contact Matthew with your family law case, question or concern at

(601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Child Custody, Divorce, General Legal, Modifications, Opinion, Visitation

Don’t Ask This Question.

07/29/2016 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

There is a lawyer cliché to never ask a question that you do not know the answer to.

Asking that question may get you a self-serving answer that you did not anticipate.It may open Pandora’s box of bad evidence and a tidal wave of otherwise inadmissible evidence. All because you asked a question you should not have asked.

In a custody case, the opposing counsel called the child to testify. This was a dispute between mom and dad and the other attorney wanted the child to testify about what she wanted, specifically where and with whom she wanted to live. However, opposing counsel did NOT know what the child was going to say, but instead assumed it would be favorable to his client. After the routine introductory questions, the child was specifically asked,”If you had a magic wand and you could wave it and live wherever you wanted, where would that be?” After a few seconds of silence the child responded, “ A castle!” Fatal to the case? No. But not the answer the lawyer was looking for and it further helped prove positions that we had taken throughout the case regarding the child’s emotional maturity, an issue we believed worked in our favor.

Of course, sometimes it’s a critical issue and you have to ask the question. Tread carefully.

Another question not ask; When are you due?

Matthew Thompon is a Child Custody attoreny in Mississippi and tries not to ask questions that he does not know the answer to.

Follow the blog: BowTieLawyer Visit the website: Thompson Law Firm You may also contact Matthew with your family law case, question or concern at

(601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Child Custody, Divorce, General Legal

Don’t Play Games

07/14/2016 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

It’s all fun and games until somebody gets hurt.

I’m not talking about playing with your children. Too often I see adults playing games with the other parent’s time. It’s not a game. It’s not really even the other parent’s time. It’s the children’s.

It is also painful when the lawyer is playing games too. Advocating for your client is not making it as costly and long as possible. It’s not arguing over everything. It’s not agreeing to one thing and then doing another.

If this post sounds like you, it’s not too late to change. Be a decent parent. Be a decent lawyer. Be a decent human being. And if you are still going to play games, join a soccer team.

Matthew Thompson is a Family Lawyer and is mildly irritated by people sometimes.

http://www.BowTieLawyer.ms

(601)850-8000

Divorce

Burn that Bridge. (Sometimes)

07/12/2016 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

I routinely advise to not burn bridges.

You never know when you may need the skills of others. And we know we can not navigate this world alone, successfully.

But sometimes you just have to burn that bridge. That person may be making choices in life that jeopardize your case, your children’s safety and your freedom. Burn that bridge.

Sometimes that person makes promise after promise. It’s what you need and want to hear, but they don’t follow through. You inquire, plead and implore, they dodge, make excuse and ignore. The bridge is burning.

Ultimately, life is about relationships. Evaluate your “friends” by how they treat you and those that can’t help themselves.

Sometimes you have to burn the bridge.