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July 2009

June 2009

CONNECTICUT  

Former Cendant Chairman's Divorce a Ploy to Dodge $3.2 Billion Payout, Say Prosecutors

John Christoffersen, The Associated Press, Law.com

6-19-09 -- The wife of the man responsible for the largest accounting fraud of the 1990s has filed for divorce -- but federal prosecutors say the timing suggests that they're trying to avoid paying billions of dollars in penalties, not that their marriage is on the rocks. . . . Prosecutors note that former Cendant Corp. chairman Walter Forbes sold the family's nearly $6 million, 11,000-square-foot, seven-bedroom Colonial mansion to his wife, Caren, for $10 in 1999. . . . Caren Forbes, who filed for divorce in Bridgeport Superior Court in January and says their marriage of 27 years is "irretrievably" broken, wants the court to transfer the property, which is subject to liquidation, into her name, prosecutors said. . . . Forbes was sentenced in 2007 to more than 12 years in prison and ordered to pay restitution for his role in a fraud scheme that cost the travel and real estate company and its investors more than $3 billion. . . . Prosecutors, who have accused Forbes of hiding some assets to avoid paying the $3.275 billion penalty, say the divorce filing is a ploy and have asked to intervene.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA  

Gay-Marriage Opponents Ask Judge to Stop the Clock

Posted by Mike DeBonis, Washington City Paper

6-18-09 -- Big showdown in D.C. Superior Court over gay marriage this afternoon! . . . Here’s what’s going on: Opponents of the gay-marriage-recognition law passed this spring by the D.C. Council are asking Judge Judith Retchin to step in and stop the law from taking effect. That’d be a bare assertion of power by the judge—and Retchin acknowledged as much: “I question whether the court has the authority to stay the effective date.” . . . That date is July 6, marking the end of the  30-day period during which the U.S. Congress reviews the marriage-recognition measure. It’s a quirk of D.C.’s serfdom that Congress gets this approval window, and it’s a quirk that’s being exploited by the anti-gay marriage lobby.

NEW YORK  

Failure to Supervise Pro Bono Attorney Dooms Divorce Pact

Judge finds ex-Skadden staff attorney did not have the 'appropriate training and supervision' to know whether her 'inaccurate and confusing' statements were false

Noeleen G. Walder, New York Law Journal

6-18-09 -- In granting a woman's bid to void a settlement stipulation because her pro bono divorce attorney made serious errors and was inadequately supervised, a New York state judge has cautioned law firms and volunteer groups that in taking on pro bono cases, they should ensure that counsel "receive appropriate support and supervision, so that they can provide pro bono clients with the same careful legal representation that they provide to paying clients." . . . The ruling comes at a time when law firms facing a decline in legal business and a surplus of attorneys are working with pro bono organizations to increase the number of cases they already handle on a volunteer basis. . . . The case before Acting Supreme Court Justice Ellen Gesmer, MC v. GC, 76148/07, involved a former Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom staff attorney, Lisa M. Poursine, referred to in the ruling as "Ms. Smith," who provided free legal representation to Michele A. Crespo for inMotion, a non-profit legal group that assists low-income women in matrimonial, family and immigration law cases.

Obama Undermines Marriage With Same-Sex Benefits Memo

President ‘thumbed his nose at the rule of law’ to placate gay critics, family advocates say.

by Gary Schneeberger, editor CitizenLink.com

6-17-09 -- President Barack Obama signed a presidential memorandum today that extends many benefits now received by spouses of federal employees to same-sex partners of federal employees. . . . Family advocates say Obama’s action is a direct violation of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and a big step toward redefining marriage. . . . “The president thumbed his nose at the rule of law and continues to undermine marriage as society’s most pro-child institution,” said Tom Minnery, senior vice president of government and public policy for Focus on the Family Action. . . . “It’s a settled principle of moral tradition and social science that says children do best with both a mom and a dad who are married to each other. Congress already defined marriage for purposes of federal law in 1996 with the passage of the Defense of Marriage Act.  . . . “Treating same-sex partners as the equivalent of spouses is therefore a direct violation of DOMA and merely Obama's contribution to the clearly-stated, gay-activist agenda of redefining marriage and family.”

GENERAL

Recession Keeps Family Lawyers Busy

Wealthy couples buck the trend, getting divorced in greater numbers

Tresa Baldas, The National Law Journal

6-16-09 -- The economy has family law attorneys working double-time as hard financial times are wreaking havoc on America's broken families. . . . Lawyers who specialize in divorce and custody disputes say they have witnessed a flood of activity in family courts in recent months: . . . • A rising number of spouses are requesting that their child support and alimony obligations be modified, citing hard times. . . . • More feuding couples are struggling to reach divorce settlements because all the assets are worth less. . . . • Many couples are putting divorce off altogether because they can't afford it, while some wealthier ones are actually seizing on the economy and getting divorced, knowing that they'll have less to hand over to the other spouse. . . . "We are jammed, jammed. I think it's because we have the higher-end clients ... and the clients are pouring in," said Lynne Gold-Bikin, who heads the family law practice at Philadelphia's Weber Gallagher Simpson Stapleton Fires & Newby. "This is a great time for wealthy people to get divorced because their assets are down. So if you want to keep the house, perfect time. If you want to keep the 401(k), perfect time."

NEW YORK  

Judge Clarifies Abandonment Standard Over Denial of Sex

Vesselin Mitev, New York Law Journal

6-16-09 -- A husband's refusal to have sex with his wife three times within a year was enough to persuade a Long Island judge to grant the wife's petition for a divorce on the ground of constructive abandonment. . . . While noting the lack of a "definitive holding" as to how many requests were needed to satisfy the abandonment standard requiring "repeated" denial of such requests, Supreme Court Justice Arthur M. Diamond of Nassau County, N.Y. (See Profile), ruled in B.M. v. M.M., 203242/08, that three was adequate, given the facts of the case. . . . B.M., a nurse, testified at a divorce trial in April that she would have done "anything" to save her 28-year marriage to M.M., a lawyer. The parties were married in August 1981 and have two grown children. Ms. M. sued for divorce in 2008 on the grounds of constructive abandonment, a claim Mr. M. denied. . . . She recalled that her husband, who now contested the divorce, told her in July 2003 that he wanted to end the marriage. In response, she said she attempted to salvage their union by spicing up their sex life, which "had been an issue."

