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Tag: Prenuptial Agreements

What Falls Under Family Law in Portland?

Life can get relatively complicated, but sorting out legal issues related to family law in Portland shouldn’t be something that is overly complicated. Finding the right representation for your issue is key, and at Warren Allen LLP, we provide the best and most solid legal counsel we can. Whether you’re looking to adopt and need some legal guidance through the process or you’re getting ready to tie the knot and want to discuss your options when it comes to prenuptial agreements, we can help. If you’re seeking a legal separation, an annulment to your marriage, or even a divorce, Warren Allen LLP is here to help.

For other issues, such as guardianship, conservatorship, or domestic violence issues, there is someone here who can help you sort through the process and the impending legal framework. For more information about what falls under family law in Portland, Oregon, please keep reading.

Children & Families

Relationships in a domestic setting take a lot of work. When things don’t go as anticipated and new situations arise, a competent attorney can help you and your loved ones navigate the path. If you’ve recently dealt with a divorce and now need to figure out custody and visitation, a legal representative can make sure that you’re securing the results that are best for you and your family.
For other issues that fall under the umbrella of children and families, you’ll find assistance with parenting plans, birth through three, child support, the enforcement of parenting plans, parental education, adoption, mediation, temporary orders, and supervised parenting time.

Divorce, Separation & Annulment

If you were recently married and you’ve realized that it’s not going to work out in the long run, and you’re within the required time period, you can sometimes get an annulment from the courts. A family law attorney can help you with this.

If you’ve been married long enough that you need to take a different course of action, you have the choice to either separate or divorce. A legal separation might be issued in the place of a divorce for a variety of reasons, including if one party wishes to remain on the spouse’s insurance plan, if there is a moral or religious reason not to divorce, if the minimum required residence (six months in the state of Oregon) hasn’t been reached yet, or if the parties don’t wish for a divorce but still do want legal help to split their property and debts, establish a parenting plan, and so forth.

Otherwise, the final option is divorce. Once the papers have been served to the receiving party, the respondent has 30 days to file a response. A divorce doesn’t have to be a long, drawn-out, or vicious affair. If both parties work together, including putting together a shared custody and parenting time plan if children are involved, the process can go fairly smoothly.

Guardianship & Conservatorship

If a person is incapable of managing their own care or legal affairs, or if a child doesn’t have a legal guardian, a competent and capable adult can petition to gain guardianship or conservatorship of that person. All people applying for this role must be up front with the court about their legal background, including if they have ever had a professional license canceled or revoked, if they ever went through a bankruptcy, or if they have ever been convicted of committing a crime. A court-appointed visitor will be assigned to the case and will be involved in the case to verify that all parties are adhering to their roles.

Because of the complexity of guardianships and conservatorships, it’s a good idea to get a lawyer who can help walk you through all the rules and laws around this topic of family law.

Prenuptials

Before getting married, a couple can outline and then legally put into place an agreement that outlines their plans for their property, their debts, and other legal rights that they acquire by getting married. There are traditional rules and laws related to marriage, but a prenuptial agreement gives more power to the couple to decide what they do and do not want relating to their marriage and their legal relationship. This is especially relevant if the marriage ends in divorce or death.

In simplest terms, it’s an outline of how the couple would like things to play out should something outside of their control happen in the course of or at the end of their marriage. Relevant topics in a prenup may include the division of property, retirement benefits, savings, and even spousal support. Having an attorney work through all of the legal processes related to prenuptial agreements makes the most sense for the couple involved, as they will need to file with the court and make sure that their agreement is deemed legal and valid.

Domestic Violence

Should things escalate and your safety become at risk, always get out and away and contact a first responder. Once you’re in a safe space and you’re in need of legal counsel on the issue of domestic violence, family law in Portland, Oregon, can help you in a handful of ways.

You can file a restraining order in the Family Abuse Protection Act (FAPA), get help through the Elderly Persons and Persons with Disabilities Abuse Prevention Act (EPPDAPA), or get a Sexual Abuse Protection Order (SAPO). If there are other issues, such as stalking, an Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO), or firearms restrictions, then there are family law firms that can help sort through the thick of some of these heavy topics.

There are many laws and rules that attorneys are versed in. Particularly when your physical, mental, or emotional well-being is in jeopardy, it’s best to have representation to make sure all the bases are covered and that you and your family are safe and secure. Attorney’s may also have other recourse and access to other resources to help protect you and those you love.
If you have questions or would like more information about family law in Oregon, contact Warren Allen. Our expert team can help you out.

