Family law matters can present tremendous problems for all involved. Divorce, in particular, can be complicated, bringing up the most important issues to people: their children, their money, their house and their futures. When you have questions about the steps you should take, contact a Mankato family lawyer at Kohlmeyer Hagen, Law Office Chtd.
If you see a dispute on the horizon or have received court papers, get in touch with one of our Mankato family law attorneys as soon as possible.
At the Kohlmeyer Hagen, Law Office Chtd., we solve problems. Our Mankato and Rochester family law attorneys are some of the most respected family lawyers in Southern Minnesota, being named “Best Law Firm,” “Super Lawyer,” “Top 1%,” and “Rising Star,” an achievement very few law firms can say. We handle all types of family law matters. Contact Kohlmeyer Hagen, Law Office Chtd., today to schedule your initial consultation.
Divorces in Minnesota are usually handled on an hourly basis. Lawyers ask for a certain amount of money to be put in the trust account. A relatively simple divorce involving only children or limited property distribution may cost less than a complex case involving business and nonmarital property. A “normal” divorce is usually between $2,500 to $4,500. If the case involves farms, businesses, high-wage earner cases or very contentious custody and parenting time battle, it can cost more than $10,000.
This is a question that depends on the specifics of your case and how complex it is. If you agree on everything with your soon-to-be ex-spouse, it can take less than a month. However, if you disagree on most things, you usually have to serve the other person with a divorce petition, and they will usually have to draft and file an answer (which, in Minnesota, is due 30 days after being served). Then you will usually have to go to a hearing called an ICMC or the Initial Case Management Conference to see if mediation or trial is more appropriate. A “normal” divorce usually takes 2-6 months, but this is a vague estimate and depends on your specific cases.
Divorce is hard. Even when both spouses agree it is the best decision, it is still profoundly emotionally and logistically complicated. You may be wondering: Are you required to testify in court to get a divorce in Minnesota? The answer depends on the specific facts of your case. With a contested divorce, you will be required to go to court.
Divorce cases in Southern Minnesota fit into two broad categories: contested divorce and uncontested divorce. A contested divorce is a disputed divorce. A judge will be needed to decide on one or more critical issues, such as property division, alimony, or child custody/visitation. With a contested divorce, you must be ready to go to court.
An uncontested divorce is one in which the spouses can settle independently. Under Minnesota law (Sec. 518.06 MN Statutes), “the court shall grant a decree of legal separation” when a couple can reach an uncontested divorce. In general, a limited court appearance is all that is needed in an uncontested divorce case.
For an uncontested divorce to be finalized, a judge must accept the agreement reached by the parties. As a general rule, Minnesota courts give married couples broad deference to get their voluntary divorce settlements – mainly when a qualified divorce attorney represents each party. If you can reach an uncontested divorce agreement with your partner, it is unlikely that you will be called upon to testify in court.
That being said, both spouses should still be prepared to attend a relatively brief court hearing. During a brief appearance, they can then present their uncontested divorce settlement to a Minnesota court. Assuming there are no problems, the judge will then issue an official decree of dissolution, thereby finalizing the divorce.
Summary: If you are locked in a contested divorce dispute, you should be prepared to testify in court. You can get an uncontested divorce if you can reach a full settlement with your spouse. Only a simple and relatively brief court appearance will be required with an uncontested divorce.
Divorces are started in Minnesota by serving the other side with a legal document called a Petition for Marital Dissolution. The other party then has 30 days to reply with an answer, and usually, discovery is subsequent. In discovery, questions are asked and answered in writing and under oath. Once this is done, the lawyers typically discuss ways to avoid trial, such as ICMC, mediation, or ENE (early neutral evaluation).
One key issue is that just because lawyers are involved does not mean the case will go to trial or end up “in court.” A divorce lawyer’s goal is to be sure that you are being protected and to move the case forward as smoothly and efficiently as possible, not just to fight.
First, you need to make a very personal decision, do you feel you need to get divorced? If you have been served with a petition for dissolution, you should call and set up an initial consultation immediately. But, if you haven’t been done but still think you may need a divorce, call and we can go over your options. It’s important to note that at Kohlmeyer Hagen, Law Office Chtd., our Mankato attorneys will not talk you or your family into a divorce. You have our word on that. Divorce is a serious decision that you, your family, and perhaps your clergy must consider carefully.
