Texas Divorce Attorney BlogIn a positively surprising ruling, a federal Court refused to dismiss a hearing where FedEx denied survivor benefits to a same-sex spouse. The Plaintiff is Stacy Schuett and she was in a committed relationship for 27 years with her spouse when they were finally married in a civil ceremony in Sonoma County in June of 2013. A day later, her wife, Lesly Taboada-Hall passed away after a long struggle with cancer. The deceased wife worked for FedEx for 26 years and was fully vested in her company’s retirement plan. It was not until six days after her death that same-sex marriage licenses were available in the state of California. At this time, the surviving spouse, Stacy Schuett, submitted a claim as a surviving spouse entitling her to her deceased wife’s pension plan, but FedEx immediately denied her claim because they said she did not meet the definition of “spouse.”
How Sexually Transmitted Diseases Affect Divorces in Texas
By now we are sure everyone has heard the headlines about Charlie Sheen having HIV after he announced it on the Today show last week. Being a divorce attorney, the first thought that came into my head was how mortified his ex-wives Brooke Mueller and Denise Richards must have been after his revelation. In his interview on the Today show, Sheen mentioned that people had been blackmailing him for years threatening to leak the information. Since he couldn’t afford to keep his disease a lie anymore, he disclosed it on live T.V. so the threats would stop.
Now the new threats have arrived- his ex-girlfriends (some who happen to be prostitutes) are claiming they want to see criminal charges brought against him for failing to disclose that he was HIV positive prior to having intercourse with them. Sheen claims he was diagnosed four years ago, but his former girlfriends claim he had symptoms of HIV prior to that time and therefore must have known. According to certain ex-girlfriends, he only used lambskin condoms which only prevent against pregnancy and not STDs. Since these women were not married to Sheen, their relief will come in criminal or civil suits, but what if you’re married and living in Texas and your husband/wife gives you a sexually transmitted disease? Is it grounds for divorce?
Kaley Cuoco and Ryan Sweeting Split, Short Term Marriage
If you’ve read the gossip tabloids today, you probably know now that Kaley Cuoco, actress from The Big Bang Theory and Ryan Sweeting, a pro tennis player, have recently decided to end their 21- month marriage. Apparently things were getting rough for the couple who had only dated 3 months before tying the knot. To read more about the split on Glamour Magazine, click here.
This short-term marriage is not uncommon. The Atlantic recently wrote an article entitled The Divorce-Proof Marriage, which discussed how factors such as income, length of dating and even how many people attend your wedding affect your likelihood for divorce. They discuss that “a strong marriage, is an intentional one,” not one that is done without thinking beforehand. The article deconstructs a study conducted at Emory University demonstrating that couples who date more than a year before marriage are 20% less likely to end in divorce, and marriages after three years of dating, 39% more likely. Of course, we have to think that age is also a huge factor among other circumstances, but length of dating before marriage is definitely key. It is very common for our clients to mention that a lack of ‘getting to know’ their partner before marriage led to many surprises after marriage –which ultimately brings them to our doors.
Temporary Orders Allow Kelly Rutherford’s Children to Come Back to the United States
For any of you Gossip Girl fans or parents of Gossip Girl fans, you probably remember Serena van der Woodsen’s mother, Lily van der Woodsen. Her real name is Kelly Rutherford, and her life is just as dramatic as the scenes of the popular TV show.
Rutherford’s marriage to Daniel Giersch in August 2006 has led to all sorts of personal trouble for her. They had their first son Hermes in October 2006. In 2008, she was pregnant again with their second child, but ended up filing for divorce from Daniel in December of the following year. Their child, Helena, was born a few months after the date of filing. Since then, Kelly and Daniel have been in a seriously heated custody battle. Things took a major change in the divorce suit when in April 2012, Kelly’s attorney allegedly leaked information concerning Daniel’s improper business activity in the United States…which got him deported. Custody win for Kelly? Think again.
Bobby Flay Cheater Banner- Genius Strategic Move or Complete Mistake?
By now, I’m sure most of you have heard about what happened to Bobby Flay at his Hollywood Star celebration. For those who have not heard, Bobby Flay was graced with the presence of a jet with a “CHEATER” banner while laying down his Hollywood Star. We can only imagine how embarrassing that was for him. Yikes. Since he filed for divorce from his wife in April, most people are blaming Stephanie March- thinking she is the mastermind behind the act. Let’s assume she was for discussion purposes- is this a great strategic move by her attorneys, or a big mistake?
When you file for divorce in Dallas County, Collin County, or Denton County, your Original Petition for Divorce (the first pleading you file requesting a divorce) must have attached to it what the Court calls standing orders. These orders enjoin (or restrain) any party who has filed or served with the petition from committing certain acts.
