Alienation of Affection; Sued for Sex…

10/22/2015 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

Adultery may be considered a crime in Mississippi. It is defined as sexual intercourse with person of the opposite sex not your spouse.

Alienation of Affection (AOA) is a separate claim, known as a common law tort. A tort is a civil wrong, as opposed to a criminal wrong. AOA is rooted in case law and provides an equitable remedy and its intent is to protect marriages.

AOA allows the wronged spouse to sue the “significant other” of the guilty spouse for the breakdown of the marriage. There are only 6 states in the country that still recognize AOA, but Mississippi is one of them and in the 1990’s our appellate Courts reaffirmed AOA as alive and well in the Mississippi legal system.

Alienation of Affection requires;

1) Wrongful Conduct (ie: adultery, though not required), 2) Loss of Affections, and 3) a Causal Connection be shown between the Wrongful Conduct and Loss of Affection. All 3 must be present for a viable claim. There is a 3 year statute of limitations in which to bring the claim, beginning when the loss of affection is finally accomplished.

*As an aside, North Carolina recognizes Alienation of Affection and a separate tort called “Criminal Conversation” which only requires proof of sex with a married person for the “significant other” to be liable for damages. It does not require loss of affections, causal connection or even a real relationship.

So what is the take away here? Just because you are not married does not mean you are free to have an affair. You will be a material witness in the divorce case, could be subject to criminal prosecution and stand a pretty good chance of getting sued. And if you go to North Carolina, you better behave.

Matthew Thompson is a family law attorney that can handle your divorce or alienation matter and warns persons about visiting North Carolina.

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Visit the website: Thompson Law Firm

You may also contact Matthew with your family law case at (601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

divorce, General Legal, Opinion

When “NO FAULT” becomes “YO’ FAULT”

10/21/2015 BowTieLawyer 2 Comments

While Mississippi is technically not a true “No Fault” state, there are provisions for an Irreconcilable Differences divorce. (commonly referred to as “No Fault”)

However, sometimes that agreement to a No Fault divorce doesn’t stick. The parties, after getting over the initial shock of divorce, decide they will be adults and agree. They think they can agree to the divorce and resolve their differences. After all, they did manage to get along for most of 9 years, have two kids and bought a house. What could go wrong? They even searched online and looked at divorceyourself.com.

The No Fault agreement gets derailed when the Husband realizes he will have to pay 20% of his income towards child support, plus health insurance and alimony. He realizes it’s a lot of money. The Wife gets squirrely when she realizes that her half of the retirement account is consumed by balancing the equity in the house, or that the money she gets cannot be realized without significant tax consequences.

Parties to a divorce don’t realize child support is until 21 in Mississippi. They don’t know the types of custody, or what each type means. They agree to things that they cannot legally agree to and fail to consider the consequences.

Finally, one party is convinced to see an attorney and when they do they realize the consequences of what they were about to agree to and back out, the other side becomes angry and un-agrees too. All of a sudden a simple divorce becomes complicated, expensive and adversarial.

Want to keep your situation from going from No Fault to Yo’ Fault? H ave an assessment with an attorney that practices family law, keep the peace, and be smart.

Matthew Thompson is a family law attorney that can handle your divorce whether it’s your fault, their fault, or somebody else’s fault.

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divorce, General Legal, Opinion

The Hardest Advice to Take is…

10/14/2015 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

I give advice everyday. Actually, I sell advice.

Routinely, what I tell people is common sense. It’s the same advice your wise parent or grandparent would give you, but often it’s hard advice to follow.

I’ve counseled persons to stop doing things that are harmful to themselves and their case. Don’t hang out with the shady crowd. Stop using alcohol if you have alcohol problems. Start going to church or stop doing things you shouldn’t be doing. I tell people what they don’t want to hear.

The hardest advice to take is to stop doing whatever lead to the circumstance where you needed legal help.

www.bowtielawyer.ms

Child Support, divorce

5 Big Lies about Divorce; The Internet is WRONG.

10/07/2015 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

There is a lot of misinformation out there about Divorce. Online searches are no true replacement to good legal advice.

A cursory search of the internet revealed these commonly accepted pieces of internet advice that are dead wrong…

Child Support. One site discusses the Income Shares Model of determining child support in Mississippi. This is wrong. Mississippi uses the Obligor Model and child support is based primarily upon the income of the non-custodial parent’s adjusted gross income.

Alimony. That trusted brand Wikipedia includes that Alimony, in Mississippi is “usually awarded for life.” While permanent alimony is possible it is still subject to modification and termination well prior to death and saying it is “usually” awarded is wrong. Read more about Mississippi Alimony here.

