Hollywood celebrity divorce — three words that guarantee must-see headlines and furtive pictures by the paparazzi. Recently, one celebrity couple took the high road during their divorce. Best known for playing the role of Rose in Two and a Half Men, Melanie Lynskey married actor Jimmi Simpson in 2007. The couple met on a television set in 2001. After separating…
A new study suggests older women are more likely to be widowed — and more likely to become divorced if they become ill. Getting older is hard enough. Dealing with the infirmities of age with a spouse is shown to increase health and well-being through the years. New findings presented recently at the annual meeting of the Population Association of…
For people concerned about privacy during divorce, knowing the safeguards and smart steps to protect your confidentiality are important. Divorce used to be considered dirty laundry but is now commonplace. Almost everybody knows someone with a divorce story to tell. The question is, who do you want to know your divorce story? In New York, general access to Family Court…
Does viewing porn affect attitudes toward extramarital affairs? A recent study says yes. Using the General Social Survey (GSS), an ongoing survey that measures societal attitudes, researchers looked at data provided by more than 500 married adults during the years 2006 and 2008. The study explored how viewing pornography might affect future attitudes toward extramarital affairs. Some key points of…
The Monroe County Supreme Court recently affirmed same-sex spouses are both parents to a child born during their marriage. The state of New York, when appropriate, seeks to legitimatize the parenthood of two people who are parents to a child of their marriage. In this case, the birth mother of a child born into a same-sex marriage sought to exclude…
Last Wednesday, the state Appellate Division found that a father’s spanking of his son “was a reasonable use of force.” The court overruled Suffolk County Family Court’s determination that the father had abused his son “by inflicting excessive corporal punishment.” NY Family Court defines an abused child as one whose parent or other person legally responsible for their care “inflicts…
Known as the heartthrob of the 1987 vampire flick Lost Boys, actor Jason Patric wants to be known as a dad to a child named Gus. Danielle Schreiber and Jason Patric were romantically involved for over a decade. Their on-again, off-again relationship included a period where they attempted to become pregnant but did not succeed. The couple ultimately broke up…
Are your romantic problems now your math problems? For women who are married and are marrying men with an ex-wife, they will be affected by the alimony situation that came out of his first marriage. Belinda Luscombe’s article in TIME magazine highlights the struggle between first wives and second wives. 1 The TIME magazine article follows Debbie Leff Israel, who…
On May 13th, the Court of Appeals of New York ruled that the Penal Law 240.30(1)(a) statute for Aggravated Harassment in the Second Degree is “unconstitutionally vague and overbroad”.1 This statute focuses on someone’s actions which have intent to harass, annoy, threaten or alarm another person. The Court looked to People v. Dietze where the Penal Law 240.25 statute for…
Many couples and families own beloved pets. The ties that bind humans to animals sometimes outlast those of human relationships. When that happens, sparks fly when one spouse decides Fido is leaving with him or her. In a recent survey, the American Association of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML), reported more than a quarter of its members noted an uptick in divorce…