Former Cincinnati Bengal Arrested For Delinquent Child Support

Former Cincinnati Bengal first-round draft choice James Francis was arrested in his home state of Texas on Thursday.

Francis has been a "wanted man" for more than four years for failing to pay $395,000 in back child support. A warrant was issued for his arrest as a result of his failure to appear at his arraignment. Drafted out of Baylor University in 1990 by the Bengals, the linebacker played for the team for nine seasons, where he earned millions of dollars in salary. His 2000 indictment indicated that as of December 2000, he owed $94,000 for a then-6-year-old son. In that case, Francis was ordered to pay the child's mother $6,000 per month in child support and another $120 per month to process his payment.

Brady Bunch's Greg Embroiled In Divorce

The wife of former "The Brady Bunch" kid Barry Williams has filed for divorce, according to court papers. The couple formally separated earlier this month and have a 2-year-old son, according to the divorce petition filed California Superior Court. Williams requested sole custody of their son and asked that her husband have visits only with a nanny present, according to the petition.

NFL Football Star Pleads Guilty For Failing To Pay Child Support

Former Seattle Seahawks running back Chris Warren pleaded guilty yesterday to a federal charge of failing to pay child support.

Warren was arrested in Virginia in September after an investigation by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Inspector General's Office, which enforces the federal Child Support Recovery Act of 1992. Warren, 38, owed about $128,000 in back support at the time of his arrest, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff Sullivan. Warren paid the back support, was released on bond and returned to Seattle to face the misdemeanor charge in U.S. District Court. To read the full article see http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/football/209369_warren26.html.

Validity of Out-of-State Marriage

In determining the validity of an out-of-state marriage that is expressly prohibited by A.R.S. §§ 25-101 and -112, does one apply the law from the state where the marriage was celebrated or the law of the state of Arizona?

The Court of Appeals in Cook v. Cook, CA-CV03-0727 (Ct. App., Div 1. 01/13/05), addressed this issue. To read the text of the opinion, see http://www.cofad1.state.az.us/opinionfiles/CV/cv030727.pdf.

When Pets Come Between Spouses

It's a situation many pet lovers might find familiar: You say it's all right for the dog to sleep in the bed; your partner says no way. Suddenly a minor disagreement has turned into a major blow-out. Some experts say it's becoming more common for couples to to bicker over their pets, and in some cases, these "pet peeves" can lead to separation or even divorce.

Fighting for Their Pets -- Lynn Goldstein Nichols owns a cat and a dog, and she loves her pets. In fact, Lynn loves her pets so much, she chose to fight for them when her marriage ended in divorce in 2001. "We got into a big to-do legally about the possession of the animals," Nichols said. "And that's when the judge finally decided to divide the pets up, saying the cats would go to Tom and the dogs would go to me." But Nichols wasn't ready to turn the cats over. She hid them — and ultimately went to jail for 30 days for contempt of court. To read the entire article, http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Relationship/story?id=433489&page=1.

Child Care Plans - Navy Policy

Service members with children, who are minors, are required to have a family care plan. A family care plan designates who will take care of a service members’ children while the service member is deployed. However, it is very important that service members with children know that a family care plan has no legal authority outside of the military, and this can be a big problem if you deploy and leave your child with anyone other than the child’s other biological parent. If you and the other biological parent are fighting over custody of the child, a family care plan alone will not prevent the other parent from taking the child while you are deployed.

The most important thing to remember is that service members who are single parents need to have an agreement or court order that discusses what happens to the child when the service member is deployed. To read more on this topic, follow this link: http://www.navycompass.com/news/newsview.asp?c=140825.

Mother of Ray Charles' Son Reduces Child Support Request

The mother of Ray Charles' 17-year-old son drastically reduced her request apologizing to a judge for previously seeking at least $60,000 a month. Den Bok, the child's mother, initially asked for $3,000 a month, then demanded at least $60,000 to pay for "the lifestyle he enjoyed" before his father's death. She is now asking for $12,000 to $15,000.

Can Parents Contract To Waive Child Support?

Many parents believe it far more feasible to come to their own agreements regarding child support. Sometimes these agreements, for one reason or another, involve one parent's waiver of the right to receive child support payments. Is this possible in Arizona? Probably not.