We view our job as giving you the necessary information to help you decide whether to proceed.
To officially start the divorce with us, we need three things:
Once we get these documents, we can start working on your divorce.
The short answer is maybe. If you are married and living together, you each have an equal right to the property. This means that if you change the lock on your door, your husband or wife has the right to break in (after all, they do own ½ the door!). You may need to file a “Motion for Temporary Relief” to get the judge to order your soon-to-be ex-spouse to move out.
Minnesota has two distinct types of custody; legal and physical. Legal custody deals with education, and most of the time, you will have joint legal custody with your ex. If you have joint legal custody, you will have to agree on where the kids go to school. If you can’t decide, the court will ultimately decide for you.
Medical insurance premiums are considered a form of child support in Minnesota. This means that over and above cash child support payments, the court will take both parties’ incomes, divide them, and assign a percentage to each parent to cover the kid’s health insurance. This law was changed in 2007/2008, and we rarely argue about this any longer as it is just a calculation.
This is a tricky question and one that isn’t very clear. If the divorce decree is silent about who pays, you’ll have to work it out with your ex. While the cost of activity fees, camps, clothing, etc., can be very expensive, it is not dealt with under Minnesota child support laws, and you usually have to work this out during the divorce process to see who will pay what fees in the future.
If you intend to return, You can leave the state with your kids. This is true both during the divorce and after. However, the issue that comes up very frequently is moving out of state. To move out of state, the parent that intends to move must get permission from the other parent. A Mankato attorney who is skilled in family law can help you with this process.
Every state is unique in how they calculate child support. Minnesota looks at the number of overnights each parent has and considers the income each parent has to come up with a monthly payment that is owed. A few key issues to remember is that you need a court order that explicitly grants several overnights in the order.
It can get tricky when a person is not employed, underemployed, owns a small business, or has a significant bonus structure in place. A Mankato attorney could help you with this area of family law.
Most parents must pay until 1) the child turns 18 and is legally an adult or 2) the child graduates high school. It’s important to note that it’s the latter of the two events. If your child turns 18 in April but graduates in June, child support is owed until June. There are rare occasions where a Minnesota court can order child support past those instances, such as the child having a severe health condition or other need-based reasons.
Just as the court looks at the PICS (parental income available for child support) amount and determines the percentage each parent has available for health insurance, the same is done for day care. There are instances, such as when the county or state is involved and provides Minnesota Care or Minnesota Assistance, where the formula is different, but generally, it’s the same percentage as health insurance.
A premarital or prenuptial agreement is not the most romantic thing to do before marriage, but as a Mankato attorney could explain, it can save an enormous amount of money and stress for you and your family if you get divorced. Even if you are not wealthy, if you are bringing assets into the marriage or anticipate gifts from your parents or others while you’re married, then it’s essential to consider preparing a prenuptial agreement.
The short answer is to NOT “co-mingle” the property. The commingling property is where you mix nonmarital property with marital property. An example would be if you had an IRA before marriage and kept contributing to it after marriage. This causes the money to mix and makes it hard for the court to determine what was nonmarital.
A better solution is to keep the accounts separate or start a new account, leaving the old one untouched while you are married.
Yes. If the technical requirements are not followed precisely, then the prenuptial agreement will usually be held to be invalid. These requirements can be a little strict, such as having the document done at least 24 hours before the marriage, disclosing all assets and allowing each party to have an attorney review the record, to name a few.
Probably. This depends on the facts of the case. One of the requirements for a prenuptial agreement is that it must be an equitable agreement. This can be a little hard to understand and is very fact specific. For example, if one party becomes a world-famous neurosurgeon while the other stays home and raises all the kids 25 years later they divorce, it would be unfair to put the nondoctor out on the street with nothing after all those years.
Nonmarital property is the property you bring into the marriage, inheritance assets someone leaves you in their will, or a gift to just you (not your spouse and you). If you divorce, you generally get to keep your nonmarital property.
On the other hand, marital property is generally considered everything you acquire during the marriage and is divided equally if you divorce.
