Oklahoma divorce information

Owning a business makes you particularly adept at ascertaining risks, competition, technology, and potential supply demands. However, have you ever considered a divorce as a major risk to a business? 

Couples that start a family business are typically young when it begins while the value of the business is low. While 50 percent of marriages in the United States do not last, couples should be cautious when choosing to start a family business without proper procedures in place.

Often the couple will have most of their net worth invested in the family business because it is their biggest asset. This means a spouse will have to buy out the other during a divorce. Protecting your business through a divorce is essential for the business to continue operating profitably.

Temporary Orders

Before any decision is made concerning the family business, a spouse can bring a temporary order so that the business can continue to function and operate. This is to ensure one spouse does not operate the business in such a way as to devalue the asset in order to present a low buy-out amount to the other spouse.

Premarital and Post-nuptial Agreements

If you and your spouse had a family law attorney create a premarital agreement before your marriage, then the document should speak to how the family business is to divide upon divorce.

If you and your spouse cannot agree how to divide the business, a family court judge will. This document will protect your business from the court deciding how to divide an asset that is probably near and dear to your heart.

However, many couples do not begin the family business until after marriage, which is where both buy-sell agreements and post-nuptial agreements are used to protect a family business.

A post-nuptial agreement is similar to a premarital agreement. However, the agreement is created and signed after the marriage begins. The document has the same effect as the premarital agreement, the timing is the only difference. The post-nuptial agreement must be entered into voluntarily and both parties must understand their rights as described by their family law attorney.

Buy-Sell Agreement

A buy-sell agreement, also known as a buyout agreement, is a document that outlines the steps a business own must take if their business partner and co-owner dies or is forced to leave the business.

Typically a buy-sell agreement should be constructed requiring two elements.

First, the buy-sell agreement should require the former spouse to sell interest, that is received in a divorce settlement, back to the business’s owners. Second, the sales rate of the interest to be sold back should be set based on an agreed upon valuation method.

Amicable Partners

If parties are amicable, it is in their best interest to work together and decide between the two how the business shall be divided. A family business is not just a profit-making machine, but a melding of two people’s hard work over the years to create a passion.

If a couple leaves it up to court to decide, many years of hard work could be undone. The best and most simple way to ensure the survival of a business is for the couple to continue as co-owners.

The way the business is structured from the beginning is important to ensure operation after a divorce. Ex-spouses may work in different departments, different offices, or use intermediaries for communication.

If you are able to continue to work with your ex-spouse, make sure a shareholder agreement is created that allows a buyout by either spouse at a reasonably agreed price.

If you do end up buying out your spouse, you must have your business appraised. This can be a lengthy process and quite expensive, as is the financing in order to feasibly finance the buyout.

Initial Consultation with a Tulsa Family Divorce Lawyer

The family business is often the most important asset in a marriage. Having to divide this asset can be heart-breaking and financially straining. A family divorce attorney can help during the divorce process in order to preserve your family business and ease the process.

Contact an experienced Tulsa divorce attorney when you need to go through the Oklahoma divorce process.

For a low-cost confidential consultation, call now: 918-924-5526.

Many couples become confused with the child support and custody arrangement when they were not married before or after their child was born. However, once you become a parent, there are immediate rights and responsibilities attached. Knowing these rights and responsibilities is crucial in a child support and custody case.

 

The most beneficial first step in this case is to retain an experienced Tulsa child support attorney as soon as possible to preserve these rights and enforce the responsibilities on the other.

Parental Rights

In Oklahoma, there are several inherent rights parents have. First of all, parents have the right to seek custody, which is based on the “best interest of the child” in Oklahoma and most other states.

Parents also have to right to seek visitation time, be informed about their child’s school location and performance, and current medical issues and doctors visits. Keeping appraised of events in your child’s life is important to bonding and consistency.

Along the same lines, parents have the right to participate in decisions relating to education and healthcare. Lastly, parents have the right to receive notice and appear in court before parental rights are terminated.