In a recent Wisconsin case, mother sought, and received, a court order in 1982 requiring father to pay child support. Thereafter, the parties came to a "private agreement". Instead of child support, father would pay for their son's private school tuition. In return, Father agreed not to seek visitation or have any contact with his son. Apparently, the parties cooperated with each other's obligations for years. Fast forward to 2001 -- son is now 22, and mother went back to court seeking back child support. The Wisconsin Supreme Court decided she was entitled to get it - all $67,302.90 of it, including interest! Did the Supreme Court make the right decision? Or should the court have enforced the deal the parents reached amongst themselves?

The Supreme Court ruled the private agreement was not enforceable, and that the court order, which was never changed or updated, should be used. The Supreme Court also stated, in its majority opinion, that private school tuition alone did not fulfill the father's obligation to help pay to raise his son. The justices also faulted father for not seeking to update the court order to reflect the arrangement between the parties, and said he never claimed he couldn't pay the child support.

The lesson to be learned here is crystal clear -- seek legal advice before entering into an agreement purportedly permitting a parent to "get-out-of" paying child support. And, if is sounds to good to be true, it probably is.

To read the complete article, see http://www.journaltimes.com/articles/2005/01/21/local/iq_3335685.txt

Arizona Name Change Orders

The Department of Vital Records has informed all Arizona courts that name change orders (or to list the name of the father in a paternity case) that do not contain language explicitly ordering Vital Records to make a change in its records will NOT be acted on by Vital Records, and that Persons requesting an amended birth certificate from Vital Records, will be referred back to the courts.

In other words, make sure Vital Records is expressly ordered to take particular action. Otherwise, you are likely to face administrative issues.

Duty to Support Spouse Post-Sex Change Operation

In one of the more bizzare cases of late, the Ohio Court of Appeals in Moore v. Moore, 158 Ohio App. 3d 489, 817 N.E.2d 111 (2004), concluded that the mere fact that the supported spouse has undergone a sex-change operation does not alleviate the other spouse's support obligation.

Eight years after the parties were divorced, the husband sought relief from the spousal support provision in the dissolution judgment on the basis that the wife had undergone sex reassignment surgery and was now a male. On appeal, the husband argued that the support provision should be set aside because at the time of the dissolution it was not contemplated that the former wife would undergo a sex change. The husband raised the exceptionally novel argument that the former wife had a reduced need for support "considering the disparity in earning power between the sexes," apparently arguing that males by definition require less support.

The court in Moore clearly held that the only basis to modify a support award is a significant change in the financial circumstances of the parties and that the former wife's sex change, while admittedly significant, did not necessarily affect her financially. By so holding, the court in Moore placed a higher premium on the financial situation of the supported spouse than on her current gender status.

Pitt-Aniston Divorce Demonstrates Need For Prenuptial Agreement

Everybody has heard the news -- Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston are separated. Now, the real question becomes how will the chips fall since these Hollywood stars, like many other average joes, must face California's community property divorce laws. The million dollar question here is whether or not a prenuptial agreement exists.

Sources estimate that Brad Pitt is worth approximately $100 million, and Jennifer Aniston at approximately $75 million. The couple's joint assets include, among other things, a 12,000-square-foot, six-bedroom mansion in Beverly Hills, valued at $14 million; a beachfront home in Santa Barbara, valued at $4 million; and Plan B, their joint production company. The couple also earn paychecks. Pitt earns about $17.5 million a film, and Aniston made $5 million last year but is expected to command $7 million now.

Whether the couple has a prenuptial agreement is unclear. In the absence of a prenuptial agreement however, they would be entitled to share in half of the income earned ... from the day of marriage to the day of separation. In this case, it is extremely unlikely that either star would be eligible for spousal support, given their high income. For the complete story, see http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/index.php?page=living&story_id=012005_brad_jen_assets.

Lindsay Lohan's Mother Files For Divorce

Another Hollywood divorce. . .

The mother of actress-singer Lindsay Lohan filed for divorce in New York's Nassau County Supreme Court. Apparently, the mother is alleging that she is doing so "for the good of her family", because of her husband's problems with sobriety. Fortunately, Lindsay Lohan, 18, the child of the couple is quite sucessful. SHe has starred in movies including, the "Parent Trap," "Mean Girls," "Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen" and "Freaky Friday." For further information, see http://www.newsday.com/news/local/state/ny-bc-ny--lohandivorce0119jan19,0,7001084.story?coll=ny-region-apnewyork.