OHIO

Child support law enforced equally, area officials say
By Ryan Carter, Herald Record Staff Writer

6-15-09 -- "Why don't women who owe child support go to jail?" . . . Two local men who pay child support recently made claims that the mothers of their children (who both have been ordered to pay child support) are treated with more leniency when they fail to make their child support payments. . . . "My ex-wife is supposed to be paying child support on three of my kids," said a Fayette County man who requested anonymity. "I've been paying child support to her mother who has custody of the kids. I've already been locked up a couple of times for not paying." . . . The man also claims that his ex-wife hasn't paid any child support since 2003. . . . "She lives in (another state) and when I ask the child support agency why she can't be arrested, they tell me it's hard to enforce it when she's out of state," he said. "I just don't think it's right that they don't arrest her. I'm taking care of my business now and she isn't. It's not right." . . . Another local man who has custody of his youngest child said his ex-girlfriend is also chronically late on child support payments, yet nothing has been done. "I'm perfectly fine taking care of my child and I like this setup," he said. "But if the shoe was on the other foot, I would most likely be in trouble. If you have a court order to do something, and in this case it's to pay child support, you should have to do it or pay the consequences." . . . However, a look at the records in Fayette County Common Pleas Court shows that women who are charged with felonies for non-support are punished with the same severity as men. Just last week, Judge Steven Beathard sent a Fayette County woman, Tina Snyder, to prison for six months for non-support after she violated her community control. . . . A comparison of men and women who have the same amount of non-support violations showed that they were treated by the courts nearly identically.

FEDERAL COURTS

U.S. Moves to Dismiss First Federal Gay Marriage Case

Linda Deutsch, The Associated Press

6-12-09 -- The U.S. Justice Department has moved to dismiss the first gay marriage case filed in federal court, saying it is not the right venue to tackle legal questions raised by a couple already married in California. . . . The Justice Department motion, filed late Thursday, argued that the case of Arthur Smelt and Christopher Hammer does not address the right of gay couples to marry but rather questions whether their marriage must be recognized nationwide by states that have not approved gay marriage. . . . "This case does not call upon the Court to pass judgment ... on the legal or moral right of same-sex couples, such as plaintiffs here, to be married," the motion states. "Plaintiffs are married, and their challenge to the federal Defense of Marriage Act ("DOMA") poses a different set of questions."

NEW YORK

Man Need Not Tap IRA Funds to Pay Legal Fees, Appeals Court Rules

Noeleen G. Walder, New York Law Journal

6-11-09 -- A man whose matrimonial settlement left him with no liquid assets to satisfy a $70,000 charging lien held by his former attorneys does not have to use money from his $213,000 IRA account to pay his legal bill, a New York state appeals court ruled Monday. . . . However, in the unsigned decision, an Appellate Division, 1st Department, panel held that funds transferred to Antonio A. Memmo from his ex-wife's IRA could be used to settle Mayerson Stutman Abramowitz Royer's lien. . . . Last year, Memmo retained Harold A. Mayerson to represent him in a divorce proceeding from Elsa I. Perez. When Mayerson Stutman and Memmo had a falling out, the firm sought to be relieved as counsel. Shortly thereafter, Memmo, who allegedly owed roughly $100,000 in legal fees, agreed that Mayerson Stutman would have a $70,000 charging lien against Memmo and his share of the equitable distribution.

NORTH CAROLINA  

Lawyer issued reprimand after fee dispute

By Ryan Jones, The Dispatch

6-10-09 -- A Lexington lawyer was reprimanded by the Grievance Committee of the N.C. State Bar for charging excessive and unnecessary fees while representing a client in a divorce and equitable distribution case. . . . According to the reprimand issued Feb. 12 and published in the most recent issue of the N.C. State Bar Journal, J. Calvin Cunningham, whose law office is at 18 S. Main St., and his client agreed to a 40 percent contingency fee on the equitable distribution matter and an hourly rate for the divorce matter, with the understanding that the client would not be able to pay her bill until she received a distribution. . . . The grievance committee found that throughout the representation Cunningham sent bills to his client for the divorce action that included a $50 charge for each time he reviewed the bill and another $50 charge for each time he sent a form letter to his client enclosing the bill. . . . Such excessive charges constitute dishonest task padding, the reprimand said, because reviewing the bill is an “obligation every lawyer owes to a client and is an overhead expense incidental to the practice of law.”

WASHINGTON

Drive to stop gay partnership law is dividing conservatives

Some worry that a failed referendum in Washington state would hurt their larger battle down the road.

By Kim Murphy The Los Angeles Times

6-8-09 -- Reporting from Seattle -- A campaign to roll back gay rights that kicked off in Washington state over the weekend has split the Christian conservative community, with some wondering whether it is the right time for a fight and others arguing that time may be running out. . . . On the heels of the recent California Supreme Court ruling that upheld Proposition 8's prohibition against same-sex marriage, conservative groups here began collecting signatures for a ballot referendum to block a new Washington state law that substantially expands rights for domestic partners. . . . The law that Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire signed in May has been dubbed the "everything but marriage" bill. When it takes effect in July, it will expand previous domestic partnership laws to include issues like adoption, child support, pensions and other public-employee benefits.

NEW HAMPSHIRE

N.H. becomes sixth state where gays can marry

By Eric Moskowitz and Martin Finucane, Globe Staff

6-3-09 -- Traditionally conservative New Hampshire today became the sixth state in the nation -- and the fifth state in New England -- where same-sex couples will be allowed to marry. . . . "Today we're standing up for the liberties of same-sex couples by making clear they will receive the same rights, responsibilities, and respect under New Hampshire law," Governor John Lynch said before signing the legislation in a State House ceremony at about 5:20 p.m. . . . Lynch said it was a New Hampshire tradition "to come down on the side of individual liberties and protections, and that tradition continues today." The room, filled by scores of the bill's supporters, resounded with applause as he signed. . . . "We're thrilled to death," said Mo Baxley, executive director of the New Hampshire Freedom to Marry Coalition. "We're equal. Equal isn't nothing. Equal is everything." . . . Gay marriage is now legal in Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Massachusetts -- all of the new England states, except for Rhode Island. Gay marriage is also legal in Iowa.

NEW JERSEY  

Lawyer Reprimanded for Alleged 'Cut You Up' Remark to Adversary's Client

Henry Gottlieb, New Jersey Law Journal

6-3-09 -- The New Jersey Supreme Court on Tuesday disciplined a lawyer who allegedly told an opposing party, "I'm going to cut you up into bits and pieces, put you into a box and send you to India and your parents won't recognize you." . . . In reprimanding Maplewood solo Joel Ziegler, a lawyer since 1966, the Court said he violated rules requiring courtesy to participants in the legal process and prohibiting conduct detrimental to the administration of justice. . . . The incident that got Ziegler in trouble occurred in the hallway of the Union County Courthouse on Sept. 25, 2001, while he was representing Himanshu Sharma in a domestic violence, custody and support case against Sharma's wife, Anu Upadhyay. . . . Ziegler became incensed over Upadhyay's testimony at a hearing before Superior Court Judge Joseph Donohue. "His face was red, flushed," Upadhyay testified later.