Parental Responsibilities

There are also inherent responsibilities parents are given once a child is born. These responsibilities attach regardless of whether the couple is married or not.

Education and various types of support of the child is required of parents. Support includes spiritual support, educational support, emotional support, and financial support. These factors are heavily weighted when determining child custody after a couple separates.

Because financial support is a responsibility and requirement of each parent, and because Oklahoma is a shared-income state – which means child support is based on the assumption that both parents would financial support the child – child support is a responsibility of the noncustodial parent. This is true regardless if you were married or not.

Courtroom Procedure

In many cases where the couple is not married, the Petition for Custody will include a paternity element where paternity must be established. The presumption is that an unwed mother has automatic custody of her child unless a court order says otherwise.

Many child custody attorneys suggest mediating out of court because it can be less expensive and produce a more favorable outcome for both parties. A parenting plan that includes both a custody agreement and a support agreement is created and your child support attorney can file the agreement with the court.

If a father chooses to pursue a paternity action in order to gain custody, a support order is usually attached to the custody order. A mother can also file a paternity action in order to establish support for a parent that is refusing to contribute financially.

A skilled child support attorney is necessary to help navigate this type of case. In some instances, mediating out of court is more beneficial. It is important to remember that unless a court order states otherwise, an unmarried mother is assumed to have full legal and physical custody.

Initial Consultation with a Tulsa Child Support Attorney

Whether you and the other parent were married or not, the noncustodial parent is required to pay child support. If you don’t have a child support attorney properly presenting your case, the process may become more complicated than it needs to be.

Hiring a knowledgeable and compassionate family law attorney will ensure the process is expertly conducted and your interests are well represented.

Contact an experienced Tulsa divorce attorney when you need to go through the Oklahoma relocation process.

For a low-cost confidential consultation, call now: 918-924-5526.

When an individual requests a protective order, many times the offender whom the protective order controls, is not aware of the additional consequences of the order. There are provisions the offender must follow in addition to staying away from the victim and their place of residence and employment. 

One of the requirements the offender must follow is to surrender all firearms as well as being prohibited from purchasing any additional firearms.

What is Considered a Firearm?

Due to the vast variety of firearms and the different features associated with firearms, many offenders can be easily confused as to what exactly they must surrender. The Oklahoma statute that defines a firearm for purposes of a protective order states:

• A firearm is any revolver, rifle, or shotgun that is capable of discharging a projectile which may reasonably be expected to cause lethal injury; and
• Uses gunpowder, gas, or any means of rocket propulsion.

It is important to note that while a cap and ball gun uses metal pellets called “balls,” and black powder, these guns do not require a background check in Oklahoma. A background check usually alerts the seller whether the buyer has a protective order against him or not.

Even though a background check is not necessary to purchase these types of weapons, they are still considered firearms and are prohibited. In contrast, black powder, balls and caps, the components of the cap and ball gun, do require a background check when purchasing and will not be sold to an individual with a protective order against them.

Owning or Buying a New Gun

According to both Oklahoma law and federal law, an individual must surrender firearms if the individual has a valid permanent protective order. The individual is prohibited from purchasing new firearms.

Your protective order must meet certain requirements to be valid under federal law. These requirements are in addition to the procedure your protective order attorney will assist you in when obtaining an Oklahoma protective order. These requirements include:

• offender must have been given notice of the protective order hearing, usually in the form of documents served to the offender by a third party
• presented with an opportunity to attend the hearing, but is not required to actually attend
• offender must be an “intimate partner” of the requesting party, this includes:
  • current or former spouse
  • parent of a child you share
  • person you have previously lived with

As long as the order is valid, the offender is not allowed to have in their possession any firearms. Most protective orders last for three years, thus the defendant cannot possess a firearm for as many as three years from the date the order is issued by the court. If the order is canceled, the offender must wait 60 days before being in possession of a firearm.

