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The Valuation Dilemma

The most contentious business issue in many divorce proceedings is the value of the business that must be divided as part of the divorce settlement. Valuation is an inexact science, and the divorcing couple can easily spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on expert and legal fees battling it out over the value of one or more private companies included in the marital estate. This challenging issue is not subject to any easy fix. But there are some options the couple may want to consider before engaging in an expensive and time-consuming valuation battle.

Marital settlement agreements are common documents used to mitigate problems with divorce litigation.  While a pre-nup is more common, couples can also agree to enter into a post-nup that details a property division and removes any conflict regarding the valuation of specific assets. Texas statutes set forth strict requirements to follow for marital agreements be enforceable.

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childrenPsychological evaluations of children are confidential.  A recent case has come down in California that enforces the idea of confidentialty and the importance of keeping information gotten from a investigation secret.  All of this comes from the importances of keeping our children safe from attorneys and the divorcing parties or child custody litigants who are so angry with each other that they will do anything to destroy each others reputation and credibility.
Sadly child custody investigations are really a result of the vicious lawsuits that are filed blaming the other parent of atrocities worse than warfare.  The lack of civility has created an area of family law that has become so often used and abused by litigants that we lose site of our children and their needs and concerns.  We forget they are lost in the craziness of the parents and their vicious accusations upon one anther without any merit usually.
“Confidential information contained in a report prepared pursuant to Section 3111 that is disclosed to the licensing entity of a child custody evaluator pursuant to subdivision (a) shall remain confidential and shall only be used for purposes of investigating allegations of unprofessional conduct by the child custody evaluator.”  This means that the legislature of the State of California takes the child custody investigation so serious that the actual evaluator is held up to a very high standard of confidence about their report. The protection of the children or child is so high that any release of any information will be dealt with as the utmost breach of trust by the Court of Law. This results again from the seriousness of the child custody litigants who are foaming at the mouth to deface the other parent at any cost.  They will do whatever it takes to take down the sanctity of parenthood and any good the other parent might offer the children.  It just doesnt matter anymore the gloves are off and the boxing match starts.
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facebook-and-instagram-imageSocial media influences everything these days, from pop-culture to even divorce. To elucidate this point, simply try to find one person in your family, or among your friends, or peers at work that does not have a Facebook account. It is everywhere, unavoidable, and ineluctable. The courtroom is not immune to its presence either. When divorce is involved, the question of electronic evidence, and social media evidence, in particular, comes into play in various ways. Modern relationships fall hazard to the sometimes illicit goings-on of spouses that end up publicized for all the world to see.

Attorneys have to account for these modern times and the Facebook or Instagram posts.  Instagram has become the new forerunner of posts into the personal lives of parties.  People must become aware that once a divorce opens up on Court the social media accounts become public record.  That is to say that they provide an instant insight into happenings of the parties real personal lives and their true feelings about one another and what they are hiding from the divorce proceedings and the court.

The numbers don’t lie here. Social media is affecting relationships and being brought to bear on divorce litigation in serious and important ways. For a lawyer to effectively use (or defend against) social media evidence in a divorce case, he or she needs to understand both the ramifications of admitting such evidence and the legal precedent therein.

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beckThe Singer Beck and his wife of 14 years have decided to call it quits and get divorced after a 14 year marriage.  The pop star decided it was over after Valentines day this year and gave her the news. Beck is a practicing Scientologist so it adds a twist as to how the two children will be raised post split up.  In child custody cases religion can be a major source of conflict on raising the children. This might create a high conflict child custody dispute. The two children are eleven years old and 14 years old.  Becks wife is Marissi Ribissi who is the brother of Giovanni Ribissi.

In addition, Beck is actively involved in movie projects which could effect the division of divorce property for the two exes. Movie project residuals will cause a dispute among Hollywood A listers when they get divorced. Earlier this week, Beck released a song called “Super Cool” for the soundtrack of “The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part.”

Beck has won seven Grammy’s in his career, including Album of the Year in 2015 for “Morning Phase.” He won two at this year’s awards: Best Alternative Music Album and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical.

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In June, Kentucky will become the first state to require a presumption of equally shared parenting in child-custody cases even when one or more parents is opposed. While it’s common for states to prefer joint custody when both parents are amenable, Kentucky’s presumption will apply even without divorcing parents on board. This is a major breakthrough in developing a parenting plan that is often difficult and expensive to come by in family law Courts in California and across the United  States.

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin signed the measure in April, declaring that judges must presume “that joint custody and equally shared parenting time is in the best interest of the child” in almost all divorce cases. Last year, Kentucky required the same presumption for temporary child-custody cases while divorce is pending. Again, for a state to implement such a broad and powerful message to family law courts across America and Kentucky is quite outstanding.  Custody is often so tumultuous to fight in court that to add a presumption of 50/50 without any fighting in court is really setting a different type of  family law custody standard now.

Exceptions exist for situations “involving an incident of domestic violence within the preceding three years” or where “there has been a domestic violence order entered” or being entered. Obviously when there is violence the joint  custody presumption must be sidelined in order to keep the child safe from any potential violence or abuse.

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Married at First Sight” star Nate Duhon last week filed to divorce Sheila Downs, whom he met and married last year at the Palmer House Hilton as cameras rolled for the Lifetime network series. What is not stated about divorces is that getting married can be very easy and without any complications.  However,  getting divorced can be very complicated and very difficult.  The fun out of the married and whats next a divorce.  This is what is sounds like occurred to the couple on the  Chicago season of Married at First Sight.  Im not sure how well the contestants knew each other  before  they got married.  But from the looks of it they probably did not know each other very well

Duhon, 26, cited irreconcilable differences in his Nov. 14 filing in Cook County court. Downs lives in Arlington Heights, while Duhon has moved back to his home state of Michigan, court records show. Downs and Duhon, who both did not respond to a Tribune request for comment, are the second “Married at First Sight” couple from Season 5 to split.

