Beliveau Attorney's Blog | Waltham Attorneys| Salem, NH Lawyers

Know This Number!

Knowing your net worth and understanding how it is changing over time is one of the most important financial concepts that everyone needs to understand. This number is used by banks, mortgage companies, insurance companies and you! Your net worth impacts your credit score, which in turn impacts your interest rates and things as mundane as the amount you pay for auto insurance. A simple definition Net worth is the result of taking all the things

What’s in a Title? What Massachusetts Homebuyers Need to Know About Deeds, Titles, and Searching for Both.

Know Before You Buy When buying a home, especially if this is your first time, you may feel overwhelmed by all the new terms entering your vocabulary, terms which seem interchangeable to you but may have very different legal meanings. This is perfectly normal. In this article, we will set out for you the difference between a title and a deed in residential real estate sales. Additionally, we will cover the process of searching for and

Both spouses can share in gift from husband’s family

A recent South Dakota case makes clear that a gift to a married couple from one spouse’s family will count as a gift to both of them in the event of a divorce, even if the benefactor later claims he or she intended otherwise The case revolved around South Dakota land that had been in Dennis Ryland’s family since 1878, when his great-grandfather homesteaded it. Ryland had only one child, who had moved away from South

Mom can’t move kids away without court consent

A mother who wanted to move her kids 90 minutes from their father, who shared joint custody, couldn’t do so without the court reviewing the children’s best interests, a South Carolina appeals court recently ruled. The couple divorced in June 2014 and had joint legal custody and joint week-to-week physical custody of their two children. Neither parent paid child support, although the mother, who apparently earned more money, provided medical insurance and childcare costs. The order

Ex-wife can ‘claw back’ millions in hidden assets

When marriages go bad, feelings can be raw, making it tempting to want to hide assets to punish your soon-to-be ex. But if you get caught, the consequences can be severe, as a recent case shows us. The couple in the case, Robert and Janet Foisie, decided to divorce in 2010. They went to mediation, where they agreed to fully disclose and equally divide their assets. Robert also allegedly told Janet during mediation that he had

Court OK’s prenup-turned-post-nup

Prenuptial agreements are a useful way for a soon-to-be-married couple to protect assets they are bringing into a marriage. Essentially, these are contracts that lay out exactly what each spouse is entitled to (and obligated to) in the event of a divorce. If you and your soon-to-be-spouse are considering such an agreement, be sure to work with an attorney who can make sure it’s properly executed. Otherwise it may not be enforced, as nearly happened in

COVID-era divorce solutions could outlive pandemic

The Covid-19 crisis has impacted every aspect of life, including divorce. With courthouses closed to the public, divorcing couples have had to contend with technology solutions like Zoom for hearings and trials. This has made what’s already a challenging process even harder as participants deal with bad connectivity and sound, background distractions and getting documents to a judge that can usually be handed over in person. Nonetheless, Zoom and similar tech solutions have improved the process

When Does a Text Message Become a Contract?

Group Chats, Emoticons, and Breach of Contract: When Does a Text Message Become a Contract? New Technologies, Established Obligations New media and technology have transformed the way we do business as compared not only to twenty years ago, but even as compared to ten or five years ago. Emails, social media posts, and even text messages were important tools for marketing and negotiating before the COVID-19 pandemic upended the ways in which we conduct business. Now,

When To Use A Special Needs Trust

Special-Needs Trusts: An Overview of a Useful Estate-Planning Tool In planning one’s estate, one seeks to make one’s passing easier, financially, logistically, and emotionally, for loved ones. In planning for the future, you likely have given special consideration to loved ones who would not be able to provide for themselves if you were gone, such as minor children. While children eventually grow up, some conditions and disabilities that prevent a person from working or living independently

The Art of Bill Paying

Paying bills is an inevitable part of everyday life, but that doesn’t mean it has to be stressful. Here are some ways to get control of your budget and perfect the art of stress-free bill paying. Make a budget. Knowing what you are making and what you are spending is essential to proper bill paying. First, find out how much you are making every month and then subtract the static items such as rent or mortgage

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