Category Archives: divorce

Appeal, Child Custody, Child Support, divorce, General Legal, Modifications, Visitation

When Court Doesn’t Go your Way…

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Sometimes Court doesn’t go your way.

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Judges make mistakes, witnesses remember it wrong and you may ask for improper relief. But, all is not lost. You have options.

Motion for New Trial. This motion, sometimes referred to as a motion for reconsideration, can provide an avenue for the Judge to correct the mistake. They must be filed within 10 days of the Final Judgment and they are not for a do-over, but to correct a clear error of law or fact.

Appeal. You may appeal any Final Judgment. You have 30 days to do so from the final ruling and if you do a timely Motion for New Trial it resets the appeal clock. Appeals can be cumbersome and daunting. These are to the appellate court, not the Court that decided your case. However, an appeal is based on what happened below, the trial record. It’s not for new happenings.

Modification. Even though your judgment may be final, certain aspects are always modifiable. Custody, support, visitation and certain other payments may be changed by the Court if circumstances warrant it.

Matthew Thompson is a Divorce and Appeals lawyer in Mississippi.

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divorce, humor

How are attorneys like sunscreen?

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As I am enjoying the sunny skies, crashing waves, and the people it reminds me that you need sunscreen.


Like sunscreen, sometimes you need an attorney. They can be kind of a hassle to deal with and even could be messy, but is protection from a later and potentially bigger problem.

Matthew Thompson is a family law attorney in Mississippi and reminds you to wear your sunscreen & call your divorce attorney. 

Child Custody, divorce, humor, Visitation

Things to do this Weekend.

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Being a parent is a non-stop challenge of instruction, guidance and entertainment.

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It is hard to constantly come up with things to do. Here are some no-cost and low-cost Weekend activities, not too far away.

Picnic.

There are a plethora of parks in the area and most have picnic tables, pavilions and restrooms. It is as easy as a homemade sandwich and chips to a quick stop at the local fast food joint.

These parks also have grills. With a little more effort you can be grilling burgers, dogs or blackened redfish with crispy capers.

Take a Hike.

In addition to the walking trails at most parks there are a few actual hiking trails in the area. The most prominent locally is the Yockanookany. The “Yock” is a 30+ mile trial that runs north and south, beginning just north of the Overlook on the Natchez Trace paralleling the Trace northward for 30 miles. There are multiple spots to get on and off. This trial is primitive, but well-marked.

Mule Jail Trail. Mule Jail is a mountain biking/hiking trail. It is just south and west of the Spillway. It is a well-defined trail that meanders through the woods that are on your right when traveling east over Spillway Road. It’s an easy hike, quick to get to, but feels like your away from it all. Also, Mule Jail has a great history involving an island being formed from a natural peninsula of the Pearl River during the Civil War to protect the farmer’s live stock. The island was known as “Mule Jail.”

Other great hiking info can be found at Hiking in Mississippi, a great resource!

Canoeing/Kayaking.

Mississippi has some amazing rivers, streams and lakes. The Rez has numerous places to launch canoe and kayaks. There are lots of nooks and crannies to explore. There are a few local places that will rent canoes or kayaks, or you may purchase one at the big box retailers.

If you don’t go the rental route, this will be more expensive and more of a hassle. You will need to transport your craft and have the required paddles and life jackets.

Learn Something.

The metro area has numerous museums and attractions. The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame, Natural Science Museum, Children’s Museum, Agriculture Museum, and Jackson Zoo are all nearby. These are relatively low-cost activities that can consume a half day or more of fun and learning. These are just a few in the area and there are plenty more throughout the state.

Just for Fun.

There are seemingly endless opportunities to just have fun, neat places to explore. A drive through downtown Jackson to see the sights is always a treat. Really. The Capitol, the Old Capitol, the Mississippi Supreme Court building, Governor’s Mansion, all of the “skyscrapers” in Jackson, and just traveling Capitol Street is a treat. Other localities have quaint “downtowns” with shops and farmer’s markets. Canton’s square is famed.