How to Ensure Firearms are Confiscated from Offender

While it is not necessary to specify in your order that the offender must relinquish all firearms, there are a few steps you can take to ensure your safety.

In the application for a protective order, your family law attorney will ask you to state the number and types of guns the offender has, you do not have to be very detailed, you just need to do your best to accurately relay this information.

Your family law attorney should also ask that the judge specifically writes in the order that the offender cannot own, purchase, or possess any firearm while the protective order is valid.

Make sure the judge includes in the written order how the firearms will be surrendered. Most family law attorneys recommend the offender surrender his firearms to the local police station.

Lastly, make sure you, or your family law attorney, discuss with law enforcement that they must notify the victim when the firearms are returned to the offender.

Initial Consultation with a Tulsa Family Law Attorney

Hiring a family law attorney when filing a protective order will ensure the process is expertly conducted and your interests and safety are well represented.

A family law attorney is the best resource when you have been the victim of domestic abuse and you need to file a protective order quickly and effectively.

Contact an experienced Tulsa divorce attorney when you need to go through the Oklahoma child support modification process.

For a low-cost confidential consultation, call now: 918-924-5526.

 

 

When a divorce case is filed with the courts, a hearing for temporary orders takes place. Temporary orders ensure that one spouse does not suddenly stop paying bills or cease certain responsibilities that they have traditionally been in control of during the marriage. 

For example, imagine the utilities, phone bill, and car payments are in your spouse’s name. Once you file for divorce, temporary orders are given by the judge instructing your spouse to continue paying all bills in his name and for you to continue paying bills in your name and receive child support.

Your spouse decides to stop paying bills because he no longer lives in the family home and emotions are high concerning the divorce. Your utilities are shut off, your phone is disconnected, and your car is in threat of being repossessed. In Oklahoma, a remedy for failure to follow temporary court orders can be accomplished with your family divorce attorney.

Application for Indirect Contempt

There are two kinds of contempt in Oklahoma: direct and indirect contempt. Direct contempt occurs when a defendant intentionally interferes with the court process. For example: yelling, interrupting, failure to follow the judge’s directions while in the court room.

Indirect contempt occurs when a party purposefully fails to follow a court order outside of the courtroom. An indirect contempt action can be filed by your family divorce attorney at any time during a divorce case.

The steps your family divorce attorney will follow to file an indirect contempt order are:

• File an application for contempt
• Set an arraignment date.
• Your spouse will enter a plea of guilty or not guilty at the arraignment. This proceeding is much like a criminal proceeding.
• If your spouse enters a not guilty plea, then a trial is set.
• Your attorney must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the temporary order was willingly disobeyed at trial, the standard of proof in a criminal trial.
• Evidence will be presented by your divorce attorney.
• A verdict of guilty or not guilty will be reached.

If you win your contempt order, your spouse could be fined, receive jail time, or both. In addition, if you are owed money, your spouse’s income and bank accounts could be garnished.

Motion to Enforce

Your family divorce attorney can also file a motion to enforce temporary court orders if your spouse is refusing to follow courts orders. For example, if the judge ordered for you to have phone access with your child during your spouse’s visitation, and your spouse is not allowing your child phone access, you can ask the judge to enforce the order.

Your divorce attorney must file the motion in the court that set the original order. A hearing date will be set, and at the hearing your divorce attorney will have to present evidence showing the disregard of the court order or interferes.

If the judge finds evidence of interference with the court order than the judge could:

• require the other party to pay a fine,
• give the compliant spouse more visitation time,
• change the current custody, and
• change current temporary orders.

Attorney Fees

If you are successful in your indirect contempt order, you may also be entitled to attorney fees. Oklahoma follows the American Rule that states each party is responsible for their attorney fees unless there is a statute or agreement that allows a different outcome.

Oklahoma Appellate Court held in a recent court case, Buckingham v. Buckingham, that 43 O.S. §110(E) allows for attorney fee reimbursement for a temporary order enforcement action.

