Get free answers to your Family Law legal questions from lawyers in your area.
Money is an issue and has been from the time he was born, as to why I never had the funds to obtain an attorney to get visitation rights. So, basically it seems as if I’m stuck paying support for a child I can’t even interact with?
answered on Dec 29, 2022
The Circuit Court in the jurisdiction in Maryland where your child resides may have a self-help programs for self-represented litigants in domestic/family law cases. Most common legal motions, comlaints and petitions are available as fill-in-the-bank forms for family law cases, including... View More 
I have an 8 year old son that resides in the state of Maryland. Me and the mother were never together as a couple, but with a few dealings she became pregnant. I've seen my son twice within the eight year span, and that was when he was just a year old. The mother had been unhappy because I... View More
answered on Dec 28, 2022
No, you cannot do it unilaterally. If the "father figure" and your ex get serious, and get married, and if the father figure decides he would like to adopt your son as his own child, then with your voluntary consent you could allow the adoption and give up your parental rights in that... View More
I have a dismissed peace order filed against me in 2021. I was never served because I was only in MD on Military leave and was back across the country when they showed up to my parents house. It was dismissed after a month and the filer went to court once a week for that month. On the MD courts... View More
answered on Dec 18, 2022
It is not a criminal charge, so guilt or innocence is not the right way to characterize this type of case. This is a civil peace order petition. Anyone can file a petition seeking a peace order against another person, and the burden of proof is a "preponderance of the evidence" which... View More
I live in Maryland. My sister bought a house. I live in it with my husband and kids and I pay rent to my sister. She has said that she will gift me the house when it’s paid off. In this case, will the house be considered the marital property of me and my husband, or just mine?
answered on Dec 10, 2022
A gift is not marital property. Payment of rent that is actually payment made as part of an agreement to purchase the house would be deemed payment toward marital property. A mere promise to gift you a property in the future is not an enforceable agreement or contract, meaning your sister does... View More
He purchased the property in 2003 but years later a women was added what should I do
answered on Dec 2, 2022
Hire a lawyer to look into the title records, and provide a whole lot more details about who this woman was, her relationship to your father, whether she ever was romantically involved with him, or resided in the house, etc. If your father had a will, that should be reviewed. If there was an... View More
Me and my son’ father had in our court order that child support was to be paid until he turns 18. In May, he filed for a modification. Why? I don’t know. My son graduated in June and that was the last payment I received. There was a court date in Sept, which we both missed, and the judge... View More
answered on Dec 2, 2022
By law, in the absence of an agreement by the parents to the contrary, child support ceases once the child turns 18, or if the child is still enrolled in high school and not yet reached graduation, then through completion of high school --whichever is later (but not past the child's 19th... View More
I am dating someone who is questionably married to someone else. He physically left the relationship due to abuse and fraud over 12 years ago and the 'wife' is nowhere to be found and has evaded divorce just after their separation by refusing to send a current address. She has since been... View More
answered on Oct 13, 2022
Is there a question as to whether your boyfriend is actually married? Wouldn't he know? Than can easily be verified by checking th marriage license records in the state where he had the marriage ceremony performed. He should hire a private investigator to peform a search and skip trace, and... View More
My mother, now 98 years of age, submitted a General Power of Attorney form in 2013 and the bank officer notarized it. Now it is not accepted as Verification of Receipt of Benefits because it "does not explicitly authorize the attorney in fact to handle retirement transactions and additionally... View More
answered on Oct 10, 2022
Maryland law requires that any POA executed on or after October 1, 2010, be notarized and witnessed by two persons in the presence of each other and the principal of the POA. However, a Notary Public can act as one of the two witnesses, so you might argue that one witness plus the Notary is... View More
If I'm given a 2 year sentence and I serve 14 months on that sentence am I still eligible for penal code 12-104.1
answered on Sep 24, 2022
Yes, arrearages do not accrue during the period of incarceration and for 60 days after your release. The threshold for suspension of the obligation is a sentence of incarceration of 180 days or more.
