Divorce Legal Answers

After 19 years of marriage my husband and I are divorcing. He has already filed for the divorce and I am trying to determine if I need a lawyer to help me with the process. We have acquired a lot of property over the course of our marriage, including our home, several rental properties, some investment accounts, and several antique vehicles. If we cannot agree on how to divide everything, what things will a judge consider to determine how to divide this property between us? Will the fact that we’ve been married almost twenty years matter? Is it recommended that I have a lawyer for this process if we do have to go to court? I am Polish so if I do need a lawyer, I want to retain a Polish lawyer to represent me.

I’ve been married for 15 years and my wife has been verbally and physically abuse to me for most of that time. I’ve never abused her because I don’t believe a man should abuse a woman. I’ve stayed in the marriage for our two kids, who are 10 and 12 years old. I thought it was best for them to have their mom in their lives but I no longer think it’s good for them to see this type of behavior in the home. Is it possible to get a final divorce and full custody of my children based on the domestic abuse? Is there going to be some favoritism toward her because she’s the mom? If I am able to file for divorce and custody based on her behavior, what do I actually need to provide to the judge to prove the abuse?

My wife and I have been married 10 years and I have decided to pursue divorce. Part of the reason for the divorce is that she spends excessively and has incurred significant debts. I’ve tried to get her to stop but she won’t. She started hiding purchases from me and her credit card bills so I don’t know the total amount of the debt she has. Some of it was put on our joint credit cards before I realized what she was doing and closed those accounts. At one point she took one of my cards without my knowledge and charged on that. In the divorce, how will a judge determine a division of the debts? Could I be held responsible for any of the debts she’s incurred, even if I can show that I didn’t approve any of those purchases or give permission for her to use my credit card?

After 15 years of marriage my wife has told me she wants a divorce. I believe she has been unfaithful to me but I cannot prove it. For many years now, she has earned more money than me because I stopped my career to be at home more with our children when her career became more demanding. My employment field has changed dramatically and I would not be able to simply go out and get the same type of job I used to have. I would need additional training and possibly more schooling to get back to the pay grade I had before. We live in Richmond, will judges here actually award alimony to the husband? If they will, what factors will a judge consider when determining whether and how much to grant?