Category Archives: Marriage

Child Custody, Child Support, Divorce, Irreconcilable differences, Marriage, Modifications

Family Law Practice Areas…defined.

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Family Law areas defined for you. There is a lot of legal terminology used everyday that we attorneys take for granted that everyone knows what they mean, but that is not always the case.  Here are a few of the major areas of family law, the simple explanations and links to more information.

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Stuart Miles /freedigital photos.net
  • Divorce– the legal and final end to a marriage, a.k.a. “a conscious uncoupling”

Fault Process and “No-Fault” process.

  • Child Custody– determination of the custodian(s), visitation schedule and important decision making for a minor child.
  • Child Support– who pays, how much and for what.

Additional practice areas will be featured and defined throughout the year.

Matthew Thompson is a family law  attorney  and handles a variety of family law legal matters.

Follow the blog:#BowTieLawyer Visit the website: #Thompson Law Firm  You may also contact Matthew with your family law matter or question at (601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

General Legal, Marriage

Is My Marriage Valid? Who May Perform Ceremonies.

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Paul McCartney, Bryan Cranston and Lady Gaga all have at least one thing in common…they can perform your marriage ceremony.

§ 93-1-17. By whom marriages may be solemnized

Any minister of the gospel ordained according to the rules of his church or society, in good standing; any Rabbi or other spiritual leader of any other religious body authorized under the rules of such religious body to solemnize rites of matrimony and being in good standing; any judge of the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, circuit court, chancery court or county court may solemnize the rites of matrimony between any persons anywhere within this state who shall produce a license granted as herein directed. Justice court judges and members of the boards of supervisors may likewise solemnize the rites of matrimony within their respective counties. Any marriages performed by a mayor of a municipality prior to March 14, 1994 are valid provided such marriages satisfy the requirements of Section 93-1-18.

Musicians, movie stars, the Clergy and even regular folk may perform a marriage ceremony if ordained as a minister per his or her church or society.

Matthew Thompson is a  Family Law Attorney in Mississippi and reminds you to not enter into a marriage lightly, but do so for love, commitment and all the right reasons.

Follow the blog:#BowTieLawyer Visit the website: #Thompson Law Firm  You may also contact Matthew with your family law matter or question at (601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Divorce, General Legal, Marriage, Opinion

Sometimes you Just Can’t Stay Friends…

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“Lets just be friends.” 

We’re all adults here, right? Sure, we think we can remain friends even if our partnership didn’t work out, but sometimes you cannot stay friends. It’s too hard. It brings up the same issues that made the partnership not work.

It does not mean you have to be enemies. It does not mean you have a nemesis and have to hate each other, but staying friends can be hard.

Having and keeping a relationship is hard work. Both have to be committed to make it go. If one is not, it will not work.

Matthew Thompson is a Divorce and Family Law Attorney in Mississippi and reminds you that there are approximately 7 billion people on the planet. There are plenty of other persons that can be your friend.

Follow the blog:#BowTieLawyer Visit the website: #Thompson Law Firm  You may also contact Matthew with your family law matter or question at (601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

 

Divorce, General Legal, Marriage, Opinion

The Problem With People; Why Relying on Others for Your Happiness is Destined to Fail

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Mankind is not perfect. Human beings constantly mess up, disappoint and let others down. This is a fact.Untitled

The #1 way to guaranty disappointment is to rely on someone else for your satisfaction.  The old adage “if you want something done right, do it yourself” is sage advice. If you find yourself constantly frustrated, irritated and aggrieved, stop and examine why.

Everyday, I see people let down by the very ones that promised to never let them down, contractually obligated to act right and they still do NOT. People will let you down.  Plan accordingly.

Matthew Thompson is a Mississippi Family Law Attorney and is not as cynical as you may think. However, relying on others for your own self-worth is a mistake and will lead to disappointment.

Follow the blog:#BowTieLawyer Visit the website: #Thompson Law Firm  You may also contact Matthew with your family law matter or question at (601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

 

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

SECRETS REVEALED! What REALLY Goes on in the Judge’s Chambers…

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In every courtroom there is a mystery door, usually in the back corner.  Within this door are the secrets of Court…

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Litigants see the Judge and Lawyers disappear into this door. What seems like an eternity later, they emerge. Is one smiling? Does one have a scowl? What does it all mean?