May 2009

KENTUCKY  

Attorney: Protective Order Was Mistake In Murder-Suicide

Lex 18 

5-29-09 -- The attorney for the family of a 21-month old boy who police say was killed by his father in murder-suicide earlier this week claim the incident would not have happened if not for a protective order filed against the mother that they say was a mistake. . . . Police say Cole Frazier was killed by his father, Timothy Frazier, before Timothy Frazier took his own life Tuesday night in Nelson County. The incident happened the day before the boy's mother, Candace Dempsey, was scheduled to go to court with hopes of getting the protective order against her dropped and her son returned. . . . When the order was signed off by a judge, a police officer came and took Cole Frazier away from Dempsey. However, her attorneys took a closer into her claims, and they are citing the protective order Timothy Frazier filed against her. While they say he requested temporary custody of the child, they say the request was denied. . . . According to the document, the judge stated, "if the petitioner believes the child is in danger when with respondent, he is referred to appropriate location of Cabinet for Heath and Family Services or to law enforcement." . . . "There was no probable cause for a circuit judge to believe this child should be removed from its mother, yet police removed the child from his mother," said Dempsey's attorney, Ron Hillerich. "There is a separate box on this form where the judge could have ordered temporary custody be given for Mr. Frazier, but he failed to check that."

NEW YORK  

N.Y. Family Court Denied Jurisdiction to Hear
Same-Sex Support Issue

Mark Fass, New York Law Journal

5-29-09 -- Family Court does not have jurisdiction to order a woman with no biological or legal ties to her former same-sex partner's son to pay child support, a New York state appeals panel has ruled. . . . The 3-2 ruling turned on the fact that the only New York proceedings for determining parentage are paternity proceedings, which resolve controversies regarding the fatherhood of a child. . . . No similar vehicle exists for determining a child's mother and, therefore, for the Family Court to order a woman with no other biological or legal connection to a child to pay for his or her support, according to an Appellate Division, 2nd Department, panel. . . . The "plain language of numerous provisions of Family Court Act article 5 [regarding paternity proceedings] clearly and unambiguously indicates that a proceeding thereunder will only involve a controversy concerning a male's fatherhood of a child," Justice Joseph Covello wrote for the majority in H.M. v. E.T., 2007-09323.

PENNSYLVANIA  

Perry County judge performs wedding during man's criminal trial

by The Associated Press, pennlive.com

5-29-09 -- A suburban Philadelphia man asked a judge to perform a wedding ceremony while the jury in the man's criminal trial was still deliberating the verdict. . . . Timothy Zalut, 20, of Doylestown, was on trial on assault charges this week in Bucks County Court. When it appeared that he might have to go to jail, Zalut decided to tie the knot with his fiancee, Hayley Dykstra. Senior Judge C. Joseph Rehkamp, of Perry County, was presiding over the trial. He agreed to perform the ceremony in chambers while the jury was still out. . . . Dkystra said, "We wanted to get married, and we were worried that we wouldn't get the chance." . . . A plea bargain finally brought the trial to a halt, and Rehkamp sentenced Zalut to five years of probation.

Former Agent Calls Sham Marriages 'Epidemic'

Written by Brian Maass, CBS4Denver

5-27-09 -- A former immigration enforcement agent says he is seeing an "epidemic" of fraudulent marriages where foreign women marry American men, then claim domestic violence to escape the marriage and legally remain in the U.S. . . . "What happens is they enter into a one-sided sham marriage to defraud an American citizen into believing they love him. And once they get in, they allege domestic violence to get themselves out of the sham marriage and to throw off suspicion this was a sham marriage to begin with," said John Sampson. . . . After 27 years as a U.S. Immigrations investigator, Sampson retired then started up a business in Aurora in January of this year to investigate suspected sham marriages. He says in less than six months, he has heard from 200 men in Colorado and across the country who are convinced they were used by foreign women then accused of being batterers. Under the federal Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), foreign women who file abuse claims against their American spouses can obtain permanent resident status. . . . "It's something completely different and pernicious and vile to seek out a U.S. citizen and run a scam by them and entice them into marrying them and not only abandoning and emotionally abusing them, but falsely accusing them of a heinous act. They allege the U.S. Citizen abused them somehow and file paperwork with (the U.S. government) … and they're here to stay," said Sampson. "They have an ace-high flush." . . . He claims the case of Roza Alexanyan, who now lives in the Denver metro area, as an example of this phenomenon. The 51-year-old woman is from Sochi, a city in Russia. She placed an Internet ad seeking a husband. It caught the attention of Chris Hoppel, a registered nurse from Erie, Pa. The two corresponded via e-mail for several years and Hoppel said he fell in love. He traveled to Russia and married Alexanyan, bringing her and her daughter back to the U.S.

MASSACHUSETTS   

Lawyer warned pals of trouble

Missing woman owes ex $1M

By Laurel J. Sweet, Boston Herald

5-26-09 -- In a cryptic e-mail last month, missing attorney Cynthia Dziurgot thanked two close friends for their support throughout her divorce but warned, “There may be a few more bumps in the road” before the 13-year drama was over. . . . The two have not heard from her since. . . . “I’m really worried. This is so out of character for her,” one of the friends said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “It sounds silly, but I thought she was like (Princess) Grace Kelly sometimes.” . . . The Herald reported yesterday that U.S. Marshals have launched a hunt for Dziurgot, 55, of Clinton. Judges in probate and bankruptcy courts this month issued arrest warrants for Dziurgot stemming from her weekslong disappearance and failure since last year to pay her ex-husband, John Farnsworth, a nearly $1 million settlement.

Lawyer locked in nasty divorce feud on the run

Split Decision

By Laurel J. Sweet, Boston Herald

5-25-09 -- U.S. Marshals have launched an unlikely manhunt for a “prim and proper” Clinton attorney and civic do-gooder who, embroiled in a bitterly contested divorce, has not been seen or heard from in weeks. . . . Cynthia Dziurgot’s disappearance has her family frightened and friends questioning how well they really know the rose gardener, who may be a fugitive. . . . Dziurgot, 55, is the subject of two arrest warrants. A Worcester Probate and Family Court judge is demanding she pay her ex-husband John Farnsworth nearly a million dollars and her 21-room mansion is being sold out from under her. . . . “We have no idea what’s going on. We’ll just pray for the best,” said Dolores Karpeichik, 69, who last spoke with her sister at a family gathering in Connecticut on Easter Sunday, April 12.