What Services Are Offered By Family Law Firms in Portland?

Family legal issues are some of the most sensitive topics to discuss, as they are deeply personal and often extremely important. When you can’t come to an agreement within your family about legal matters, it’s often best to enlist the help of a family law firm. Family law firms in Portland, Oregon, can help guide you through those difficult times and help you to come to an agreement that’s in the best interests of you and your family.

Family law firms deal with a variety of issues that can arise within families, including divorces, child custody agreements, adoptions, and much more. With the help of family law firms such as Warren Allen LLP, you can feel at ease knowing that knowledgeable professionals are on your side. If you’re having legal issues within your family, you may be able to benefit from hiring a lawyer from a family law firm. Here are a few of the services offered by family law firms.

Prenuptial Agreements

If you’re considering getting married and want to come up with a way to protect your assets in case of divorce, a prenuptial agreement may be a good choice for you. A prenuptial agreement is a contract that two people sign prior to becoming a married couple. What the contract states will be unique to each couple, but it’s generally a signed contract that explains how their assets will be divided if they get divorced. This could cover topics like property ownership, spousal support, and financial assets.

When the couple signs this agreement, they will have a much easier process of divorce should they ever choose to end their marriage. One of the biggest conflicts that divorced couples have is agreeing on how they will split up the things that they own jointly, but with a prenuptial agreement, those decisions are already made.

When you want to create a prenuptial agreement, you’ll need the help of a family law firm. Family law firms in Portland, Oregon, will consult both parties on which things should be covered in their agreement. They will also be the ones drawing up the agreement and taking care of legalities.

Divorce

Not many people consider the fact that they may get divorced, which often leaves them unprepared when divorce becomes an option. People divorce for a variety of reasons, but most stem from having two people with different ideas for how they want the rest of their lives to go. When it gets to this point, it can be hard for those same two people to come to a mutual understanding about the things that matter most. This time can be intense for all parties involved, which often leads them to need a family law firm to act as a mediator.

A divorce lawyer at a family law firm in Portland can help you to figure out what happens next after you decide to get divorced. Having this third party can make conversations less confrontational and provide needed support in a time of stress and intense emotions. A family lawyer can also help couples come to an understanding before ever having to go to court. With an experienced law firm like Warren Allen LLP on your side, you can ensure that you get what’s fair after your divorce.

Child Custody Agreements

In divorces or separations where the couple has children, figuring out who gets what time with the children can be difficult. With both parties typically very emotionally attached, it can be impossible to come to a fair agreement without the help of a third party. These situations are also more likely to become confrontational. When you enlist the help of a family law firm, a lawyer will help you to fight for the time you want with your child and create a more professional environment to come to that conclusion.

Coming to agreements about child custody can cause enormous tension within families. This is especially relevant in cases where an agreement was attempted outside of the court and one party is failing to uphold that agreement. The benefit of going through a family law firm and drafting a legal agreement is that the law is on your side in the case that someone breaks that agreement. In your contract, there will be specific repercussions for not adhering to the rules of the contract. This helps to hold each party accountable. When dealing with child custody issues, going through a family law firm can be the easiest way to a solution.

Adoption

If you’re interested in expanding your family through adoption, a family lawyer can assist you in navigating the legal requirements. Adoption isn’t as easy as just wanting to bring a child into your home. You have to prove that you’re fit and sometimes be chosen by a birth mother.

Aside from having a lawyer to help you adopt successfully, they can also help you to understand your rights after the child is in your care. Some people run into situations where the birthmother rescinds her offer, there are undisclosed health issues, or a stillbirth occurs. Having a lawyer draw up documents that detail how these situations will be handled beforehand can protect you should any complications arise.

Paternity

If you need to prove the paternity of a child, a family law firm could be of assistance to you. Mothers often choose this route to legally determine the paternity of their child when the father is absent. This allows the mother to file for child support payments from their child’s father by showing proof that the child biologically belongs to them, despite their current role in the child’s life. The mother has a right to these payments, and hiring a lawyer will assist her in obtaining them.

Mothers aren’t the only ones who can benefit from hiring a family law firm to determine paternity. Fathers who are seeking custody of a child can use a family law firm to help them legally establish paternity and go after full or partial custody of that child. Having a family lawyer on your side can help you to understand your rights and speed up the process of obtaining custody.