Limited Assistance Represetation (also called "unbundling" or "LAR") is a program that allows a lawyer to provide partial services to a client, limiting the attorney's representation to only a specific matter while the client mangages the remainder of the case. On May 1, 2009, the Supreme Judicial Court issued a press release that LAR is now permitted in all trial court departments in Massachusetts.
In Famly Law, this often means that the lawyer either assists in the preparation of court pleadings, but doesn't go to court, or agrees to only go to court for specific events. Limiting services in this way allows for greater predictability in the amount of time an attorney might spend working on your case. This predictability allows us to provide a flat fee for many family law related services.
The LAR program is an exception to the normal rules, in which attorneys file unlimited appearances and "ghostwriting" is frowned upon. Under the LAR program, "ghostwriting" (writing pleadings on behalf of a client who will present them without counsel) and limited appearances are permitted by the Supreme Judicial Court to give more parties the opportunity to have legal advice even if they cannot afford an attorney for their whole case.
The program requires that attorneys participate in a training for LAR in order to be eligible to provide these limited services. Attorney Kelsey participated in the required LAR training at the Norfolk Probate & Family Court, when LAR was only a pilot program, before it was expanded in May 2009, and is therefore certified to practice LAR. Contact us for a free one hour initial consultation to learn more about LAR and the flat fee services that we offer.
Showing posts with label Supreme Judicial Court. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Supreme Judicial Court. Show all posts
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Where you get Divorced matters! - British woman loses rights to £1.2 Million Pension
Every state (and every country) has standards for jurisdiction that decide whether or not you can bring a divorce case to their courts.
Where you can file for divorce is an important question because the laws of the state or county where you will file will control how your divorce case is resolved, and those laws can differ significantly. A British woman was recently denied access to file divorce in the United Kingdom courts because her and her Husband last lived together in France. According to The Daily Telegraph, this decision will result in her losing any rights she might have had to her Husband's £1.2m pension.
The laws can also differ greatly by state. In Massachusetts, for instance, the court can consider potential inheritance as an opportunity "for future acquisition of capital assets and income" and award alimony or assign property to one spouse or the other based on that consideration. In many other states inheritance or potential inheritance cannot be considered by the divorce court.
In order to know where you can file for Divorce consult with a local attorney in the jurisdiction in which you live.
In Massachusetts M.G.L. ch 208 §4 requires that to file a divorce case in the Commonwealth the parties must have lived together in the Commonwealth as a married couple, and at least one of them lived in the Commonwealth at the time the cause of the divorce happened. As an exception to this requirement, M.G.L. ch 208 §5 allows you to file for divorce in the Commonwealth if you have been a resident for one year, or if the cause of the divorce occurred in Massachusetts and you are currently a resident. Since the standard for a no-fault divorce is a subjective standard relating only to whether or not you believe your marriage is irretrievably broken down, the Supreme Judicial Court on an interlocutory appeal has ruled that if you lived in Massachusetts when you came to the realization that your marriage is over, that is sufficient for establishing jurisdiction to file for divorce in Massachusetts. Caffyn v. Caffyn SJC-09141 (2004).
If you have questions about divorce in Massachusetts schedule a 1-hour Free Consultation.
Where you can file for divorce is an important question because the laws of the state or county where you will file will control how your divorce case is resolved, and those laws can differ significantly. A British woman was recently denied access to file divorce in the United Kingdom courts because her and her Husband last lived together in France. According to The Daily Telegraph, this decision will result in her losing any rights she might have had to her Husband's £1.2m pension.
The laws can also differ greatly by state. In Massachusetts, for instance, the court can consider potential inheritance as an opportunity "for future acquisition of capital assets and income" and award alimony or assign property to one spouse or the other based on that consideration. In many other states inheritance or potential inheritance cannot be considered by the divorce court.
In order to know where you can file for Divorce consult with a local attorney in the jurisdiction in which you live.
In Massachusetts M.G.L. ch 208 §4 requires that to file a divorce case in the Commonwealth the parties must have lived together in the Commonwealth as a married couple, and at least one of them lived in the Commonwealth at the time the cause of the divorce happened. As an exception to this requirement, M.G.L. ch 208 §5 allows you to file for divorce in the Commonwealth if you have been a resident for one year, or if the cause of the divorce occurred in Massachusetts and you are currently a resident. Since the standard for a no-fault divorce is a subjective standard relating only to whether or not you believe your marriage is irretrievably broken down, the Supreme Judicial Court on an interlocutory appeal has ruled that if you lived in Massachusetts when you came to the realization that your marriage is over, that is sufficient for establishing jurisdiction to file for divorce in Massachusetts. Caffyn v. Caffyn SJC-09141 (2004).
If you have questions about divorce in Massachusetts schedule a 1-hour Free Consultation.
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