These “chamber conferences” matter.  This is where the Judge hears what the case is about.  Each attorney is allowed a few minutes to tell their client’s side of the story, factually.  The Court hears legal arguments as to this issue and that issue.  In this conference the Judge may indicate what they are inclined to do.  This is actually a good thing, usually.

You find out whether or not you are fighting a losing battle, or whether there will even be a fight.

I had a case where the parties were fighting over “Legal Custody.” Legal custody is the decision making right regarding the child, such as education, medical and general welfare areas.  It’s extremely common for the parties to have Joint Legal Custody.  However, this particular lawyer and client would not agree to Joint Legal Custody.  It was about 2 minutes of discussion and the Judge said, “I almost always do Joint Legal Custody, unless there is a really good reason not to.”  There was not a good reason. That resolved the last remaining issue.

Sometimes the conferences go against you.  That causes questions of doubt between the lawyer and client. “Did my lawyer fight for my side?” You have to trust your lawyer and believe them. Also, they should advise you that the Judge indicated they were inclined to rule this way, but we can still have a hearing and we may be able to convince them otherwise. Probably not, but we may be able to. Ultimately, it is the client’s decision.

Usually, conferences help. It’s not underhanded nor improper if lawyers for both parties are participating.

Matthew Thompson is a family law attorney in Mississippi and usually welcomes Chamber Conferences.

Divorce, General Legal, Marriage

Be the CAPTAIN of the Ship! (Or at least know how to be…)

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“O’ Captain! My Captain!”

marcolm/freedigital photos.net

Divorce, separation and break-ups are hard. They create situations where you have to do things that you normally did not have to do.

A recent fight over the boat brought this lesson home.  The parties had a nice boat.  Both wanted it. Stereotypes would have you to believe that the Husband was really the Captain and the Wife was posturing.  However, you would be wrong.  The wife could Captain that boat with the best of them.  Somewhat intrigued, I asked why would you Captain the boat.  The response was, “What if I did not have someone else to do it? I needed to know how...”

This is why you teach your kids how to change a flat, even in days of AAA and cell phones.

The best advice for today, “Be Your Own Captain!“

Matthew Thompson is a family law attorney in Mississippi and can Captain the ship.

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, Opinion

Friends Don’t Let Friends Post on the Internet

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We’ve blogged on not posting ignorant or incriminating things on FaceBook. (5 FaceBook Don’ts)&(5 More Don’ts).

The prior posts really dealt with you avoiding bad behavior, or at least bragging about it publicly. But, your obligation to be smart should not stop there.

You should not let your friends post hate or trash either. Using a surrogate does not insulate you from the potential carnage.  That well-meaning friend being critical of your ex, or their new squeeze, is a direct reflection of your inner thoughts, even if it’s not!

Ask that your well-meaning friend refrain.  That they not post about how evil, vile and repulsive your ex is, about how ugly, inside and out, his/her new soul mate is.  They can think it, you will probably even talk about it over Mexican and margaritas, but don’t post it on the Internet.

Matthew Thompson is a family law attorney in Mississippi and uses FaceBook and other social media sites a lot more than you probably realize.

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, Marriage, Opinion

Things you CAN Cheat on…

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We’re constantly told, reminded and scolded about what we cannot cheat on.  But, there are some things you can cheat on, or things that even if you do the consequences are not so dire.

KEK064 /freedigitalphotos.net

#1. Your Diet. Go ahead and cheat.  “Tomorrow” is the most popular day to start a diet anyway, followed closely by “next Monday.”

#2. Video Games.  While you do not want to teach your children to cheat, using the “god mode” code makes the game more better. Invincibility only exists in a video game world anyway.

#3.  Taxes.  This is not recommended, but chances are you are cheating and don’t even know it with the complexity of the Internal Revenue Code. Under reporting income or over reporting expenses or deductions  is common and often unintentional.

These are just 3  of the things that cheating on likely will not lead to a long, miserable life, well #3 might, just ask Al Capone.

Matthew Thompson is a Family Law Attorney in Mississippi and advises you to cheat on your diet, not on your spouse or taxes!

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