Even if you were the party who initiated the process, going through a divorce is often one of the most painful and stressful events in a person’s life. You must suddenly find a new way of living, split all assets fair and equally and, if you have children, make child support arrangements. Though most people set out to make their divorce as civil and stress-free as possible, the process often ends up spawning many disagreements. One of the best ways to work through a divorce in Massachusetts is mediation. This can be great for settling the division of assets and property. Mediation is a route that is used to come to agreements that work for both parties without the need of a lengthy courtroom process. When a divorce case goes to court, property division is placed in the hands of the judge. This judge, more often than not, does not know the divorcing parties on an individual basis. Property that is important to you might be lost. Going through mediation lets you have half the control over what happens to the property that you previously co-owned with your ex-spouse. The two of you will sit down together with a professional mediator and outline goals so that you can seek solutions. By the end of the mediation process, assets will be fairly divided in a way that both parties agree with. This removes a great deal of time and stress. If you are going through a divorce, mediation might be the

Prenuptial agreements by their nature may not be equitable in the same sense as separation agreement entered into upon a divorce. Massachusetts law as interpreted by its courts holds that one spouse relinquishing claims to the existing assets of a future spouse – even if those assets are substantial – does not necessarily mean that a prenuptial agreement is invalid on its face. Thus, it is possible for a prenuptial agreement to be one-sided in nature, and to leave one spouse in a position after the divorce that may be less than what he or she had during the marriage. Instead, the legal test of the conscionability of such an agreement is whether it strips the spouse contesting its validity of substantially all marital interests. The considerations underlying conscionability include whether either party to the prenuptial agreement engaged in fraud, or failed to fully and fairly disclose assets, or in some other way took unfair advantage the other at the time the agreement was executed. For many years courts in Massachusetts used the term “fair and reasonable” to describe the requirement that a prenuptial agreement should be fundamentally fair even if it is not as balanced as a separation agreement might be, but they now use the term “conscionability” instead. The drafting of a valid, conscionable prenuptial agreement, particularly when the prospective spouses are significantly unequal in the income and assets that they bring into the marriage, can be fraught with legal peril if it is done in a way

One of the biggest news stories in the past few weeks has been the unfolding story of the hack of Ashley Madison. Ashley Madison is a site on which married individuals can find someone with which they can have an affair. Though adultery is not illegal, it is typically regarded as a terrible act. With the hack, about 37 million people have been exposed as cheaters, including many in Massachusetts. Briefly, a group called The Impact Team threatened to publish the data they had gathered by hacking Ashley Madison unless changes were made. Specifically, they wanted the site to disable the “full delete” feature, which allows users to wipe away any trace of their presence on the site. Ashley Madison refused, and the data was released for public consumption. As such, many couples in Massachusetts will likely be looking for a divorce in the next few months as their partner is exposed is a cheater. It is important to understand exactly how adultery plays into the divorce process, especially when it comes to dividing assets. In essence, adultery is a valid reason to grant a divorce in Massachusetts. But, it has no bearing on dividing marital property. The only exception is if the unfaithful partner spend large amounts of marital money on the affair. Otherwise, the infidelity is disregarded. Anyone who is considering a divorce due to adultery or any other reason may benefit from speaking with an attorney. A divorce lawyer may be able to provide in-depth information and

In a Massachusetts divorce proceeding, property is divided equitably, based on each partner’s income and other factors. One piece of property is often overlooked, though: your pets. Of course, thinking of your pets as property may feel as terrible as putting your children in the same category. They are part of the family, after all. The courts understand this, and have created a sort of mixture of property division and custody when it comes to your dog, cat or other animal. If one partner does not want to give up the pet, it is possible to create a sort of co-ownership, including visitation rights and other aspects. But, just like in a co-parenting scenario, a co-ownership means both parties are equally responsible for buying food, providing healthcare and the like for your pet. But if one partner wants total ownership, things can get a bit tricky. It often comes down to separate versus communal / marital property. If the couple bought the animal together, this is often grounds enough for co-ownership. However, if one spouse brought the pet into the marriage, or received it as a gift, it could be argued that it is separate property and therefore not subject to shared rights. The “gift” aspect is often the most complicated, as it could be implied that one spouse bought it for the other with the notion that it would become marital property. Like any other kind of property division dispute, pet ownership can be complex. As such, it can