Eating Opportunities.

There are more places to eat in the area than you realize. Local, unique and one-of-a-kind places. There are numerous home-cooking diners, amazing soul food and authentic “foreign” cuisine. Where else can you find a catfish igloo, an old gas station turned-restaurant, an old school turned entertainment destination, and more Mexican places than you can shake a sombrero at?

There are lots of opportunities to have fun, stay on a budget, and make memories that last a lifetime.

Matthew Thompson is a Family and Child Custody Attorney encouraging you to be the best parent you can be.

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divorce

Happy 4th!

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divorce, Marriage, Opinion

Mississippi in the Spotlight; HB1523, Standing, and You.

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HB1523 is the little engine that could. A three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals determined that the Plaintiffs in the underlying matter did not have standing to pursue their case. The Court basically said those complaining had not been harmed.

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A brief reminder, HB1523 was aimed to prevent “government from interfering with people of faith who are exercising their religious beliefs …in matters of marriage.” Phil Bryant. The Governor said it would not allow the discrimination of anyone.

The debate essentially centers around two “competing” interests. Those in favor of the law – contend a small business owner, hardworking, toiling and of strong Christian conviction should not lose their business and livelihood due to getting sued for not baking a cake for a gay wedding. Those opposed to the law – state that this law affords no protections to a class in need of protection.

Interestingly, prior to this law, during its litigation and even to date, there has not been a reported instance of a small business in the State of Mississippi being sued or facing any consequences for refusing service to same-sex persons prior to this law. The Oregon case where a baker had a money judgment entered against him was due to the admitted violation of an Oregon State law and aggravating factors, including that  the baker published the Complaintant’s name, home address and personal phone number on FaceBook. The money damages were for violating Oregon State law and the emotional distress that accompanied the intended private complaint being publicly posted.

The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits the federal government from making a law “respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” This provision applies to state and local governments through the Fourteenth Amendment.

The problem I see is that this law demands the respecting of an establishment of religion. It specifically allows state employees to discriminate against other citizens based upon a “sincerely held religious belief” or “moral conviction.” This means that the State employee whose job is to issue marriage licenses can refuse because they do not approve of you and/or your soon-to-be spouse.

The intent was to prevent same-sex marriage, but it could also prevent persons who were previously divorced from being married, persons pregnant out-of-wedlock who seek to be married, those that have had a child out of wedlock, and those having sex out of wedlock from getting married. These facts, by the way, are not an interpretation. The law provides for protection of these beliefs.

However, the plaintiffs complaining could not show that they had actually been harmed or discriminated against because of the law. Due to this, the 5th Circuit determined that they did not have the right to sue the State as they could show no harm. Case dismissed.

So, what’s next? This ruling will be appealed to the full panel before the 5th Circuit and in the meantime additional suits will be filed with aggrieved plaintiffs, I predict. However, is a law really a law if it doesn’t matter? Maybe all who seek will get their marriage licenses and all who desire a cake will get their cake and eat it too. Maybe Mississippi is better than our politicians deserve.

Matthew Thompson is a Divorce Attorney encouraging you to believe in your beliefs, but follow the law.

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Child Custody, divorce, General Legal, Visitation

She’s Your Ex, not mine.

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“The poison ivy of people are ex spouses.” -Matthew Thompson

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Exes can irritate, inflame, and annoy regardless of the season. Exes can make life difficult and uncomfortable. Exes can also cause a reaction that is not good.

I was meeting with a divorcee and their new spouse. We were discussing some issues about the ex and the best way to address it.  The new spouse made the comment “She’s your ex, not mine.”  This was a profound comment. It was not shirking responsibility or even placing blame. It was a statement that you, as the former spouse, need to address issues head-on and in an adult like manner.

Novel thought. Act like an adult. All too often, I see ex spouses acting like everything but adults. Petty arguments, meaningless games of one-upping the other and a general lack of care for the ex spouse can serve to harm the child. These are bad. Don’t do these things.

