» Divorce
Modification of Maintenance appropriate on Voluntary Retirement and Increase in Resources of Obligee; No entitlement to attorney fees just because of lesser income.
May 30th, 2016
Recent Case: Wife appeals Judgment of the Circuit Court modifying her spousal maintenance award and denial of attorney fees Statutes base maintenance on, and limit it to, need, and allow modification when a substantial and continuing change in circum…
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Spousal Support (Maintenance) Denied in Missouri Divorce
March 20th, 2016
Recent Case: Missouri Court of Appeals upholds Judgment denying spousal support when sufficient property is awarded Wife appeals from the trial court’s judgment that dissolved her marriage with Husband, divided marital property and marital debt…
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Child’s refusal to visit other parent no excuse to violate custody order; Parent held in Contempt
February 23rd, 2016
Recent Missouri Case: Parent responsible for violating the court order when child refuses to visit the other parent as required in the court ordered parenting plan Appellant D.R.P. (“Mother”) appeals the judgment of the Circuit Court of J…
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All financial resources can be considered for support, but parent must have some level of control over gifts and inheritances to count as income
February 3rd, 2016
Courts Bulletin: No financial resource is exempt from the court’s consideration for child support and maintenance calculation purposes. However, financial gifts from a parent or third party and lump-sum inheritances/financial gifts are considered a…
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Categories: Alimony / Maintenance, Assets and Debts, Child Support, Divorce, Family Law, Financial Issues, Modifications
Stock Split is Marital Property in Missouri Divorce
December 11th, 2015
Recent Case: Split of Stock awarded to spouse is property of that spouse Wife appeals the judgment of contempt of the Circuit Court of St. Charles County ordering her to transfer 960 shares of stock to Husband. Decision upheld Because the dissolution…
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Guardian Ad Litem recommendation not binding; Custody findings required; Property division must be fair, not necessarily equal
November 7th, 2015
Recent Ruling: Court not required to follow Guardian Ad Litem Recommendation, Specific findings under the 8 statutory factors required in Judge tried case Father appeals from the trial court’s dissolution judgment as to child custody and property d…
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Property division in Missouri divorce is final and cannot be modified
September 8th, 2015
Recent Case: Division of Property is final and non-modifiable in divorce proceedings. Statute enacted after the end of divorce case does not apply retroactively. In a recent case from the Missouri Court of Appeals, Wife appeals the trial court’s de…
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Domestic Partnership does not constitute marriage for termination of spousal support (aka alimony)
May 4th, 2015
Recent case: Missouri law states that remarriage terminates spousal support unless expressly agreed or ordered otherwise. Domestic partnership does not qualify for this purpose. Ex-Husband appeals the circuit court’s judgment denying his motion to…
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No spousal support (alimony) award that leaves paying spouse negative income
April 27th, 2015
Recent Case: Trial Court error in awarding Wife spousal support amount that left Husband with negative budget, Court must also consider Wife’s ability to contribute Husband appeals from the trial Court’s judgment awarding $1,000 in monthly mainte…
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Employer required to garnish child support
April 6th, 2015
Recent case: Employer is required by law to comply with child support wage garnishment orders from the Family Support Division The employer of a father ordered to pay child support appeals the trial court’s judgments in favor of the Department of S…
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Mark A. Wortman
Mark A. Wortman is a Missouri family law attorney who handles only divorce and family law matters within the state. Due to this specialty, Mark Wortman has handled thousands of Missouri divorce and family cases and has practiced extensively in front… Read More
