If you are facing a divorce, one of the major issues that needs to be settled is the division of marital assets. All assets that are part of the marital estate are supposed to be divided in a fair and equitable manner. But what if some of these assets are missing? If a spouse has been thinking about getting a divorce for a while, they may have already taken steps to conceal the existence of various assets so they Read More
Should I Get an Annulment or Divorce in SC?
When spouses want to dissolve their marriage, there are a couple different options; divorce or annulment. South Carolina allows annulments under limited circumstances, and in a large number of cases, divorce (or legal separation if you do not currently have grounds for divorce) will be the only options. What is an Annulment? While divorce dissolves a valid marriage, an annulment terminates a marriage that was Read More
Common Law Marriage Abolished in South Carolina
What does the Ruling Mean for Cohabitating Couples in the State? On July 25th, 2019, the South Carolina Supreme Court issued a monumental decision abolishing common law marriage in the Palmetto State. This ruling applies to all common law marriages that would have been established on or after the date the decision was handed down (7/25/2019). Those that existed before this date can still be validated, although Read More
Do I Need a Lawyer for an Uncontested Divorce in South Carolina?
No, you do not have to have a lawyer if you and your spouse are filing for an uncontested divorce in South Carolina. However, it is highly recommended that you seek the advice of a qualified family law attorney in all divorce cases. There may be some issues that you have not considered, and it may turn out that you are eligible for alimony/spousal support or certain property that you did not realize you were entitled Read More
Preparing for Divorce Part 7: Make a Plan for the Rest of Your Life
In our series on preparing for divorce, we have talked a lot about finances and dedicated several posts to this subject. This is because your financial life is extremely important, especially when you are going through a divorce. With two households to support on the same overall income, most people see a significant drop in their net income once the process is finalized, and you will need to form some new habits to Read More
Preparing for Divorce Part 6: Prepare a Post-Divorce Financial Plan
We’ve talked at length about finances in our previous two posts on preparing for divorce, and in this installment, we are going to wrap up our discussion about economics by focusing on your financial plan going forward after the divorce is over. We touched on this in Part 4 of our series when we talked about creating your post-divorce budget, but your financial life is much more than just tracking your income and Read More
Ruth Cate Receives Women United Leadership Award
Spartanburg attorney Ruth Cate has received the Women United Leadership Award from the United Way of Piedmont. This award is given to honor the achievement of an outstanding woman leader whose accomplishments are matched by her commitment to philanthropy. Women United is a group within the United Way of Piedmont that is dedicated to connecting, engaging, and inspiring women to transform the community. Comprised of Read More
Custody and Moving Out of State: What Rights do Non-Custodial Parents in SC Have?
When two parents do not live under the same roof, one of the parents usually has primary custody of the child. In most cases, this means that the non-custodial parent has visitation rights, which could be something like every other weekend with the child, rotating holidays, etc. This arrangement can work well as long as the two parents live close enough to each other that traveling to pick up and drop off the Read More
Preparing for Divorce Part 5: The Role of a Financial Advisor
In Part 4 of our series, we turned our focus to finances, discussing the importance of creating a pre and post-divorce budget. Budgeting can be a tedious task, and many people feel like it puts too many constraints on what they are allowed to do financially. In reality, a budget puts you in much greater control of your finances, and it is one of the best tools for helping people get through tough financial times, Read More
