Minnesota Child Custody In Minnesota, there are two types of child custody: legal custody and physical custody. Legal Custody Legal Custody refers to the right to for making decisions in how to raise your children, including childcare, education, religious training and health care. The Court will presume that joint legal custody is in the best interest of your children, unless there is a finding of domestic abuse. Joint Legal Custody means that both parents will share the rig

This is one of the top misconceptions many people have. Many people believe that if the court orders your spouse to assume the responsibility for the mortgage payments, for example, the loan documents with the bank are also changed so your spouse is solely responsible for the debt. Whether it is a mortgage, credit card or some other loan, if your name is on the debt before the divorce, you will continue to be responsible for the debt after the divorce has been completed. Just

Although mediation is much less formal than court, the mediation process generally involves six stages. Each stage is designed to assist the parties to identify the areas in dispute and help them to reach an agreement. However, the stages of mediation do not necessary proceed in sequential order. Rather, the mediation stages may skip around depending upon the progress of the mediation. Here's what you can expect. First Stage of Mediation (Introduction): Typically, the mediati

Not necessarily. Courts are required to consider what is in the best interest of your child; and your child’s preference is just one of the factors that is used to determine what's in your child’s best interest. In fact, a child’s preference may not be considered by the court at all. "..your child's preference is just one of the factors used to determine what's in your child's best interest." A court will consider a child’s preference if the court, in its judgment, finds tha

This presentation was given to a group of Princeton Middle School students. #SurvivingBullying #HowABullyChangedMyLife

Just as important as what you should when served with divorce papers is what you shouldn’t do. That is because taking impulsive actions when you are feeling the emotions that accompany receipt of divorce paperwork can negatively affect your case. Although some items on this list appear obvious, it is a good reminder when you are upset. 1. Don’t threaten or hit the opposing party. Yes, it is obvious, but domestic violence happens regularly in instances where divorce papers a

Probate is a court process that occurs after someone dies. The probate process is subject to a series of laws and rules that direct how the probate is to be managed from beginning to end. A common misconception is that when an individual has a Last Will & Testament, probate is not required. However, this is not the case. In fact, a Last Will & Testament only provides instructions on how a person’s assets that are subject to probate are distributed and who is appointed to ad

Holding Real Estate as Joint Tenants There are a multiple different ways to hold title to real estate. If you hold title to a parcel of property as joint tenants, when one joint owner dies the surviving owner receives the full interest in the real estate upon filing an affidavit of survivorship along with a death certificate with the county recorders’ office or registrar of titles as the case may be. Establishing title to the property with a co-owner as joint tenants avoids t

In general, but subject to some exceptions, if you or your spouse make a transfer of property for less than fair market value in the five years prior to your application for Medical Assistance ("MA") (known as the “look back period”), you will likely be found ineligible for MA for long-term care services for at least some period of time.[i] The length of the ineligibility period in months is determined by dividing the total uncompensated value of the transferred property by

Usually, the probate proceeding is initiated in the county of the decedent’s legal residence at the time of their death. If there is a Will... The original copy of decedent’s will is submitted to court along with a petition or application to probate the will and appoint a personal representative. The will typically nominates a personal representative. If there is not a Will... If there is no will, a person with priority of appointment must submit a petition or application req