If you have a joint mortgage, meaning you are both on the note from the home, the bank will expect to be paid, and they don’t care by whom. While your credit may take a hit if you don’t pay, generally, until the court issues a temporary order, neither of you “has” to pay. It’s what we call the wild west during the early days of your divorce case, and you should plan and budget accordingly.
If you decide to leave the home and get divorced, there is no clear-cut law on what you can and cannot take from the home. Since most items are probably marital property, you are entitled to ½ or at least ½ of the value. The only restriction is that once the divorce is filed, you cannot dispose of assets except under very limited circumstances.
Most of the items (and debt) you acquire from the date you are married until the date of valuation (a technical term that puts a line in the sand as to the date used to assess the value of the couple’s assets and debts) are usually divided equally. This means the car, the home, retirement, or pension plans should be divided equally. Remember, just because one person has their name on a title or asset doesn’t mean it is not marital property.
This can get tricky; if you owned a home before the marriage and haven’t co-mingled the funds by refinancing and taking all the equity, you may be entitled to have that portion of the down payment be nonmarital. This can get a bit technical, and remember if you claim the asset is nonmarital, then you have the burden to prove it.
Divorce mediation is very common in Minnesota. It’s usually faster and cheaper than going to trial, and most cases settle during a sound and adequately prepared mediation session. Usually, both parties will have a lawyer present during mediation, and we often have a signed agreement when we leave the mediation!
The mediator is neutral, and they have only one concern: to settle the case. They can’t advise you or the other party. This is important to remember because some people believe that a mediator will try and divide the property or the kids fairly, but that’s not what they are for.
If you don’t settle the case during mediation, the mediator will notify the court and the court and your lawyer will usually set up a pretrial hearing. This is the last chance to try and settle the case short of going to trial. Most cases do resolve short of pretrial, either at ENE, mediation, or through some other alternative dispute resolution.
Minnesota law indicates that the parties should attempt mediation unless there is physical abuse. While most courts in Minnesota will not require you to mediate, they strongly encourage it as it is so effective in resolving even the most unpleasant cases.
The short answer is a lot less than a trial. Typically, mediators charge from $150-$350 per hour. Some charge for travel and prep time, some do not. Remember that trial and trial preparation is what you are attempting to avoid, as it can be costly.
The short answer is not really. Generally, if you are an unmarried father and even signed the birth certificate at the hospital, you have very few rights until the court adjudicates you as the child’s father. This is different than if you are married and the child is born. If the child is held during the marriage, it’s legally presumed that you are the father.
Yes. If there has not been a motion to establish parenting time or custody, even if the father has signed a Recognition of Parentage, the mother can leave the state without obtaining either the court’s or the father’s permission.
Prenuptial agreements can be beneficial, regardless of your wealth. With this type of agreement, you can:
Prenups are for more than divorce. When you die, your spouse has a right to an “elective share.” This is a percentage of your estate based on how long you were married. The elective share preempts what’s in your will. In a prenup, spouses can waive their right to an elective share, which protects assets for your children from a previous marriage.
Minnesota is a no-fault divorce state. The only ground for divorce is that the marriage has irretrievably broken down. If one spouse wants to get divorced, the union has broken down.
Yes, but it isn’t easy. Generally, parents are free to raise their children as they see fit, without the interference of grandparents or anyone else. There are limited situations where a grandparent can seek visitation:
Grandparents need to be prepared to show it is in the child’s best interest to have visitation with them. The child’s best interests are always the touchstone regarding visitation.
Yes. There are generally two situations where grandparents can request custody:
Custody as a grandparent is complicated to get if either parent fights it.
Victims of domestic violence have many difficulties on their plate at any given time: dealing with the physical effects of abuse, seeking help with mental trauma, and finding a positive care situation for children. Going through a divorce can often exacerbate these issues. Emotions run high in almost any divorce process, and the tension increase can worsen a bad situation. If you are a victim of domestic violence and are considering a divorce, or are already started on the divorce process, contact us to learn more about your legal options.
To protect your rights in a family law dispute, you need an experienced Mankato family lawyer looking out for your rights. Hire a seasoned Southern Minnesota family law attorney by calling Kohlmeyer Hagen, Law Office Chtd. today. You can also reach us through our contact page.