NEW JERSEY  

Reprimand Imposed on Divorce Lawyer Who Made Retainers Nonrefundable

5-20-09 -- Use of nonrefundable retainer agreements in violation of a court rule has drawn a reprimand for well-known matrimonial lawyer Elliot Gourvitz. This is according to a decision just released, accepting the findings of an ethics special master that in two cases, Elliot Gourvitz Esq. violated the Rules of Court, barring nonrefundable retainers, and, in a third, flouted an ethics rule requiring return of unearned legal fees.  In The Matter of Elliot Gourvitz, New Jersey Supreme Court, May 13, 2009

No-Fault Divorce: America’s Divorce Mill
by Judy Parejko, Catholic Exchange

5-18-09 -- What is no-fault divorce? . . . When you ask most people, they will say it’s a mutual-consent process, or that it preserves privacy , or that it eliminates blame for the failure of the marriage. . . . Not many people will answer that it’s a lawsuit in which one party is suing the other party. And even fewer will know that it came from the Soviet Union. . . . Like previous divorce actions, no-fault divorce is still a lawsuit, which means that one party is invoking the state’s police powers against the other party. The main difference now is that the person filing for divorce no longer has to provide a reason for why they’re doing it. This type of lawsuit is unique; it’s the only type of legal action devoid of any ‘claim’ (complaint), and if the party being sued doesn’t know the complaint, then there’s no possibility of a defense. . . . As for the communist origins of no-fault divorce, a 1975 law review article by Donald M. Bolas entitled, “No Fault Divorce: Born in the Soviet Union?” explains how, after speaking with Russian lawyers, he stumbled upon how Soviet divorce law may have influenced our own laws. . . . Bolas explains that when the Bolsheviks took over in 1917, religious marriages were no longer recognized by the state. Marriage became a “state action” and divorce became merely an administrative process known as Russian Post Card Divorce. One spouse simply filled out the paperwork at city hall and the other party was then notified by mail that they were no longer married. Some people married twenty times. There was also a ‘free love’ bureau where people could sign up for partners.

MINNESOTA   

Courts see recession-driven surge in child-support filings

The economy is driving uncoupled parents back to court. One woman walked away with a house, then watched it lose 25 percent of its value. While the squeeze hits mothers and fathers, their kids also pay a price.

By Rochelle Olson, Star Tribune

5-13-09 -- When rising health care costs for Leah Moran's three children broke her budget this spring, the single working mom from Bloomington took their fathers back to court. The $340 she got per child just wasn't cutting it in the current economy, she said. Moran's situation represents one faced by a rising number of divorced or estranged parents statewide: Stressed out in a stalled economy, they're streaming to courthouses seeking adjustments to child support obligations. . . . Family court calendars are becoming backlogged, and family-law attorneys -- among the few in this economy with job security -- are seeing caseloads balloon. Meanwhile, family law experts worry about the emotional toll that the increased litigating over child support inevitably will take on the intended beneficiaries: the children.

NEW YORK  

Wife May Use Husband's E-Mails in Divorce Case

By Mark Fass, New York Law Journal

5-13-09 -- In an upcoming divorce trial, a Brooklyn woman may introduce e-mails surreptitiously culled from her estranged husband's e-mail account as evidence of his scheme to hide his true income, a Supreme Court judge has ruled. . . . Justice Jeffrey S. Sunshine said the woman's accessing of her husband's account did not constitute "eavesdropping" under New York's Penal Law and therefore does not render the e-mails inadmissible. . . . The decision turned on the fact that the wife looked at e-mails stored in her husband's account, rather than intercepting e-mails while they were "in transit" to him. . . . "It is this court's understanding from the reading of the statute, legislative history and case law that the purpose of Penal Law § 250.00 is to prohibit individuals from intercepting communication going from one person to another, and in this case an email from one person to another," Justice Sunshine wrote in Gurevich v. Gurevich, 42358/07. "In the case at bar the email was not 'in transit,' but stored in the email account."

MINNESOTA   

Board: Goodhue County District Court judge should be removed from bench

By Frederick Melo, pioneerpress.com

5-12-09 -- The Minnesota Board on Judicial Standards is recommending that a sitting Goodhue County District Court judge be removed from the bench for referring cases appearing before him to his personal divorce lawyer for mediation — an arrangement that allegedly netted him huge savings off his legal bills. . . . The decision against Judge Timothy Blakely is more severe than the previous recommendation from a three-member fact-finding panel that called for the judge to be suspended for six months. . . . Two of the 10 board members cast dissenting votes. . . . The board opened an investigation in April 2007 into allegations that Blakely had used his position as a judge to benefit himself by referring divorce cases appearing before him to the legal firm that handled his own divorce. Blakely was $109,000 in debt to the firm, but two-thirds of his debt was forgiven after his series of referrals.

MICHIGAN  

Van Buren County judge has his own mandate for adoptive parents

by Rosemary Parker | Kalamazoo Gazette

5-10-09 -- Gabe and Allison Shockley began to arrange the adoption of their second child early in the birth mother's pregnancy. They attended every prenatal doctor's appointment. They were present at the baby's birth in Indiana. . . . The couple thought they had covered every detail. . . . But the Shockleys, of Mattawan, didn't know about Van Buren County Probate Judge Frank Willis' "moral commitment." . . . Willis requires parents who adopt infants in his county to agree that one of them will be home with the baby during the first year and won't work full time during the baby's preschool years. Willis is perhaps the only justice in Michigan to require such a pledge, which he acknowledges is not legally binding and may be offensive and outdated to some. . . . For the Shockleys, cutting in half their combined $70,000 income wasn't an option. . . . "It wouldn't have been possible to pay our mortgage and bills with one income," Allison Shockley said.

NEW JERSEY  

Our divorce settlement: Till recession does it last

By Jennifer Golson, Star-Ledger Staff

5-3-09 -- Michelle Copland is 42 and relies on her ex-husband's child support to cover the growing needs of their two daughters, one a teenager, the other a preteen. . . . Scott Caridi is 46 and collecting unemployment as he tries to drum up business for a North Jersey construction company. "If they get work, I get work again." His own company went out of business. . . . The former couple from Bergen County was married for almost 10 years until divorcing in 2003. For most of the time since then, Caridi paid $700 a week in alimony and $500 in child support. When the alimony ended, the child support bumped to $700 a week. . . . Then, Copland said, the checks stopped showing up and Caridi fell $6,000 behind. . . . With no work and another family to support, Caridi did what a growing number of divorced men and women are doing: They are filing for reductions in alimony and child support obligations. . . . While the Administrative Office of the Courts does not maintain statistics on the issue, lawyers and judges across the state say the recession is fueling a dramatic increase in applications to change divorce settlements.

