There is no doubt that our servicemen and women who are serving in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as other locations around the world Atlanta Military Divorce Attorney, are performing a service that can never be measured or repaid. I have the greatest appreciation for these brave heroes. Unfortunately, we know the battles that members of the armed forces face do not end when they leave enemy territory. Depression, post traumatic stress disorder, long separations and readjustment to civilian life all take their toll on military families. The sad truth is that the military divorce rate is higher than that for the general population.
In 2007, 3.7% of married Marines got divorced, up 0.4% from the previous year. For the Army population, the numbers rose from 3.3% to 3.5% in the same period of time. The numbers constitute the highest divorce rate in sixteen years. And, veterans’ groups believe these statistics underestimate the divorce rate as they don’t account for divorces that occur after a husband or wife leaves the service or marriages that are on the brink of dissolution.
Military divorces involve factors that are not usually found in civilian situations. For instance, under Texas law, divorce proceedings may be placed on hold for the entirety of a deployment and sixty days after the soldier’s return home. And generally, Federal laws will not divide property to a military’s members spouse unless the marriage has lasted for at least ten years of active duty. In addition, lengthy time spent overseas can be used as an argument when determining parental custody rights.
If you have children with your military spouse, child custody and visitation courts usually make custody decisions based solely upon what is in the best interest of a child or the best interests of children. To make this determination, courts consider many factors in your case. If the child is mature enough to make the decision of who they prefer to have full custody of them. The ability of each parent to provide for the child’s physical, intellectual and emotional well being is also a factor, along with which parent is more likely to foster frequent and continuing contact between the child and the non-custodial parent. Also, if any abusive or criminal misconduct has occurred by either party, that would be high on the custodial visitation suit. A military divorce lawyer may not be able to play a role in the actual custodial argument. The court may award either sole or shared custody. Generally, in a shared custody arrangement, one parent has primary physical possession and the non-custodial parent has the standard visitation of basically every other weekend, alternating holidays and an extended period in the summer.
If you are wishing to receive child support from your spouse, your military divorce lawyer will handle this. All military members have a duty to provide support for their children, as well as their spouses, so their wages may be garnished in order to ensure the payment of proper support. Child support may not exceed 60% of a military members pay and allowances.
