Imagine for a moment that you are a divorce lawyer in Coventry, Rhode Island. You are one of thousands of lawyers in Rhode Island. Yet you want to make a difference. What might you do in the area of divorce law? Would you try to generate more uncontested divorces in families involving children to prevent all the broken homes? Perhaps you would envision that by pushing for more uncontested divorce proceedings in the Rhode Island Family Courts you would promote less hostility and better family ... Read Full Story

Definition of Rhode Island Legal Custody Rhode Island Legal Custody is the legal right of a natural biological parent or legally adoptive parent under Rhode Island law to participate in the decision making process for "major decisions" relating to the parent's natural biological child or legally adopted child. Major decisions have been recognized by Rhode Island law including, 1) Education 2) Religious Upbringing, 3) Medical and Healthcare, and 4) Other major issues relating to the well-being... Read Full Story

QUESTION: My ex-husband kept the information from me that we have actually been divorced since 2008 from me. During all that time till now he had me thinking we are still married so I have been working on our marriage. I want to know if i can sue him because of this. ANSWER: In order to obtain a Final Judgment of divorce in Rhode Island, your ex-husband had to serve with the divorce papers in a way that was sufficient to give you notice of the divorce proceeding that meets due process standar... Read Full Story

Common sense tells many people that an uncontested Rhode Island Divorce will also certainly cost less than a contested Rhode Island Divorce. Without complicating matters an "uncontested Rhode Island divorce" is one in which the parties amicably agree on all issues relating to their divorce. A "contested divorce Rhode Island divorce" in the RI Family Court System is a divorce case in which both spouses in the divorce are not in agreement on all issues relating to their divorce. Notice that whe... Read Full Story

Few things are as helpful to Rhode Island Divorce Coaching clients as a good story. In Bridget's case, it wasn't until Bridge received some Post Divorce Coaching that Bridget discovered that all lawyers are not equally skilled or knowledgeable and that with a little bit of valuable coaching information from an experienced Rhode Island divorce lawyer she was able to accomplish on her own for only $200 what her divorce lawyer had failed to do after being paid more than $5,000. Though Bridget's ... Read Full Story

None.  There are no specific facts stated by Rhode Island law which must be proven for the RI Family Court to find that a common law marriage exists.   Rhode Island law uses a two-pronged approach for determining common law marriages.  When considering the evidence with respect to each prongs (also called an 'element'), the party attempting to prove the existence of a common law marriage is held to proving the existence of the prongs by "clear and convincing evidence."  Silva v. Merritt Cha... Read Full Story

It's no secret that the judge's in the Rhode Island Family Court would rather see divorces worked out amicably.  This goes along with the whole domino theory of how cases flow better.  It's quite simple actually.  Each year more and more cases are filed in the Rhode Island Family Courts with only a limited budget and staff to handle all of them.  Naturally, the more divorce cases that are resolved amicably, the faster those cases are cleared up and time is freed up for other cases that may ne... Read Full Story

Even if you have an uncontested divorce in Rhode Island there are bound to be legal issues that crop up.Below are just a couple of questions that many people disregard.  It can be a big mistake.  Too many people think answers to uncontested matters such as divorce are easy.  Perhaps you are one of those people.  It's understandable.  Most of us were conditioned to believe that we need lawyers for every little legal issue that comes along.  Maybe you believe these questions aren't worth paying... Read Full Story

Too many good Rhode Island people are still under two myths about Rhode Island Common Law Marriages.  As a Rhode Island Divorce Lawyer and to my knowledge Rhode Island's Only Divorce and Family Law Coach I'd like to do my part to clear up the myth and set the record straight for everyone who may go before the RI Family Courts.First, Common Law Marriage is still recognized in the State of Rhode Island. Strangely, I've heard several Rhode Island lawyers misinform people that there is no su... Read Full Story

Sitting in the Rhode Island Family Courts for many years I have seen Post Divorce issues arise. Few situations are more disturbing than what I call "the private child support modification."If you've been reading this or any of my other Rhode Island divorce websites, you know that I usually explain by use of examples and analogous situations since nothing seems to teach more strongly than a good story.  Since most of the compliments on my websites are the use of these stories, I won't diverge ... Read Full Story