NEW YORK

Stories sought for parents' rights pamphlet

Oneonta Daily Star

5-2-09 -- Dilip Sengupta, formerly of Delhi, is inviting area residents to share their stories about parental alienation as part of a project of the Association for the protection of the Rights of Non-Custodial Parents. . . . Stories are being compiled in the forum section of the ARNCP's website, http://parental-rights.webs.com, where more information on the project is also available. . . . Sengupta, president and founding member of the ARNCP, said he plans to compile the stories into a pamphlet titled "Left Out in the Cold," copies of which will be sent to Vice President Joseph Biden and Congressman Ron Paul in an effort to raise awareness of issues faced by noncustodial parents.

April 2009

NEW YORK  

Former Attorney's 'Sporadic' Economic Support Results in Small Share of Marital Property

Vesselin Mitev, New York Law Journal

4-30-09 -- A disbarred attorney who provided "limited, sporadic, unreliable and inconsistent" support to the "economic partnership" of a 17-year marriage should receive only 35 percent of the couple's property, a New York judge has ruled. . . . "The Court finds that during the marriage ... the Wife provided a substantial share of the financial and day-to-day support in maintaining the household ... includ[ing] working full-time, being the primary caregiver for their son and ... providing for the consistent and reliable income flow the family enjoyed," Acting Supreme Court Justice Mark D. Cohen of Suffolk County wrote in Glassberg v. Glassberg, 24307/05. . . . Marc Glassberg, an English teacher who went to law school at night, married Dorene Glassberg, a special education teacher, in 1988, a second marriage for both. The parties have one child, born in 1989. Ms. Glassberg filed for divorce in October 2005.

FLORIDA

Broken Heart Could Cost Ex-Boyfriend in Court

Daily Business Review

4-24-09 -- Kris Shubert is putting a price on heartbreak -- and it's more than $1 million. . . . She sued former boyfriend Kurt Wiksten in Palm Beach Circuit Court, claiming her decision to quit her job, sell her home and move to Texas to be with him was based on lies and left her with a personal financial mess. . . . The complaint filed this week contends Wiksten concealed financial and legal problems from Shubert, including tax liens and a bench warrant for failing to appear on a drunken driving charge. . . . "Wiksten had a duty to Shubert to disclose any negative aspects of his past to her before she enters into a personal relationship with him," the complaint said. . . . The two met in October 2003, and Shubert's lawsuit said she moved to Texas with a promise of marriage.

IOWA  

Iowa judge to stop performing marriages

By Jason Clayworth

4-23-09 -- At least one Iowa magistrate has decided that he will no longer perform marriages, a response due in part to the Iowa Supreme Court ruling that allows same-sex couples to marry. . . . Third District Magistrate Francis Honrath of Larchwood on Wednesday said he will not be performing marriages. . . . "The Supreme Court ruling had something to do with it, but the truth is it's not just same-sex marriage I had problems with," said Honrath, a Creighton University law school graduate who is married and has seven children. . . . More judges are expected to take similar action, which could make it challenging for even heterosexuals to marry, a political science professor, a chief district court judge and a same-sex marriage opponent speculated.

NEW YORK  

Judges Resist Bids to Upset Child Support in Face of Economic Upheaval

Vesselin Mitev, New York Law Journal

4-23-09 -- A pair of Nassau County Supreme Court rulings rejecting bids by parents to reduce child support obligations are indicative of judicial reluctance to disturb support agreements even in light of the faltering economy, attorneys said. . . . In one case, Justice Anthony J. Falanga found that a man who lost his six-figure job but received a severance package worth more than $150,000 cannot seek to reduce his child support obligations and called the man's application "unfathomable." . . . Meanwhile, Justice Timothy S. Driscoll declined to reduce the support payments of a man who lives in his girlfriend's $2.1 million home, which is equipped with a pool and tennis court. . . . In Cox v. Cox, 03-203416, Falanga denied a motion by John Cox to decrease his $19,800 annual child support payment, citing Cox's hefty $150,000 severance package.

OHIO  

Lawyer asks Ohio Supreme Court to remove Judge Leslie Ann Celebrezze from divorce case

Posted by Rachel Dissell and James F. McCarty / Plain Dealer Reporters

4-20-09 -- A husband embroiled in a protracted divorce case has accused a Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court judge of bias because her friend and campaign treasurer is working as the receiver in charge of assets in the case. . . . Marc Strauss, an attorney and wealthy real estate developer from Willoughby, asked the Ohio Supreme Court last week to remove Judge Leslie Ann Celebrezze from his case. He argues that the appointment of Mark Dottore as receiver was improper and prejudicial because of Dottore's close ties to Celebrezze and her family, including her father, whose judgeship she took over when he retired.

GEORGIA  

Ga. chief justice eyes mission of curbing divorces

By Greg Bluestein - Associated Press Writer

4-10-09 -- The anti-smoking movement helped snuff out rising tobacco use rates. Now, Georgia Chief Justice Leah Ward Sears says a similar campaign is needed to reverse an uptick in divorces. . . . Sears, who is stepping down from the court on June 30, told an audience Thursday in Athens she will spend a "substantial amount" of time after leaving the court working to reinvigorate marriages and discourage divorce and family abandonment. . . . Some 43 percent of all marriages end in divorce within 15 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. . . . Sears, who is divorced, pointed to statistics that showed children of divorced couples face increased risks of poverty, child abuse, emotional distress and mental illness. . . . In Georgia, more than 60 percent of all civil cases heard at the trial court level involve issues concerning children and families - more than all criminal cases combined. . . . "As a mechanism for signaling to young people the right time and the right person with whom to have a baby, marriage has no peer," she said in prepared remarks. "Marriage is also the best child welfare, crime prevention and anti-poverty program we have. We must, therefore, protect it."

MICHIGAN  

Incredulous Judge Throws Dog Sperm Flap Out of Court

By The Associated Press | New York Lawyer

4-9-09 -- The judge wondered if she was an unwitting participant in an episode of "Candid Camera" or "Punk'd." . . . Oakland County Family Court Judge Cheryl Matthews wasn't. She just had a front-bench seat Wednesday for a feud between a divorced couple over who gets frozen sperm from bull mastiffs they bred in happier times. . . . When Anthony and Karen Scully split in 2002, they divvied up the six bull mastiffs they owned. He kept four; she took two. Now, they're fighting over who owns the semen from Cyrus, Regg and Romeo that's being stored at a center in Sterling Heights.

