Fox Law Firm Blog
Want to Move, But Have a Parenting Plan?
You want to move away from Kalispell, but you have a parenting plan. Where do you even start? A great place to start is with the letter of the law. In Montana, if you are moving and have a parenting plan, you have to start with Montana Code Annotated 40-4-217. I recommend that you click the link and read the statute. Pursuant to the statute, you need to file a motion to amend the parenting plan, and provide a new, proposed residential schedule. Your pleadings require special language, as set forth in the statute. Then, the other parent has...
My Approach to Family Law Cases
I wanted to get personal for a second, which is a departure from my normal blog posts. I want to tell you about my approach to family law cases. As a montana family law attorney practicing nearly 9 years, I have handled hundreds of montana divorce and child custody cases. That breadth of experience has allowed me to tailor my practice around several core principles: 1. Limited caseload - I have made it a core principle to limit my caseload so I can provide optimal attention to each one of my clients. I aim to return contact from clients...
Changing a Parenting Plan
Your Montana divorce is final, and you've moved forward in your life. You are co-parenting pursuant to your court-ordered parenting plan. But, a couple years down the road, you realize the plan just isn't working for your kids anymore. What do you do? Generally, you'll seek a parenting plan amendment. In my family law consultations involving parenting plan amendments, I always tell potential clients that there are two hurdles to obtaining a parenting plan amendment in Montana: 1) Pursuant to Montana law You have to prove that there has been a...
Stepparent Adoption
You'll hear from many lawyers that adoption is the happiest occasion that one can have in a court room, and I heartily agree. However, the process to get to that point can be more complicated if you are seeking a stepparent adoption. Stepparent adoption this is the number one adoption inquiry that I get. The first thing that has to happen to proceed with a stepparent adoption is for one of the biological parents rights to be terminated. If the biological parent agrees to the termination of rights, they sign a relinquishment of rights and the...
Family Law Mediation
In most jurisdictions in Montana the parties in family cases are ordered by the Court to mediate their case before they can proceed to a final hearing. In order to get the most out of your mediation, here are a few tips: 1. The mediator that you select is very important. There are not any hard and fast qualifications that a person needs to become a mediator. In order to pick a good mediator, ask others in your community who they have used and who they would recommend. There are almost always a few names that pop up again and again. Some...
Family Law Q&A – First Edition
I asked my Facebook followers to submit family law questions to me for a blog Q&A. All except one inquiry came in via private messenger. So as to not divulge anyone's personal information, I have shortened and simplified the questions I did receive, and I'll keep it to three at a time for each edition of Family Law Q&A that I do! 1. My spouse cheated on me, that means I will get more in the divorce, right? Nope. Montana is a "no fault" state. That means that people can divorce in Montana without proving that either party did something...
Parenting: What the Court Thinks
Based on my experience as a family law attorney, I can tell you what the Court thinks of how you are parenting during your divorce or child custody dispute. I have made you a basic list of "Do's and Don'ts" for parenting during your divorce, or during a child custody dispute. A few caveats: The things I am about to list are applicable to divorcing couples in a NORMAL parenting situation. These things do not apply in situations of abuse, neglect, criminal activity, etc. Another caveat - divorces and child custody disputes are REALLY hard on...
Collaborative Practice: A New Way to Divorce in Montana
Divorce has been happening for ages. You know the old story - the couple splits up, one party gets everything, everyone is miserable, the attorneys make off with the lion's share of the marital estate, The End! It does not have to be this way. While there are ways to avoid this scenario that do not have a special name, one of the best ways to avoid a bad divorce is to go the Collaborative Practice route. What is Collaborative Practice? Simply, Collaborative Practice is a process that takes place outside of Court and where everyone works as a...
The “D” Word
The "D" Word Divorce. Chances are that the word "divorce" did not even pop into your head on your wedding day. No one wants to end up here. But, here you are. While it is definitely one of the more difficult things you will likely go through in your life, it does not have to be as bad as you might think. First of all, you do not need a lawyer to proceed. There are a lot of resources for people who wish to represent themselves or cannot afford counsel (these people are called "pro se" in the law world). There are a number of forms you can look...