What is a Caregiver Authorization?

A Caregiver Authorization is an alternative to going to court for a guardianship of a minor. It is a form that allows a parent to give a Caregiver the power to make medical and education decisions for a child. A Caregiver is someone the child lives with who is not a parent.

A Caregiver Authorization is different from a Guardianship in a few major ways:

1. It does not give the Caregiver custody of the child, only the right to make decisions.

2. It does not take away any powers from the parents, and the parents retain final decision making authority.

3. A Caregiver Authorization can be revoked by a parent via letter to the caregiver.

A Caregiver Authorization is good for two years or until a parent revokes it.

For more information regarding why you would use a Caregiver Authorization and how to complete it read the Massachusetts Caregiver Instructions provided by the Court.

Click here to obtain the Caregiver Authorization Form.

The 15 Most Expensive Divorces

There is very little that the average person can say they have in common with celebrities. We don't get chased by the paparazzi, we don't have personal chefs or personal trainers, and we can't get lost in our homes. But when it comes to celebrity marriages, they are just as likely (if not more likely) to end up in divorce court. Of course, when a celebrity, CEO or media mogul gets divorced the financial scale of their marital estates is very different than the average divorce case.

Below is a graph of the top 15 most expensive divorce payouts, ranging from 80 million to 1.7 billion dollars:

Sources:
Wikipedia List of Most Expensive Divorces
The Telegraph Article: Tiger Woods: the world's top ten highest divorce settlements
Burns & Associates: Top 15 Most Expensive Divorces Of All Time

Why I Hope You Never Call When I Give You My Business Card, But If You Do, I'm Here to Help

At Kelsey & Trask, we deal with helping individuals through difficult transitions, whether it be through bankruptcy or debt relief services, or through a divorce or paternity case. Most people hire us for reasons that they wished did not exist. Our business is helping people through situations that they have always wanted to avoid.


When I hand out my business card, I usually tell the recipient that I hope that they never have to call. It is not that I don't want to help people through difficult transitions, it is because I hope that these difficult transitions are not necessary. If, God forbid, you are faced with such a transition, let us help guide you to the next chapter of your life.

And It's All Your Fault! MA "Fault" Based Divorce #3: Imprisonment

This "fault"-based ground for divorce goes hand-in-hand with a finding of "guilty" in a criminal matter, followed by a sentence of five years or more in prison. It is not the amount of time that is actually served, but rather what the sentence is that matters. Proving this grounds for a fault divorce is generally straightforward.

Interestingly, if after a divorce, the imprisoned spouse is pardoned for his or her crime(s), the marriage is not restored.

As with most grounds for divorce, there is no advantage over "no fault" divorce. Proving that a spouse has been sentenced to five or more years in prison is slightly more difficult than meeting the evidentiary burden required in a "no fault" divorce (only that one spouse is able to tell the court that his or her marriage is irretrievably broken down with no chance of reconciliation).