Parental rights: The new wedge issue

By Andie Coller, Politico

4-8-09 -- If there were a recipe for creating a new conservative culture-wars issue, it might look something like this: Start with the United Nations, fold in the prospect of an expanded role for government in children’s lives, add some unfortunate court decisions, then toss in Barbara Boxer and Hillary Clinton. . . . And indeed, when House Republicans recently found themselves with all these ingredients at hand, Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.) started pre-heating the oven. . . . Hoekstra last week introduced a bill in the House to amend the U.S. Constitution to permanently “enshrine” in American society an inviolable set of parents’ rights. The bill had 70 co-sponsors, all Republicans, including Minority Whip Eric Cantor and Minority Leader John A. Boehner. . . . The bill, said Hoekstra, is intended to stem the “slow erosion” of parents’ rights and to circumvent the effects of a United Nations treaty he believes “clearly undermines parental rights in the United States.” . . . The treaty to which he refers is the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, a 20-year-old document signed by President Bill Clinton in 1995 but never ratified. The treaty sets international standards for government obligations to children in areas that range from protection from abuse and exploitation to ensuring a child’s right to free expression.

TEXAS  

Texas Judge Allows Collection of Dead Son's Sperm

The Associated Press, Law.com

4-8-09 -- A judge has granted a mother's request to have someone harvest sperm from her dead son's body, so she can have the option of carrying out his wish to have children. . . . Nikolas Colton Evans, 21, died Sunday at a Brackenridge hospital after being punched and falling outside a bar in Austin, Texas, on March 27. . . . His mother, Marissa Evans, told the Austin American-Statesman newspaper that he wanted to have three sons someday and had even picked out their names: Hunter, Tod and Van. . . . "I want him to live on. I want to keep a piece of him," she told the newspaper. . . . Travis County Probate Judge Guy Herman ruled Monday in an emergency hearing requested by the mother, because of the urgency of collecting the sperm intact. . . . Court documents said the sperm had to be collected within 24 hours of Nikolas Evans being removed from life support unless the body was cooled to no more than 39.2 degrees.

March 2009

CALIFORNIA  

Parents' contempt jailings struck down

Juvenile courts lose compliance mechanism

By Greg Moran, (Union-Tribune Staff Writer

3-31-09 --San Diego judges who preside over child welfare cases will no longer be able to send parents to jail for contempt of court because they failed in substance abuse recovery programs, the California Supreme Court ruled yesterday. . . . The 6-1 decision struck down a practice that has been in place in San Diego juvenile court since 1998 and sends scores of parents to county jails each year. . . . Associate Justice Carol Corrigan wrote that the county had to stop the practice because it was not authorized by state laws governing child welfare cases, which are heard in juvenile dependency courts. . . . Those courts hear cases in which children have been removed from their parents by the state because of abuse or neglect. Parents can get their children back if they fulfill the terms of a court-ordered reunification plan.

NEW YORK

State Court of Appeals to Hear Two Same-Sex Marriage Cases

By Jeremy W. Peters, New York Times

3-31-09 --The state’s highest court agreed on Tuesday to hear arguments in two cases that challenge New York’s recognition of same-sex marriages legally performed elsewhere. . . . Lower courts have already sided with two government entities that revised their policies to honor the marriages, but those decisions were appealed by the Alliance Defense Fund, a Christian group that is waging multiple legal battles in New York to stop state and local entities from recognizing marriages of same-sex couples who were wed in places, like Massachusetts and Canada, where the ceremony is legal. . . . Neither case involved Gov. David A. Paterson’s directive last May that ordered state agencies to recognize legal same-sex marriages performed outside New York State. . . . One case, Godfrey v. Spano, stems from the Westchester County executive’s 2006 decision to begin officially honoring out-of-state marriage licenses for gay couples the same way it did for heterosexual couples.

Who will raise kids: Mom, Dad or state?

Parental rights: 67 in Congress pushing to amend Constitution

Posted: March 29, 2009

By Drew Zahn, © 2009 WorldNetDaily

3-29-09 -- Though efforts to pass a constitutional amendment protecting parental rights have failed in the past, two U.S. legislators are preparing to reintroduce the idea this week; and this time, they say, the effort is backed by more than 60 congressional members. . . . Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich., who introduced a parental rights amendment by himself last year, told the Agence France-Presse that he will be joined by Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., on Tuesday as they renew the fight. . . . According to a statement released to AFP by Hoekstra's office, the amendment "would clearly outline in the U.S. Constitution that parents, not government or any other organization, have a fundamental right to raise their children as they see fit." . . .  "At a time when government at every level seems to encroach upon the ability of parents to choose the best for their children," Hoekstra writes on his website, "it is important to preserve parental rights into the Constitution." . . . Last summer Hoekstra introduced H.J.R. 97, proposing a constitutional amendment stating that the liberty of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children is a fundamental right that cannot be infringed upon by federal, state, or international treaty law without demonstrating government interest "of the highest order." Hoekstra asserts that legitimate cases of abuse and neglect fall under the "demonstrated government interest" clause.

NEW YORK  

Straying Wife's Fault Not 'Egregious' Enough for Penalty, N.Y. Court Finds

Finding of 'egregious fault' ultimately would have reduced the wife's share of the couple's property

Noeleen G. Walder, New York Law Journal

3-19-09 -- An attorney embroiled in a divorce proceeding cannot penalize his wife for allegedly duping him into thinking that his youngest son, the product of an affair, was his biological child, a New York state appeals court has ruled. . . . Howard S. sought "liberal discovery" to prove that his estranged spouse was guilty of "egregious fault," which ultimately would have reduced her share of the couple's property. Additionally, he sought damages he claimed stemmed from Lillian S.'s alleged fraud. . . . However, in a 4-1 ruling written by Justice Helen E. Freedman, the Appellate Division, 1st Department, held in Howard S. v. Lillian S., 4563, that "while defendant's alleged misconduct cannot be condoned and is clearly violative of the marital relationship, it does not rise to the level of egregious fault, since defendant neither endangered the lives or physical well-being of family members, nor deliberately embarked on a course designed to inflict extreme emotional or physical abuse upon them."

US Congressman Pete Hoekstra and Phyllis Schlafly of Eagle Forum Discuss Parental Rights on Get Your Justice Live

Congressman Pete Hoekstra (R-MI) discusses his upcoming reintroduction of the former Parental Rights Amendment from 2008 into the 111th Congress. The Congressman confirmed that efforts from citizens are working with an increase from 24 co-sponsors to 54 co-sponsors to the proposed Parental Rights Amendment.  Wendy Wright, President of Concerned Women for America, will be on an upcoming episode. We were also joined by Phyllis Schlafly of Eagle Form. Congressman Hoekstra stated very clearly that “I don’t want anybody coming between the parents and the kids, and creating a barrier.” . . . The language is simple:  “The liberty of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children is a fundamental right.“  The Congressman demonstrated clear examples of where parents make a better caregiver than the government. Congressman Hoekstra further said that one of the causes of the erosion of our parental rights is government growth, “Men of zeal who lack understanding,” people that basically mean well but who lack understanding. It is imperative that we protect our parental rights from both domestic and international government intrusions, but that means discussing our concerns consistently with our government officials. . . . Phyllis Schlafly discussed the erosion of parental rights, the rogue judiciary that are taking away parental rights, and the role of the multi-issue lobbying organization model. Phyllis also discussed the issue of bad welfare policy destroying fatherhood. I offered the statement again as I do with every single organization which is “Parental Rights should be respected and protected by all,” which strikes the proper cord. This is an issue about children needing their decisions to be made by those that know them best, their parents. . . . This is just one of a series of broadcasts about the importance of parental rights in America. The god-given right of children being led by their parents and not the government. We are leading a major fight to reject government usurpation of our parental rights.

