Amicable Divorce

I often have people come in for a consultation about an amicable divorce. They and their spouse agree that they want to keep the divorce amicable, and often they hope to be able to work out their own settlement between themselves (the "kitchen table" approach) without professionals. What makes me wo...
May 2, 2014

What is Imputed Income?

In Washington State, income may be imputed to a parent for purposes of calculating child support if the parent is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed (i.e. does not have actual full time income)....
April 18, 2014

Do You Want Your Divorce to Stay Out of Court?

Many people heading into divorce dread the prospect of ending up in a court battle. They don't want the acrimony or the finger-pointing, they don't want the long drawn-out process, and they don't want to make an enemy of their spouse, even if they aren't close anymore. There are actually a number...
April 4, 2014

Curious Questioning

Curious questioning refers to asking questions that really are open ended - not supposing any particular answer but rather trying to gather information that we are genuinely curious about. Very often when we ask questions, there are certain answers we are really looking for.  We may be trying to...
March 28, 2014

Can I File My Divorce in Washington?

I have had a number of questions lately about filing Washington divorces. The questions have generally been from people not currently residing in Washington, or newly arrived in Washington. Several have even been from people in same sex marriages who have moved to states that do recognize their marr...
March 20, 2014

Empathy in Divorce

An initial reaction is likely to be, "Why should I have any empathy for my divorcing spouse?" In fact, empathy is a skill that can help you better settle your divorce issues. Empathy is the ability to see things from the other person's point of view. When you can do that, you reach a better under...
March 14, 2014

Domestic Partnerships in Washington State

Domestic Partnerships were created in Washington State as a sort of marriage substitute. They are codified in RCW 26.60. To have a Domestic Partnership in Washington, you need to register the partnership with the state. To register a Domestic Partnership in Washington you must fall into one of two...
March 7, 2014

Pro Se Legal Services

On Tuesday I spoke at a Continuing Legal Education program on Pro Se Legal Services, also known as Unbundled Legal Services. I am hoping to inspire more attorneys to offer this type of service (all of the attorneys in our office do). I like to think of this as the a la carte approach to law. Typi...
February 28, 2014

Tips For A “Good” Divorce

While people generally do not refer to a divorce as a good thing, some divorces can go much better than others. A good article I saw recently is "Ten Golden Rules for a Good Divorce" by Dr. Constance Ahrons. I would tend to reduce these even further to three basic principles:...
February 21, 2014

What If I Can’t Afford A Lawyer?

It is no secret that lawyers are not inexpensive, and divorces are not cheap. While certainly we believe you will be better off with a lawyer on your side, there are some options if you need to keep expenses down....
February 14, 2014