Initial Consultation with a Tulsa Divorce Attorney

Hiring a family divorce attorney when filing a contempt or enforcement action will ensure the process is expertly conducted and your interests are well represented.

A family divorce attorney is the best resource when a you must show that the other party is refusing to follow temporary orders.

Contact an experienced Tulsa divorce attorney when you need to go through the Oklahoma indirect contempt process.

For a low-cost confidential consultation, call now: 918-924-5526.

 

Many times, after a divorce decree and child custody order, one or both parents wish to relocate out of state with their child. There are various reasons for this, such as moving to be closer to family now that the divorce is final, job opportunity that is necessary now that the parent only has one income source, or when a parent marries a new spouse and wants to relocate to their location. 

Your child custody attorney will explain that Oklahoma has a specific statute that outlines the requirements when a parent wishes to move not just out of state, but anywhere that is more than 75 miles from their original location. This statute applies to both custodial and noncustodial parents. It can be found under 43 O.S. § 112.2 and 43 O.S. § 112.3.

Notice of Relocation

Under 43 O.S. § 112.2, the law states that the primary custodial parent has the presumptive right to relocate, subject to the family court’s discretion. The court many deny the move if the rights and welfare of the child may be compromised. Having an experienced child custody attorney can help overcome any obstacles.

The custodial or noncustodial parent must serve a Notice of Relocation to the other parent as soon as knowledge of the move is known, but no later than 60 days prior to the actual move. Your child custody attorney can help you prepare this in order to ensure proper compliance.

If 60 days is not reasonably feasible, then the parent must give notice to the other parent within 10 days of knowledge of the move.

The notice must be made in writing and contain the:

• new address,
• new mailing address (if different than resident address),
• new telephone phone number,
• date of proposed move,
• short explanation of the specific reasons for the move, and
• proposal for a new parenting plan or visitation schedule.

Opposition to Relocation

First, it is important to outline consequences of not following the notice requirement and remedies for the opposing party. If the parent that is relocating fails to notice the other parent may result in a prolonged court battle. This is where most parties fail, attempting to navigate the family court system without a skilled child custody attorney can result in denied orders and sanctions.

The parent not following notice requirements could have this used against them when child custody modification is at issue, be held in contempt, pay fines and attorney fees, or the failure to notice can be taken into account when assessing visitation schedules.

Next, if the other parent does follow the notice requirement, the other parent has 30 days to file an objection with the court, which is a temporary or permanent order to prevent the move. A temporary hearing is ordered first, and then the final order is made at a subsequent hearing.

Specific Relocation Reasons

Under 43 O.S. § 112.3, the steps a parent must take to file for relocation are explained as well as emphasizing that in order to relocate the reason must be in good faith.

The reason for the move is considered the most important issue in a relocation hearing and what the court will look to when determining whether the move is in good faith. The moving parent must first prove that the move is in good faith. Once this is accomplished, the burden shifts to the opposing parent to prove that the move is not in good faith.

The moving parent must show:

• The relationship with the non-moving parent will not be impacted, including other familiar relationships such as siblings and family members
• Significant quality, involvement, and duration of the moving parent’s relationship with the child
• That the development, needs, physical, educational, and emotional development will not be significantly impacted
• The financial feasibility and ease of visitation arrangements in order to preserve nonmoving parents relationship with the child
• Child’s preference
• Moving parent is not trying to interfere with other parents relationship with child
• The move will enhance quality of life including educational, financial, and emotional benefits
• Any other factor emphasizing relocation is in the child’s best interest

Initial Consultation with a Tulsa Child Custody Attorney

Hiring a family child custody attorney when filing for a relocation order will ensure the process is expertly conducted and your interests are well represented, especially if the other party is seeking to oppose the move.

A child custody attorney is the best resource when a you must show that it is in your child’s best interest to relocate either out of state or seventy-five miles or move from your current home.

Contact an experienced Tulsa divorce attorney when you need to go through the Oklahoma relocation process.

For a low-cost confidential consultation, call now: 918-924-5526.