IOWA  

Iowa judge rejects Davenport parental ordinance

By Amy Lorentzen | Associated Press Writer , Chicago Tribune

3-25-09 – A Scott County judge has ruled that the city of Davenport's parental responsibility ordinance is unconstitutional and cannot be enforced. . . . In his ruling issued Monday, Judge Gary McKenrick said the ordinance is overbroad and denies due process rights under the state and federal constitutions. . . . That's because under the ordinance, there is no independent or judicial determination that delinquent acts were committed. . . . McKenrick noted that the city only needs to prove a police officer determined there was probable cause to believe a child committed delinquent acts, with the burden falling on the parent to rebut that presumption.

CONNECTICUT  

Postnup’s $43M Divorce Settlement Isn’t Enough, Executive’s Wife Says

By Martha Neil, ABA Journal

3-18-09 -- Married since 2002 to George David, who is now chairman of the board of United Technologies Corp., Swedish countess Marie Douglas-David is entitled to a $43 million divorce settlement under a 2005 postnuptial agreement between the now-warring spouses. . . . But that's not enough, she contends, for one who needs $53,000 a week to cover ordinary living expenses, according to the Hartford Courant and an earlier Connecticut Law Tribune article. . . . In a high-profile Connecticut trial that begins today and is expected to set a new record high for a divorce judgment in the state, she is likely to argue that the postnup is unenforceable.

NEW YORK  

Discovery Denied in N.Y. Lawyer’s Fraud Claim Concerning Claimed Affair

By Martha Neil, ABA Journal

3-18-09 -- Seeking to reduce his divorce settlement in a state that still attributes fault between spouses in divorces, a New York lawyer tried to get "liberal discovery" concerning his claim that DNA evidence proves his youngest child was the product of an affair between his wife and a building contractor. . . . But a divided panel of the Appellate Division, First Department, shot down the fraud claim asserted by Howard S., saying that it did not amount to "egregious fraud," reports the New York Law Journal in an article reprinted by New York Lawyer (reg. req.). The issue was decided in an interlocutory appeal of the case, after a trial judge also denied the lawyer's discovery request. . . . "[W]hile defendant's alleged misconduct cannot be condoned and is clearly violative of the marital relationship, it does not rise to the level of egregious fault, since defendant neither endangered the lives or physical well-being of family members, nor deliberately embarked on a course designed to inflict extreme emotional or physical abuse upon them," the appellate majority writes in its 4-1 opinion.

Lawyer May Collect Fee Despite Billing Slip-Up

Vesselin Mitev, New York Law Journal

3-18-09 -- A divorce attorney who failed to bill his client at statutory 60-day intervals can still collect a fee for his services, a New York state judge has ruled. . . . "Although an attorney's failure to provide itemized bills at least every 60 days will preclude collection of a fee for services rendered ... where there has been 'substantial compliance' with the rules, recovery of fees has been allowed," Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Mark I. Partnow held in Edelstein v. Greisman, 18848/08. . . . Saul Edelstein, a partner in The Edelsteins, Faegenburg & Brown in Manhattan, was retained by Abraham Greisman in June 2004 and discharged two years later.

MINNESOTA   

Censure and suspension recommended for Judge Blakely

Jane Lightbourn The Hastings Star-Gazette

3-16-09 -- Following last week's recommendation by a three-member panel that Dakota County Judge Timothy Blakely should be censured and suspended for six months, the Minnesota Supreme Court will make the final decision. . . . The three-members on the panel are Edward Stringer, retired Supreme Court justice, and Lawrence Redmond and Allen Oleisky, retired District Court judges who were appointed last fall to make recommendations about Blakely's behavior during his divorce proceedings, which began in 2002, and subsequent referrals for his attorney to participate in mandatory pretrial mediations in cases he presided over in both Dakota and Goodhue counties. Blakely's attorneys were certified family court neutrals, providing services to parties involved in divorce proceedings. They were paid for their services.

PENNSYLVANIA  

Juveniles may get relief in judicial miscarriage

Special judge submits recommendations

By John Sullivan, Philadelphia Inquirer

3-14-09 -- Relief may be on the way for hundreds of juveniles caught in the maw of a judicial kickback scheme in Luzerne County. . . . A special judge the state Supreme Court appointed to review thousands of juvenile cases in the county submitted his initial recommendations yesterday in what is likely to be the first step in the unraveling of what could be one of the largest legal tangles in the state. . . . Now the state's highest court must decide what action to take on behalf of juveniles who appeared before Luzerne County Juvenile Judge Mark Ciavarella, who -- along with another Luzerne County judge, Michael T. Conahan -- has since pleaded guilty to taking millions of dollars in payments from two centers where he sent juveniles.

MINNESOTA   

State ethics panel calls for judge's suspension

The rare recommendation is for Judge Timothy Blakely, who sent business to a divorce lawyer and got a $63,503 discount.

By Rochelle Olson, Star Tribune

3-12-09 -- A Minnesota judge who steered business to a divorce lawyer who gave him a large discount should face the rare sanction of being suspended six months without pay, a judicial ethics panel recommended Wednesday. . . . The three-member panel of the state Board on Judicial Standards recommended censure and time off the bench and payroll for District Judge Timothy Blakely, who sits in Goodhue and Dakota counties. . . . Led by former Supreme Court Justice Edward Stringer, the panel found "clear and convincing evidence" that Blakely violated judicial rules and codes by accepting a $63,503 markdown on his $108,876 divorce after appointing his attorney many times as a mediator in cases he oversaw. . . . A Supreme Court ruling is months away, but Blakely could become the first judge suspended since 1993. Only four judges have been suspended in the 35-year history of the board, according to executive secretary David Paull.

NEW JERSEY  

New Business for Courts: Pet Custody

Judges may invoke specific performance remedy, N.J. appeals panel says

Mary Pat Gallagher, New Jersey Law Journal

3-12-09 -- When couples break up, judges can decide who gets custody of pets based on their unique sentimental value, a New Jersey appeals court ruled Tuesday, setting a precedent in the state. . . . The published opinion in Houseman v. Dare (pdf), A-2415-07, reverses a trial court's finding that pets differ from personal property like heirlooms, family treasures and works of art and therefore that the equitable remedy of specific performance is not available. . . . Appellate Division Judges Jane Grall, Stephen Skillman and Ronald Graves found that determination erroneous as a matter of law and remanded for further proceedings. . . . "There is no reason for a court of equity to be more wary in resolving competing claims for possession of a pet, based on one party's sincere affection for and attachment to it than in resolving competing claims based on one party's sincere sentiment for an inanimate object based on a relationship with the donor," Grall wrote.