There is Court Order of Consent between the parties prior to the kids reaching the age of 18. I was order to pay child support. To stop paying child support, I motioned to the Court that the child was 18 and no longer needed financial support. It was granted. However, there are other clauses in the... View More
answered on Sep 19, 2022
If your daughter is over 18 now, in the absence of any agreed terms that specifically continue past the age of 18 (such as an agreement to share health insurance costs to a certain age, college tuition, etc.), then the obligations end at 18 insofar as your child goes. A lawyer would have to review... View More
The child was a former foster child and we were granted guardianship of the child. However the child has become extremely unsafe, has several mental health challenges and it's become way more than what we can offer to support them. Where would we go to petition the court, the juvenile court... View More
answered on Sep 17, 2022
You file in the Circuit Court for the county (or City of Baltimore) where you and the child currently resides. However, if the child is no longer under the jurisdiction of the Juvenile Court because he has reached the age of majority (18-21 years old) and has not otherwise been declared mentally... View More
answered on Aug 20, 2022
Any criminal charges will show up on a background check and Maryland Judiciary Case Search. It certainly could affect your employment if you are convicted depending on the charge. You should speak with a lawyer.
Adding in 30.00 extra dollars for arrears. They also ordered me to contact Social Security to add her for auxiliary benefits. Between the 150 a month and half of my benefits comes to a total of 700.00 a month. At the hearing for child support, no financial statements were asked from either of us.... View More
answered on Aug 18, 2022
You need a lawyer to review the situation. It is not possible to answer your question with a better picture of the financials. If you cannot afford a lawyer, contact Maryland Legal Aid, website here:
https://www.mdlab.org/contact-us/
They have an office serving the lower Eastern... View More
answered on Jul 20, 2022
Self-represented litigants must obtain the paper form of the subpoena from the clerk’s office of the court where the case is pending.
https://www.courts.state.md.us/courtforms/uniformsubpoena
expenses apparently incurred 11 years ago. Is the statute of limitations to reduce the arrears to a judgment 12 years or is it 3 years like a contempt action?
I recently discovered through a DNA test that I have a son. His mother was married at the time to a real jerk of a man but was afraid to get a divorce. She told me she got an abortion and we broke things off. I lived the last 14 years not knowing she went ahead with the birth. My son was born in... View More
answered on Jul 2, 2022
You can file a petition to establish paternity. You say you're doing this for your son, but are you are really doing this for yourself? Your son has no idea that you exist or that the man he knows as his father is not his biological father. Have you considered the potential harm and... View More
I live in the state of maryland. My life went from perfect to miserable within months.
At the beginning of the year I was happily married with 2 beautiful kids in a new home equally owned between my wife and I. Fast forward to today my wife has moved in her boyfriend, she’s now pregnant... View More
answered on Jun 15, 2022
Asking questions is smart, but you will not get the answers you need this way. You need to retain an experienced divorce lawyer. Property division, child custody, child support, alimony and divorce in your situation will require a comprehensive sit-down and discussion, and the various options and... View More
answered on Jun 12, 2022
You need to consult a Puerto Rican lawyer of title agent. While the notarial seal of another US jurisdiction is likely to be honored, the jurisdiction where the land lies will have transfer rules, filing requirements, and tax protocols to follow.
We are not separated or divorced. I would like to know by law am I obligated to give him half of my pension in the state of maryland?
answered on Jun 10, 2022
Until a court orders you to give him any, NO. However, in the event a divorce case reaches trial before a Maryland judge, one of the issues a judge resolves is how to divide marital property in an "equitable" manner. Marital property includes pensions, to the extent you contributed and... View More
Daughters mother took a loan out to pay daughter college. Never asked or consulted me. There’s nothing in our paperwork saying I’m responsible to pay her college. Now her mother wants me to pay the loan.
answered on Jun 8, 2022
(1) Are you married to your daughter's mother?
(2) Are you divorced from your daughter's mother?
(3) Is there a marital separation agreement or any other type of signed agreement bewteen the two of you that provides for payment of college tuition, and if so, what exactly... View More
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