Maryland Family Law

More adventures in wiretapping

From Lowering the Bar, a Pennsylvania man is charged in connection with a listening device he place under his wife's bed.  His excuse was that he wanted to know if his wife was having sex with her boyfriend, so he would now when he could return.  Not surprisingly, the excuse was no good. 

If you follow legal news, you will know that this sort of thing happens fairly frequently.  We have cheap and easy technology to spy on people in various ways......that doesn't mean it legal or advisable to do so!  Finally, I will reluctantly admit that I hail from the same county as this unfortunate man.  Here's hoping my countrymen will be a bit wiser in the future.

Social media and evidence

Make no mistake, your spouse (and his or her attorney) are exploring every possible route to gain evidence for the case.  If you are receiving modifiable alimony, you may not want to broadcast every detail of your swank new life.  A fellow blogger writes about a recent case in which the former wife blogged about her adventures on her boyfriend's sailboat in the Caribbean.  Under Connecticut law, living with a boyfriend/girlfriend justifies a change in alimony.  In Maryland, it is possible to see a similar sort of circumstances if the alimony is modifiable (it is not uncommon for the couple to agree upon non-modifiable alimony).  The court would take the various financial considerations into account.  Even though in Maryland, living together does not per se require a change in alimony, but it would be taken into account that the former wife may now have lower expenses (reduced need) based on the cohabitation. 

Lest you think this is an unusual circumstance, check out this post on the Maryland Divorce Legal Crier, describing a case in which a blogging belly dancer blew her cover. 

Domestic violence and immigration

The federal Violence Against Women Act protects immigrants who are victims of domestic violence, and allows the immigrant to petition for permanent residency on his/her own behalf.  The purpose of this provision in the act is to remove the abuser spouse's ability to use immigration consequences as a threat against the abused spouse.  An interesting article in Slate discusses the potential for fraud in such cases, and underlines the difficulty one can have in proving (or defending) allegations of domestic violence.    

Notary standardization

An interesting article appeared on Slate today, about the desirability of having each state recognize out-of-state notarizations uniformly.  Each state has slightly different requirements and seals, making it possible that another state court will not recognize your notarized document.  It is certainly something to think about when you are preparing your case for court.  If a problem is identified, a deposition or request for admissions may be of use in authenticating the document, so careful planning is necessary.  You can read more about notary issues on the National Notary Association's website.

Whistleblower divorcee

Today, Law.com reported on an interesting family law case out of Connecticut.  An ex-wife found evidence that her former spouse had engaged in insider trading in connection with Pequot Capital.  The wife became suspicious of a large payout to her former husband from Pequot, and turned a hard drive over to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Under whistleblower statutes, the wife received a payment of $1,000,000 for the information.  The ultimate revenge on a former spouse?  

The power of text messages

The National Law Journal published an article last week about the impact of text messages on family law cases.  Such messages can provide evidence of an extramarital affair, or produce other damaging statements in divorce/custody/domestic violence cases.  I have also found it is common for separated parents to communicate with each other about their children via text messages.  The article provides a few specific examples of cases where text messages were central and valuable pieces of evidence.

Once you have received a potentially "useful" text message, now what do you do?  Contact your attorney right away...text messages are fleeting, and you need to be able to access and preserve them in a manner without altering them.  Even if you do not actually alter the message, it can be problematic if the message is copied in such a way that you had the opportunity to change the message.  Keep in mind that you cannot simply show the judge the message on your phone.  The judge is required to make a record of everything that he or she has considered in rendering a decision.  In some courthouses, you would not even be able to take your phone into the courthouse in fact.  Some thought and proper planning is essential.  

Yet another reason NOT to share passwords

An article on law.com discusses a case in New York in which the spouse was able to use emails from her husband's account as evidence that he was attempting to involuntarily impoverish himself.  It makes a HUGE difference in how evidence is obtained....in this case, the wife logged into his email account, using the password he provided her with, and downloaded the emails.  The key here is that he gave her the password and had apparently never changed it when the relationship went sour.  The result would have been quite different had she stolen the password, possibly subjecting her to criminal prosecution and the evidence not being admissible.  This is an area of the law that is very state-specific and complicated.  Readers are cautioned to check with an experienced attorney before taking any action intercepting electronic information.  With proper planning, this information can be found through proper and legal means such as subpoenas and/or hard drive imaging.

Job Searching For Parents

As layoffs continues and businesses scale back, more and more people are finding themselves out of a job.  Here are some tips in case you are out of work.  Consider filing to modify your support obligation, and do it soon.  Your order cannot be modified retroactively, when you are facing a contempt hearing or have a huge arrearage, it may be too late.  If you are out of work, you need to be doing everything you can to find new employment, even outside of your field.  It is also wise to keep excellent records of contacts made, resumes sent out, and interviews offered, in case the other party claims you are impoverishing yourself.  I have found that many judges are sensitive to this issue and understand the current economic difficulties that people are facing, but be ready to back up your claims.  It is stressful enough when you have a family law issue pending, being out of work makes it even more difficult.  Got any job search tips, please share below!   

Do-it-yourself Investigations

USA Today reported on a trend of more spouses resorting to self-help to collect evidence for a divorce case.  For example, one can purchase GPS trackers for a vehicle, install spyware to monitor what is being typed or viewed on a computer, or install a hidden camera.  Beware, however, as the article is silent on what the consequences may be in taking those actions.  Depending on the circumstances, you may be violating state or federal regarding privacy and electronic communications.  For example, in some states, if your recording includes sound, you may be violating wiretapping prohibitions.  Not only will you not be able to use the evidence in your trial, but you may face criminal penalties as well.  Even in you can legally collect the information, consider whether it would be more credible in your case if a third party collected the evidence.  Before you take any action, be sure to consult with an attorney familiar with the laws of your jurisdiction.  Just because you can buy it, doesn't mean you should use it.

What I've discovered about discovery

I think most of my clients would agree, discovery is the most difficult, time-consuming and aggravating part of divorce litigation.  Discovery, simply put, is the process of gathering information about the other party's case and also sharing information about your own.  There are several tools in this toolbox:  interrogatories (questions to the other party), requests for documents or other tangible items, requests for admission, depositions, and requests for physical/mental examination.  If one party has been pro se (representing him or herself), this is the point when it may be time to get an attorney's help.  And if you do have an attorney, know that arguing and avoiding the discovery will only make it more painful, financially and emotionally.

The rules regarding discovery can be complicated, even for us attorneys.  Even if you learn the Maryland Rules about discovery, there are customs and rules of thumb that can really be gleaned only through experience.  Clients often ask me, do I really have to produce 5 years worth of bank statements (or answer whether I've had sexual relations with someone else).  The answer is, it depends....you need an attorney well-versed in family law to help you figure that out. 

What happens if you ignore discovery requests from the other side?  You could face having to pay the other party's attorney's fees, delay in your case, your evidence not being admitted for the judge to consider, or even having your case dismissed.  So there actually are worse things than having to answer discovery.