NEW YORK  

First Prenuptial Pact by Hermes Heir Is Valid One, N.Y. Judge Finds

Mark Fass, New York Law Journal

3-13-09 -- A New York premarital agreement signed by an heir to the Hermes fortune is valid, even though a subsequent French agreement the couple signed may have failed to include exclusions anticipated by the initial agreement, a Manhattan judge has held. . . . Mathias Guerrand-Hermes argued that the court should throw out the New York prenuptial on the grounds of "mutual mistake." Both parties believed the French agreement, which they signed two days later, would include substantial waivers of property rights by the wife. The French waivers, it turns out, may not have been as strong as one or both parties originally believed. . . . Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Harold Beeler rejected Mr. Guerrand-Hermes' motion on several grounds, including that any potential mistake occurred after the first agreement was ratified, and therefore had no bearing on its validity.

MISSISSIPPI  

How to Win a New Trial: Claim the Lower Court Judge Badgered You

Leigh Jones, The National Law Journal

3-11-09 -- A Mississippi woman embroiled in a custody battle has won a new trial from the state's Supreme Court, which found that the she was badgered by a lower court judge who accused her of having "diarrhea of the mouth." . . . The Mississippi Supreme Court found that Glenn Alderson, a chancery court judge in Oxford, Miss., violated the state's Code of Judicial Conduct when he told the plaintiff that she "schemed" to keep her child away from her ex-husband, and when he called her expert witness, a psychologist, a "yo-yo-head." . . . The Supreme Court's decision reverses an appeals court ruling, which found that although Alderson's conduct was improper, it was harmless error and did not warrant a new trial. . . . The judge's remarks in Schmidt v. Bermudez, No. 2006-CT-00765-SCT, stemmed from repeated questions he asked the plaintiff, Amanda Bermudez Schmidt, as to why she had signed a separation agreement and a joint child custody and visitation agreement but later sought full custody of her child. "You wanted out of a marriage to marry your sweetie and get out of Dodge, that's what it boiled down to," the judge said at one point, according to the decision.

NORTH CAROLINA  

Judge orders homeschoolers into public district classrooms

Decides children need more 'focus' despite testing above grade levels

By Bob Unruh, © 2009 WorldNetDaily

3-11-09 -- A North Carolina judge has ordered three children to attend public schools this fall because the homeschooling their mother has provided over the last four years needs to be "challenged." . . . The children, however, have tested above their grade levels – by as much as two years. . . . The decision is raising eyebrows among homeschooling families, and one friend of the mother has launched a website to publicize the issue. . . . The ruling was made by Judge Ned Mangum of Wake County, who was handling a divorce proceeding for Thomas and Venessa Mills. . . . A statement released by a publicist working for the mother, whose children now are 10, 11 and 12, said Mangum stripped her of her right to decide what is best for her children's education. . . . The judge, when contacted by WND, explained his goal in ordering the children to register and attend a public school was to make sure they have a "more well-rounded education." . . . "I thought Ms. Mills had done a good job [in homeschooling]," he said. "It was great for them to have that access, and [I had] no problems with homeschooling. I said public schooling would be a good complement."

VIRGINIA  

Trial date set for Hub City lawyer

Hattiesburg Amercan

3-11-09 -- The trial of a Hattiesburg lawyer, who is charged with sending threatening text messages to his ex-wife, has been set for March 18. . . . Thomas Dale Beavers II was arrested in November after he was served an indictment for threatening his ex-wife, Christy Beavers. . . . Beavers is charged with one count of cyberstalking. . . . According to an indictment, Beavers sent threatening messages to his ex-wife through his cell phone on or about June 15.

CALIFORNIA  

Calif. Justices Appear Likely to Uphold Ban on Gay Marriage

Mike McKee, The Recorder

3-6-09 -- Same-sex marriage is history in California. . . . That was quickly apparent Thursday when two justices who backed marriage for gays and lesbians last year signaled they intend to uphold the measure that took that right away. . . . Chief Justice Ronald George and Justice Joyce Kennard, who helped form the 4-3 majority that let same-sex couples wed for six months last year, gave all indications that Proposition 8 -- as unpalatable as it might be to them -- must be accepted as the will of the people. . . . "Our task is quite limited," Kennard told anti-Prop 8 lawyers during oral arguments in San Francisco. "The people are those who have created the Constitution and what you are overlooking is the people's broad power to amend the Constitution."

NEW YORK  

Parents Denied Right to Dead Son's Sperm

Noeleen G. Walder, New York Law Journal

3-4-09 -- More than a decade after a fatally ill man deposited his sperm at a tissue bank, a New York appeals court has rebuffed the plea of his parents to use the sperm for conception of a grandchild, clearing the way for the destruction of the sample. . . . In a unanimous ruling, the Appellate Division, 1st Department, held that Mark Speranza's parents' proposal to use their dead son's semen to artificially impregnate a surrogate would "fundamentally violate" 10 NYCRR 52-8.6(g), which requires sperm donors to be screened before their specimens are donated to the public. . . . "Since the purpose of this statute is to protect the surrogate mother, and thereby the general public, from disease, we cannot countenance avoidance of the regulations' dictates, even though we recognize the joy that ignoring the regulations could bring to plaintiffs," Justice David B. Saxe wrote for the panel in Speranza v. Repro Lab Inc., 5121N.

NY Lawyer Can Evict His Attorney-Soon-to-Be-Ex-Daughter-in-Law Out of His House

By Vesselin Mitev, New York Lawyer

Attorney Granted Right to Evict Daughter-in-Law Found to Be Licensee

3-4-09 -- A Long Island attorney can evict his daughter-in-law from the beach cottage she shared with his son prior to their estrangement, a state judge has ruled in what the judge called an apparent case of first impression. . . . Dawn Fasano, also an attorney, claimed she could not be forced to leave the Oyster Bay home, as she became a family member of Lawrence M. Lally when she married his son in 2001. . . . But District Court Judge Scott Fairgrieve of Nassau County rejected that argument. . . . "As the relationship between a father-in-law and daughter-in-law would not ordinarily be recognized as part of the traditional nuclear family, this court acknowledges that it would be necessary to evaluate the relationship in the context of the 'reality of family life,'" Judge Fairgrieve wrote in Lally v. Fasano, 6202/08.