Divorce and Separations Contested and Uncontested
We understand divorce can be difficult. Between all of the emotions that go into ending a marriage and the financial strain that splitting your assets and debts can cause, we know it is important to hire a lawyer with experience. At Patrick Law Group, we want to help make sure your divorce goes as smoothly as possible.
Just as every marriage is different, every divorce has its own complexities and subtleties. It is important to hire a divorce lawyer who will treat your divorce and situation uniquely. Whether your divorce is in need of a courtroom settlement with a judge, or you are splitting amicably through mediation, we provide you and your family with personalized service. With our results-driven and family-oriented approach, you can trust we will work to get your family back on track and ready to move on.
Custody/Child Support Modifications
Child Custody
Ending a relationship is one of the most difficult things you may go through. Ending a relationship where kids are involved can make it even more difficult. It is important to make sure that your child's best interests are taken into consideration when deciding on a custody agreement. Whether you are facing a dispute in court or making decisions through peaceful mediation, it is important to hire an experienced child custody lawyer to represent you.
Supervised Visitation
Weekend Custody Arrangements
Holiday Alternation
Summer Vacations
School Enrollment Decisions
Child Support
It takes two people to make a child, but sometimes one parent is left covering the costs of raising them. If your divorce agreement didn’t have a child support clause, or if you never legally separated, you could be left paying for costs that should be shared.
According to UNICEF, raising a child costs $16,000 a year on average. Without help from the other parent, you may not be able to provide for your kids the way that you had hoped. We can help ensure that you can get financial help your children need.
Adoptions
Adopting a child can be a long process with hundreds of laws and legal hoops to jump through. Whether you want to adopt a child from a birth mother, foster care, or even internationally, Idaho law has specific requirements that are very difficult to navigate without the help of an adoption attorney. We aim to help make the process as smooth as possible for you.
Whatever your circumstances, we can help you navigate the complex adoption process. This includes:
Filing Initial Paperwork
Negotiating With Foreign or Interstate Agencies
Guiding You Through Open Adoptions
Assisting with Step-Parent Adoptions
Guardianship
When you file for guardianship over a person, you are creating a legal relationship where you can make legal and medical decisions on their behalf. You can file for guardianship over a child who is not your biological child but needs a guardian or you can petition to be a guardian over an adult who is not capable of making their own decisions.
We help you determine if a guardianship is likely to be granted. Examples include:
Children with incapacitated parents:
Sometimes parents are unable to make decisions for their children due to incarceration, drugs, legal rulings, or medical reasons. Filing for guardianship in a situation like this may prevent them from going into the foster care system.
Adults with developmental disabilities:
When an adult is unable to make their own decisions due to a disability, it is important that they have a legal guardian to care for them and make sure that they are getting proper care.
Temporary need for guardianship:
Sometimes, especially in the case of people with psychological disorders, people need guardians for a short period of time while they attend a mental rehabilitation program. Guardianship will allow you to care for their finances and make healthcare decisions while they get better, and the guardianship will expire once they are deemed able to care for themselves.
Paternity
Paternity in the legal sense could mean finding out who the father of your child is through a paternity test or it could mean holding the biological father financially responsible for the child.
Paternity law often applies to mothers who are not married to the father of their child(ren). While marriage is not required to have kids, legal matters, such as enrolling a child in school, can require action on behalf of the father.
We Are Here For You
Paternity law may also apply to a father who wants to be in the life of his child(ren). Establishing paternity can help strengthen their right to visitation and custody, even though they may not be married to the child's mother.
No matter what your paternity need is, we are here to help you:
- Accessing health insurance
- Ensuring a child's inheritance
- Obtaining child support
- Establishing custody
- Registering for social security benefits
- Getting your children citizenship
Contempt
When individuals fail to comply with court orders, they may be held in contempt of court. Various penalties can apply for violation of a court order.
Common family law court orders that people fail to comply with include:
- Failure to pay child support
- Failure to comply with parenting time/visitation schedule
- Failure to follow parenting plan
If you are facing accusations of having violated a family court order, you need to take appropriate steps to defend yourself and avoid the possible penalties. Having a skilled lawyer representing you can help ensure that you are able to achieve the best possible resolution to the situation.
Surrogacy
When traditional means of family formation are unavailable, we can advise you of the legal aspects of building your family through alternative means and collaborative efforts with your medical team, surrogacy or donor agency, donors, gestational carrier, the court, and state agencies. We draft egg, sperm, and/or embryo donor agreements for artificial insemination and/or in vitro fertilization; negotiate and secure judicial validation of gestational surrogacy agreements; and obtain any necessary confirmation of legal parentage from the Idaho Court.