 Apparently Duhon was not the first contestant to seek a divorce on this show as Genoa native Cody Knapek filed for divorce from Chicago dietitian Danielle DeGroot on Sept. 26. That case is expected to be heard in court Wednesday.
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It has come to the attention of the public that the ongoing divorce saga of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie has made a very interesting turn on the part of the Brad Pitt. It was revealed that Pitt and Jolie have a $400 million divorce.  It has become apparent that Brad Pitt has seriously tried to settle the divorce from Angelina Jolie. He does earn more than her however she does earn a substantial amount of money as well. However, during long term marriages in California both parties have to maintain the standard of living they had lived during the marriage.  Therefore Brad Pitt after having consulted his lawyer probably decided to make an initial offer to Angelina in a show of good faith.  However Angelina turned down Brad’s divorce settlement offer. “Brad basically told his attorney to give Angie whatever amount of money she wants to settle the divorce, even though they have a prenup,” an insider tells us, adding “he is willing to give her half” of his $250 million fortune. Having a prenuptial agreement is a strong position for Brad Pitt to be in under these circumstances where he might have earning more money than Angelina.  However, I think Brad is not holding fast to a document that will dictate how his finances are disbursed during a divorce.  He is definitely taking the high road. He is also thinking about how Angelina needs to live and how she lived during the marriage.

But despite his generosity, Angelina, 42, won’t take it. “Angie has rejected every single monetary settlement offer,” says the insider, adding that she’s also continued to push back on his efforts to gain more custody of their six kids, Maddox, 16, Pax, 13, Zahara, 12, Shiloh, 11, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 9.  Herein lies the problem with settling the divorce.  If Angelina is holding tight to keep Brad out of the children’s lives it could be a long and drawn out divorce that might not have an immediate end as to an entire divorce judgment on all issues.  There might be a reservation on certain issues that will be litigated in the future if need be.

“He isn’t trying to buy Angie off and couldn’t care less about how he is perceived in the public eye when they do come to an eventual settlement,” says the insider, explaining that after weathering a child abuse investigation last year (he eventually was cleared of any wrongdoing) and publicly confessing that he’s struggled with alcohol issues for years, Brad, 53, feels he has nothing left to lose. “Brad’s motivation is first and foremost the kids,” insists the insider. “Giving Angie a substantial chunk of his fortune will give the kids the quality of life they are used to with no changes.”

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The best time to get married is when you feel ready, and when you’ve found someone you think you can spend a lifetime with. Don’t force anything — or put it off — because a study told you to do so.  There are many criteria that  go into getting divorced.

That said, research does suggest that couples who marry in their teens and couples who marry in their mid-30s or later are at greater risk for divorce than couples in their late 20s and early 30s. The risk is especially high for teenage couples.

When the researcher, Alexandra Killewald, looked at heterosexual marriages that began after 1975, she learned that couples in which the husband didn’t have a full-time job had a 3.3% chance of divorcing the following year, compared to 2.5% among couples in which the husband did have a full-time job.

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GREENSBORO – Children’s Home Society of North Carolina is announcing an expansion of a statewide program to find permanent homes for older children in foster care during National Adoption Month.

Children’s Home Society will also be providing the expanded child-focused recruitment program at no cost to county social services agencies across North Carolina. This is done in partnership with the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, Wendy’s Wonderful Kids and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Division of Social Services.

“Older youth who are adopted are more likely to finish high school, go to college, be employed and lead more stable lives than those who age out of foster care with no permanent family,” Sharon Barlow, Director of the Division of Children’s Services in Guilford County, said. “We know that being connected to a family makes a life-long difference.”

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Hollywood certainly loves iteration. But let it be said that there can never be too much of a good thing. When sequels and multiple marriages mix, things get complicated. Indeed, it’s a recipe for legal action.Take Blade Runner as an example. The original 1982 sci-fi classic about an ex-cop hunting “replicants” was co-executive produced by Bud Yorkin, best known for TV shows like All in the Family and Sanford and Son. When Blade Runner came out, he was married to Peg Yorkin. The two got divorced in 1986, and as is customary, they divided assets. A 50 percent share of Bud’s interest in Blade Runner was part of the divorce decree.So what about Blade Runner 2049, the critically acclaimed sequel now out in theaters? Is Peg getting anything? Turns out, she probably will be thanks to an arbitration award, which has now landed in open court.In 1989, Bud married a second woman — Cynthia Yorkin. In the 1990s, Bud and Cynthia became interested in selling derivative rights in Blade Runner so that a sequel could be made. To accommodate such efforts, Peg agreed to reduce her own interest in Blade Runner Derivative Holdings, Llc., from 25 percent to 15 percent. But there was a condition. If a sequel to Blade Runner came, and if a producing services agreement was entered into for this sequel by a member of Bud’s immediate family, she’d be entitled to 25 percent of any contingent compensation payable under that deal.Peg’s lawyer at the time was careful. According to court papers, to protect against a deal for a Blade Runner sequel being structured in a way that denied her benefits — i.e., cash that would have otherwise been for the purchase of derivative rights diverted to a producer’s fee — Bud and Peg agreed to a different compensation structure in the event of a producer services agreement that wasn’t “bona fide” and “customary.”That ended up coming up once Alcon Entertainment paid $11 million to purchase the derivative rights to Blade Runner and then went about getting Blade Runner 2049 made.Bud Yorkin, who died at the age of 89 in 2015, and Cynthia Yorkin (also known as Cynthia Sikes) both became producers on Blade Runner 2049. They got fixed compensation, not contingent participation, so the question arose whether their arrangements amounted to a non-customary, disguised rights payment.
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