“No Fault Divorce”. Common lore has perpetuated the belief Mississippi has “no fault” divorce. Mississippi does not have “no fault” divorce. Mississippi has Irreconcilable Differences. There is a significant difference.

Timing of Divorce. For an Irreconcilable Difference Divorce there is a minimum 60 day waiting period. It does not mean that you are divorced on day 61. It means that you may present the papers for Court approval after 60 days have passed. Routinely sites say you will be divorced in 30-90 days. It will never be less than 60 for an Irreconcilable Differences Divorce and if it is Fault based it can take much longer.

Cost of Divorce. No website can do this justice. I saw one that listed the filing fees and fee for service by publication as the “costs” of a divorce, and a that an attorney may be additional monies. The posted filing fees were wrong and those come nowhere close to what a divorce could cost. A competent attorney can tell you the likely costs.

Matthew Thompson is a Divorce Attorney in Mississippi and if you find yourself needing the answers to any of these above issues, please go see an experienced attorney that handles Family Law in Mississippi.

Follow the blog:#BowTieLawyer You may also contact Matthew with your family law matter or question at (601) 850-8000

divorce, Marriage

Sex, Money and Getting Old; Top Causes for Divorce.

10/05/2015 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

There’s an old joke that the #1 cause of divorce is marriage. While it’s true that you must be married to get a divorce, however there are real reasons that contribute to the breakdown of a marriage.

1) Sex. Physical intimacy is a chief complaint heard time and again in divorce situations. The complaint is either one spouse wants too much, the other spouse wants too little, or one spouse is having it with someone they are not supposed to. Frequently, a combination of all three exist.

2) Money. Lack of financial security is another chief complaint. The complaint here is that the one spouse earns too little, the other spouse spends too much, or one spouse is spending it on someone (or something) they are not supposed to.

3) Getting Old. Stuck in a rut, the sever year itch, boredom. This complaint can refer to; a) the concept of the relationship getting old, losing its “new car smell” and “excitement,” becoming incompatible, or it can refer to b) the parties actually getting old and, typically, one spouse “trading in” the current spouse for a newer, younger model. Crass, but true. Additionally, getting old can refer to c) the bad habits, the nagging, the actions that you used to be able to tolerate from your spouse, but have gotten on your nerves so much that you can no longer take it.

There are , of course, many others; physical abuse, emotional abuse, substance abuse, and the list goes on.

Matthew Thompson is a Family Law attorney in Mississippi.

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

Bow Tie

How To Tie a Bow Tie. ( A Homecoming Special)

10/02/2015 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

With Homecoming season upon us there is not a better time for an excellent video & a written step-by-step guide on “How to tie a bow tie.”

Tie a basic overhand knot (right over left) and pull the knot to the center of your shirt neck.
Fold the side hanging down of the bow so that the “left bow” is doubled and the “right bow” is a single layer. The fold on the “left bow” becomes the far edge of the bow tie.
Place the center of the bow on the knot in the center of the shirt neck.
Pull the left side of the bow over the middle of the bow and knot. Hanging straight down.
Snap the bow closed and hold the bow in place.
Lightly pull the closed bow to reveal a small hole behind the bow, but in front of the knot.
Push the “back right bow” through the small hole.
Once through, pull the front left bow and back right bow to straighten and tighten the bow tie.
It does not have to look perfect, and a little imperfection is desired as you tied it yourself.

divorce

Thompson Law Firm, pllc

09/30/2015 BowTieLawyer

Thompson Law Firm, pllc, is a Mississippi-based Family Law Firm, focusing on Divorce, Child Custody, Child Support, Alimony, Modification, Contempt and Appeal practice areas, throughout the State of Mississippi.

Phone: (601) 850-8000 Fax: (601) 499-5219

Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

divorce, General Legal

Testifying in Court; Where Saying Too Much Will be Used Against you.

09/30/2015 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

If you or I answered questions in Court like any politician we might be held in contempt.

In Court, witnesses must answer the question asked. Usually the answer will be “yes” or “no,” and then an explanation may be offered if necessary. This can be very difficult to do and it takes practice to get this right.

Not answering the question with a “yes” or “no,” and not answering what was asked may result in the Court concluding you are being deceptive. This is not an impression you want to create.

As a witness, however, you only want to answer the question asked. Do not answer what is not asked and do not offer more than what is asked. The best example I can think of is when a party was asked if they had committed an affair with “Mary” since the separation.

The answer, “I have not committed an affair with ‘Mary’…since the separation.” There was an awkward pause. The awkward pause resulted in the follow-up question of when did you commit your affair with Mary. The party told on himself by not just saying “No” which would have been a completely truthful answer to the question asked.

Matthew Thompson is a Family Law attorney and warns witnesses to answer “yes” or “no,” explain if necessary, and sometimes less is more.

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