Twins With Two Different Dads, Not Impossible
It’s called superfecundation– while fertile, if a woman sleeps with two men during the same fertility cycle, she can conceive twins from two separate fathers. This is not very common, but it is not impossible. 1 out of every 13,000 cases involving twins involves superfecundation.
In New Jersey, a woman tried to collect child support from a man she believed to be the father of her twins. She was right, but only half right. DNA Test Results proved he was only the father of one of the twins, but not the father of the other.
KEYSHAWN JOHNSON GETTING DIVORCED LESS THAN ONE YEAR FROM DATE OF MARRIAGE
Many clients come to our law firm extremely worried that the second they get married, their spouse is automatically entitled to half of their wealth- regardless of the duration of the marriage or when they acquired their wealth. As reported in the news, Keyshawn Johnson is getting divorced from his wife after only 7 months of marriage. Does this mean he has to give up half of his entire wealth? The short answer is no.
Division of property in Texas divorce suits is not 50/50 – Texas law reads that there shall be a just and right division of the property. Yes, most Courts believe that should look something like a 50/50 split, but that does not mean that has to be the case. There are numerous factors outlined in the Texas Family Code that can sway a property division one way or another.
So let’s use Keyshawn Johnson as an example- He was married 7 months. Absent a finding of common-law marriage in Texas, his wife would only be entitled to half of any income accumulated during the time of marriage- in this case 7 months. Any money Keyshawn Johnson earned prior to marriage is his separate property and not considered in the property division. But, it is important to note that Keyshawn Johnson would have the burden to prove by clear and convincing evidence that any asset he wishes to exclude from a property division is indeed separate in nature.
Spouse Cannot Use Texas Law to Seize Federal Survivor Annuity Benefit
Many of you may know about ERISA, but for those of you who do not, here is a quick run down:
ERISA is the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. It is a federal law that sets minimum protective standards for almost all voluntarily established pension plans in the private sector.
Just recently, the D.C. Circuit Court held in Vanderkam v. Vanderkam that ERISA preempts a party’s attempt to use state law to seize a benefit that federal law has vested in a spouse or former spouse entitled to a survivor annuity. ERISA usually bars alienation or waiver of a spouse’s survivor annuity unless the spouse waives the annuity in writing in conformity with section 205 of the content and timing rules of ERISA. This may sound confusing, so let me give some background on this issue…
John Vanderkam was employed by a corporation and was a participant in the pension plan. He married the defendant, Melissa Vanderkam in 1984 and designated her as a 100% beneficiary of his joint and survivor annuity of his pension plan, paid upon his death. John retired in 1994, at which time the survivor annuity vested in Melissa while John began to receive his monthly benefits from the pension plan. In 2002, John and Melissa divorced. This is where it all gets tricky… Continue Reading ›
Camille Cosby- To Divorce or Not to Divorce, that is the Question
In light of the recent rape allegations against Bill Cosby, many are wondering whether Camille Cosby, his wife, will be filing for divorce. Bill Cosby married Camille in 1964; they have been married 50 years. Her and Bill had five children together—both her and the children were the storylines for the famous NBC series “The Cosby Show.” Over time, their marriage has taken some rocky turns, but has surprisingly outlasted the obstacles, at least until now.
You may remember when Bill Cosby admitted he had an extramarital affair with Shawn Berkes after having being blackmailed by an alleged daughter, Autumn Jackson, in 1997. A few years after, in a 2000 interview with Oprah Winfrey, Camille mentioned that the reason she had not gotten divorced was because, “You cleanse yourself of all of that baggage, and you look at each other and determine whether the relationship is worth salvaging, whether you really love each other and want to be together.” Although Bill had been accused of sexual misconduct in the past, it would be a shock if the revival of the rape allegations would not end in divorce. One thing is cheating, another is rape.
Are Prenups Worth It?
The short answer is “yes.” Texas Courts tend to enforce prenuptial agreements and postnuptial agreements. Section 4 of the Texas Family Code states that Courts should enforce marital agreements unless the party trying to invalidate the agreement can prove the following:
- The party did not sign the agreement voluntarily; or
- The agreement was unconscionable when it was signed and, before signing the agreement, that party: (a) was not provided a fair and reasonable disclosure of the property of financial obligations of the other party; (b) did not voluntarily and expressly waive, in writing, any right to disclosure of the property or financial obligations of the other party beyond the disclosure provided; and (c) did not have, or reasonably could not have had, adequate knowledge of the property or financial obligations of the other party.
Should you stand to inherit family money, you should know that any inheritance is your separate property. So, your spouse is not entitled to any funds you have inherited or were gifted from your family whether before or after marriage. However, a prenup is still encouraged. The reason being is that should you make income off your inheritance, invest into your community estate, or comingle inheritance with your community income or estate, your spouse will be entitled to a portion of the money- especially if you cannot trace your separate property funds.