» Custody and Visitation
Court clarifies confusing child support statute pertaining to college course requirements:
August 24th, 2010
The Missouri statute that mandates the continuation of child support after age 18 if the child attends college was amended in 2007, and provisions were added that are somewhat contradictory. In a recent ruling by the Missouri Court of Appeals, the Co…
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Grossly disproportionate division of property and debts in a divorce proceeding reversed
July 31st, 2010
In a recent ruling by the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Southern District, a division of property and debt where the Wife received 93% of the assets and 27% of the debts, and the Husband received 7% of the assets and 73% of the debt was reversed…
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Recent Case: Termination Of Incarcerated Parent's Rights Reversed
February 8th, 2010
In a recent termination of parental rights case, the Court stated that statutory grounds of abandonment, neglect, and unfitness require clear, cogent, and convincing evidence. The Incarcerated parent’s diligent efforts at maintaining contact with c…
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Full Custody, Joint Custody, Sole or Split? Or maybe 50/50. What do I really want and what exactly do these words mean in Missouri anyway?
January 9th, 2010
In cases involving children, the Court must, either by agreement or by trial, set up some sort of custodial arrangement for the kids involved. There are many options available, all of which fit under a just a few legally recognized categories. There…
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Categories: Custody and Visitation, Divorce, Legal Separation, Marriage and Family, Modifications, Paternity
Parenting Plan that Vaguely Assigns Decision Making Responsibilities to Third Party Unenforceable.
October 19th, 2009
In a recent ruling by the Missouri Court of Appeals, in a custody modification proceeding, the trial court’s modified parenting plan delegated the authority to make all medical, educational, and extracurricular decisions for one of the parents’ t…
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Parent Relocation - Finding that Children Could Not Relocate Reversed
September 28th, 2009
In today’s highly mobile society, is is not uncommon at all for one parent to desire to relocate to another city or state. While Courts recognize that a parent cannot realistically be confined to one geographic location, the greater the distanc…
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Missouri Legislature passes Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA) and eliminates requirement that social security numbers be included in family law pleadings and judgments
June 2nd, 2009
Newly passed legislation will finally enact the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act as of August 28, 2009. Missouri was one of only three states that had not yet enacted the UCCJEA. This act will replace the current Uniform Child C…
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Categories: Child Abuse, Child Support, Custody and Visitation, Divorce, Legal Proceedings, Modifications, Paternity
Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA) wins approval in Missouri House
April 3rd, 2009
The Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement act (UCCJEA) may finally win approval in this year’s legislative session. The measure is part of the Omnibus Judicial Bill (HB 187) that was perfected by a voice vote in the House this week. Th…
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Parent Must Show Change In Circumstances Before Best Interests of Child, Statutory Factors, in Sole Custody Switch
September 22nd, 2008
Findings are not required under 452.375 (custody statute) where the trial court has determined that the party seeking to change a custody order has failed to satisfy the required burden of proof. The required findings under 452.376 do not come into p…
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What California's Same Sex Marriage Law Means to Missourians
July 12th, 2008
As most people know, the California Supreme Court recently ruled that the state’s ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. So what does that mean for Missourians? In California, there were two statutes that said that a marriage is between…
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Mark A. Wortman
Kansas City family law attorney Mark A. Wortman handles only divorce and family law matters, and practices only in the State of Missouri. Due to this specialty, Mark Wortman has handled thousands of Missouri divorce and family cases and has practiced… Read More