Act like an adult.

Matthew Thompson is a Child Custody attorney and encourages ex spouses to act like adults.

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Child Custody, Child Support, divorce, General Legal, Grandparent Visitation, Marriage, Modifications, Opinion, Visitation

Advice to Parents; Grow up

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If you are the parent to a child then act like it.

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We have seen the reports and stories of parents going off the deep end. Using illegal drugs, abusing substances, pursuing bad-idea relationships and ultimately putting their own selfish desires above the needs of their children.  It’s time to stop.

There are only a handful of people that you, as a parent, are ultimately responsible for; yourself and the people you brought into this world, your children.

Don’t shirk your duties. Don’t neglect your children. Don’t be so consumed with your own desires that you lose sight of what is important. Don’t hate another person so much it clouds your judgment when it comes to your children.

Matthew Thompson is a Child Custody attorney and encourages parents to grow up and act like a parent.

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divorce, Irreconcilable differences, Marriage, Opinion

Clarion-Ledger: Protecting families, or prolonging misery?

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Protecting families, or prolonging misery?

, The Clarion-Ledger 11:00 a.m. CT June 2, 2017
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Matthew Thompson is a Mississippi family law attorney and professor, and having difficult, drawn-out and costly divorces would be good for his pocketbook.

But Thompson supports reform and changes to divorce laws, “even though it’s against my own self interests.”

“The current laws make it expensive, and in some instances, impossible to get a divorce,” said Thompson, whose firm focuses on family law statewide and who is a professor teaching domestic relations at Mississippi College’s law school.

Thompson said the Legislature’s recent divorce law reform, removing a corroboration requirement for abused spouses, is a needed change.

“Our law has required cruelty claims be corroborated with evidence beyond that of the victim’s testimony,” Thompson said. “… Even if the court believed you, you had to have a neighbor, family member, police report or picture, or you didn’t have corroboration … Now, if the court finds the victim truthful and credible, the court can accept that. If you take a step back and think, that makes sense. Our judges have always been the lie detector, always the barometer of whether someone was credible.

“There is some form of abuse in a vast number of divorce cases,” Thompson said. “Not every one, but a lot of them. When you drill down and include physical, mental, emotional, verbal abuse — It’s a significant number of cases. We as human beings treat the people we are supposed to love the most the worst.”

Thompson said he supports Mississippi creating a “no-fault” ground for divorce. South Dakota is the only other state without such a ground. He said opposition to this change, from those saying it will weaken the sanctity of marriage and increase divorces, is misguided. In practice, Mississippi’s lack of a no-fault ground allows one spouse to hold up a divorce, sometimes for years.

“The idea behind making it difficult to get a divorce is that Mississippi is promoting marriage,” Thompson said. “But when you go 10 years and it costs tens of thousands of dollars — those aren’t intact families trying to get back together.

“Our law promotes divorce blackmail,” Thompson said. “… You have to pay what I say, or agree to what I want, or I won’t agree to a divorce … You have a fundamental, constitutional right to marriage, according to (a U.S. Supreme Court ruling). Shouldn’t you have a fundamental right to a divorce? I guess the counter to that is that you don’t have to get married.”

Thompson said some of the moral and religious arguments focused on divorce policies should be focused on the front-end, marriage policies.

“Our state has made it phenomenally easy to get into a marriage,” Thompson said. “There used to be a three-day wait, used to be a blood test requirement. But now you just go to the circuit clerk and pay $25.

“Studies show having mom and dad happily married and living together is what’s best for children and families,” Thompson said. “Having mom and dad get along and living separately would be second best. Mom and dad living together and fighting and being miserable, whether it’s violent or just cold war, that’s not the best. If this is really about protecting families, there are ways to do that, but still have an appropriate and reasonable means to get out of a marriage. It shouldn’t take a beating or physical violence to get there.”

Contact Geoff Pender at 601-961-7266 or gpender@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter.