Articles | Seattle Divorce Services

Spouse Baiting

Mark Alexander writes: During a divorce, your spouse or the other attorney may say or do outrageous things to goad you. Some people deliberately “push your buttons” to cause an uncharacteristic response, inviting you to sink to their level. To the extent they succeed in provoking an emotional...

What is a Parenting Plan?

If you are divorcing and have children under 18, a parenting plan is a handy tool that is required by courts. You and your spouse, or former spouse, can use the parenting plan as a guideline for responsibly sharing parenting responsibilities. A parenting plan is a way for both parties to come to...

Extended Hours

In order to better serve clients, Seattle Divorce Services has recently added the option to schedule a consult outside of regular business hours by special arrangement. Attorney Mark Alexander will have a limited number of early morning appointments available. Attorney Mimi Buescher is scheduling...

What are Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements?

Prenuptial and postnuptial agreements are legal agreements made before or shortly after marriage when couples determine their rights and responsibilities related to property and debts. A prenuptial agreement is signed before marriage, while a postnuptial agreement is signed after marriage. In gen...

Dividing Retirement Benefits

Because Washington is a community property state, any asset acquired during the marriage is presumed to belong to both spouses, regardless of whose name it’s in. That includes wages and employment benefits as well as houses, stocks, and cars. Transferring all or part of tax-deferred retirement bene...

What am I Entitled To in a Divorce?

In a divorce, the judge is charged with dividing marital property in a fair and equitable way. What's considered fair and equitable depends on the unique circumstances of each party, so there are a wide variety of possible outcomes regardless of what you expect you are entitled to. During a divor...

Can I Fill Out My Own Divorce Papers?

"Can I fill out my own divorce papers?" On another blog, Mark Alexander of our office responded to this common question: You are certainly allowed to, and virtually all the Washington State forms are available online. However, they are bare-bones forms, which were designed to ens...

Theories of Fairness

I was recently discussing "fairness" with another divorce lawyer. He explained the concept that there are four different theories of fairness: they are based respectively on Law, Equity, Needs, and Belief. Fairness based on Law is what we think of most often when we negotiate settlements in divo...

How Long Does Spousal Support or Alimony Last?

Divorce laws vary state to state but in modern times the idea of lifetime alimony is becoming less frequent, especially when families have both parents working outside of the home. Still, spousal support can be awarded in a divorce when there is a large income disparity between spouses – in addition...

Handling Your Finances During a Divorce

Divorce is not only an emotional split, it's also a financial one. It pays to know your financial rights and responsibilities before you divorce. Divorce can be financially devastating, so there are things to keep in mind before you divorce. Don’t be left in the dark. A Daily Finance article H...