Katy Texas Legal Issues Blog

Nurses have a high divorce rate

On behalf of The Springer Law Firm posted in Divorce on Thursday, April 18, 2019.

Thinking of becoming a nurse? It is a rather selfless occupation that allows you to give back and help those who need it most. It gives you the satisfaction of knowing that you're making a difference. You may even help save someone's life. It's a noble pursuit.

That said, you need to understand how it may impact the rest of your life. Experts warn that nurses have a higher divorce rate than average. They even say that when ranking professions that see the highest divorce rates, nursing makes it into the top 10.

Did your spouse hide assets at work?

On behalf of The Springer Law Firm posted in Divorce on Friday, April 12, 2019.

If your spouse files for divorce, you may worry that he or she will hide assets from you to keep them out of your hands when you split up your property. Common tactics include giving away assets, lying about income or finding a way to mock up fake debt.

One other thing you want to look into, though, is whether or not your spouse worked with a boss or supervisor to "hide" assets at work. After all, you can often find other hidden assets through bank statements, tax papers and the like. With a little creativity, your spouse can keep them out of that paper trail entirely.

Life expectancy falls for the longest stretch since World War I

On behalf of The Springer Law Firm posted in Estate Planning on Thursday, April 4, 2019.

Life expectancy, which rose consistently in the United States for so long, has been falling now for three years in a row. That is happening even as other countries still see their life expectancies rising, so this isn't an issue for everyone. It's an issue for Americans.

Concerningly, experts note that this type of drop in life expectancy has not happened since a stretch beginning in 1915 and ending in 1918. Of course, the United States' involvement in World War I falls right in that window. The influenza pandemic in 1918 also played a massive role.

Can grandparents get custody instead of parents?

On behalf of The Springer Law Firm on Tuesday, April 2, 2019.

You do not feel like your grandchildren are being brought up in an ideal living situation. You want to take custody away from your own child and their spouse so that you can raise the grandkids. You feel like it is very clear that doing so would put their best interests first.

Will the court agree? Do you have a right to seek custody? Will it be possible to get the kids out of that living situation and into your home?

Moving forward after divorce

On behalf of The Springer Law Firm posted in Divorce on Friday, March 29, 2019.

You may never have planned to get divorced, but your spouse told you they were done with the marriage and filed. Maybe they just could not go on any longer, were too unhappy or found someone else. Sometimes, there is no single reason for a divorce. Rather, the marriage has become too constraining for one spouse.

To some degree, the reason doesn't even matter. The divorce is coming, and you're wondering how you're possibly going to move forward after it.

You must understand your finances during divorce

On behalf of The Springer Law Firm posted in Divorce on Friday, March 22, 2019.

When you file for divorce, you know that you and your spouse need to disclose your assets and split them up. But how can you possibly do that if you're not even sure what assets you have to begin with?

It may sound obvious, but it's one of the most common mistakes people make. Their understanding of their own financial picture, as a couple, is just too limited. They don't know what is fair, they have no idea if their spouse is hiding assets, and they take a massive risk.

5 questions to ask when doing estate planning

On behalf of The Springer Law Firm on Tuesday, March 19, 2019.

Estate planning may start off by dividing assets among heirs, but that's not all that it does. Your estate plan also may reference your end-of-life wishes. As you grow older and the threat of dementia increases, you want to have these desires down on paper in advance.

Failing to do so can often cause disputes. One child wants to put you in a nursing home and sell your house. The other child thinks you should stay in the family home. A third child thinks you can still make the decision on your own, while the other two do not. No matter what happens, someone is going to be angry, and it could even end up in court.

Using the Children's Passport Issuance Alert Program

On behalf of The Springer Law Firm posted in Child Custody on Wednesday, March 13, 2019.

The United States government runs the Children's Passport Issuance Alert Program (CPIAP), which may be very valuable to you if you got divorced, and you share custody of your children.

The program gives the Department of State's Office of Children's Issues the power to get in touch with parents who are enrolled in the program to find out if they gave their consent for the other parent to apply for a passport on the child's behalf. You can enroll your child and then trust that you will get that phone call before the government hands out a passport, even if everything else appears to be in order.

Why might an adoption not work out at the last second?

On behalf of The Springer Law Firm posted in Adoption on Thursday, March 7, 2019.

For many people who look into adoption, their biggest fear is that the whole thing is going to fall through at the last second.

After all, for the prospective parents, they have to make a choice to love a child enough to bring them into their family. This is a big mental and emotional step, but they have to take it before they actually know 100 percent that they're going to get that child. It's a risk, and it can be devastating when it doesn't pan out.

Divorce is the perfect time to do your estate planning

On behalf of The Springer Law Firm on Monday, March 4, 2019.

You have put off doing your estate planning for the last 10 years. You knew you should do it. You knew you'd eventually need it. But it felt like something over which you could procrastinate, something you actually wouldn't need for decades.

That may or may not be true. Unfortunately, there are many things in life that you can't predict, such as accidents and diseases. You know that, but you have still put it off.