Family Law Attorney

Issues involving family can be sensitive and life-altering. You need an experienced professional on your side to help guide you through complex laws that can impact your family and your future. From divorce and child custody to inheritance property division; put our experience to work for you.

What is Family Law?

Family law is an area of the law that deals with family-related matters and domestic relations, including: marriage, civil unions, and domestic partnerships; adoption and surrogacy and child abuse. It also deals with other family-related issues such as child custody, property rights, and wills, deeds, and others.

To be able to address each matter accordingly, one has to know precisely what the case is and what to expect when the process begins. Below are brief explanations of each area of family law.

Divorce

Divorce is a case that seeks to nullify the bond caused by marriage between two people. When married, two parties sign together a contract and combine many areas of their lives, such as properties, children, businesses, and more. During a divorce,  that contract is meant to be unwound. In the proceedings, both parties may fight for their rights to their income streams, properties, children, and other subjects that the court may tag as conjugal property.

Divorce courts must tackle each case indepently to come up with the best resolution, often in terrible circumstances.

Child Custody

When two parties cannot decide on the division of parenting,  a parenting agreement that summarizes child custody and visitation is essential. However, it’s not all that easy, especially when there are issues between two parents or guardians. Those who have recently separated or divorced should look into the various types of child custody to determine the difference and how it applies to the family.

A child custody case can be:

• Legal – This gives a parent the right to make decisions in the long term perspective for the best interest of the child and the key aspects of the child’s welfare such as education, dental care, medical care, and even religious orientation.
• Physical – During a divorce, the court will determine the parent who deserves the physical custody – one that cares for the child on a daily basis.
• Sole – A parent having sole physical custody has exclusive rights with regards to the child. This custody arrangement is not commonly granted by the court. It is usually limited to circumstances where one parent has been considered unfit or incapable of caring for a child, in most cases, due to drug addiction or child abuse.
• Joint – There are various types of joint custody, which the court determines the exact arrangement based on the parties’ situation. One of the most common is sharing both physical and legal custody. Others may involve sharing legal custody but not physical custody.
• Grandparent visitation and custody – The laws concerning grandparent’s visitation rights differ on every state but are always inclined to support the child’s best interest. For example, state laws may grant grandparent custody in case the biological parents are deceased or not fit to provide care for their child. Likewise, visitation may be granted when it’s proven that the child would benefit from having a  close relationship with their grandparents.

Child Support

Child support comes in the form of support payments often ordered by the court when parents have decided to live separately or get divorced. Any child has the right to receive support from both parents to be able to protect their best interest.

The support payment is usually paid by one parent to another after a divorce or separation of unmarried couples. In most cases, the non-custodial parent hands on the payment to the parent who has sole or physical custody of the child. The paying parent has to provide a set amount monthly, which will be used for the care and upkeep of the child.

Parenting Time

Parenting time is defined as the time each parent devotes to their children after a divorce or a paternity or custody arrangement has been agreed upon by both parents (unmarried couples). A parenting time schedule is set for one parent in the event that the other parent has physical custody. The schedule may include which parent will care for the child during school vacations or holiday season. It could also include who provides transportation and venue where the exchange of parenting time will take place.

Estate Planning

Estate planning is simply making a plan ahead of time and choosing the person to receive the assets or properties when another person dies. In more complicated cases, estate planning may also include listing of care instructions when you become disabled, naming a guardian or an inheritance manager for minor beneficiaries, adding life insurance to cover your family’s needs at your death, and transfer of your business in the event of disability, retirement, or death.

Probate

Probate is a legal process that distributes estate or property to heirs and nominated beneficiaries. It also involves paying of any debt owed to creditors. More often, probate properties are distributed based on the provisions of one’s last will and testament, if any, or on state law, in the absence of a notarized will.

Wills

Wills are a legal document that allows the testator (the person who wrote the will), assign a person or charity to acquire the properties and possessions when they pass away. They also allow the creator of the will to name a guardian if minor children are involved. The main goal of writing a will is to make sure that the testator’s requests will be followed accordingly upon death. Other individuals also use wills to:

• Assign an executor for their assets
• Nominate guardians for children and their properties
• Instruct the executor on how debts and taxes will be paid
• Provide instructions for pet care
• Have a backup for a living trust

Deeds

Deeds are an essential legal document that proves the transfer of ownership of a home or a property to another individual. Typically, it includes the location of the property, the names of the former owners, the names of the new owners, and the date of the sale.

There are three types of deeds, according to the law:

• Quitclaim deeds – These convey a seller’s interest in a property to a buyer, which means that a seller who owns a building or other properties can issue a quitclaim deed to a buyer. They may also transfer all of the interest in the property to the buyer.
• Warranty deeds – These transfer an owner’s interest in a property to a new owner. It also guarantees that the property is free from title issue or other problems concerning ownership.
• Special warranty deeds –  These hand over a seller’s interest in a property to a new owner. These also warrants that title issues or other conflicts that happened throughout the course of their ownership. However, this doesn’t guarantee that no title issues or other problems exist at present.

We Specialize in Family Law Matters

There is no sole solution to all divorce and family matters. This is exactly why the Law Office of Lawrence J. Coogan digs deeper into the situation to figure out the option that best suits you. We consider all the possible options and outcomes and act accordingly to your family’s best interest.

Whether you’re looking to file a divorce, claim child support, or distribute a property that needs a rightful owner, Attorney Coogan offers personalized legal assistance in Melvindale Michigan. We go through each case as immersed as we can to help you get the best possible outcome for the case at hand.

Attorney Lawrence J. Coogan has over 30 years of experience advising the people of Metro Detroit for criminal defense, bankruptcy, personal injury, and family law matters.  He devoted his expertise and legal competency to assist the residents of Melvindale, Lincoln Park, Allen Park, Dearborn, Dearborn Heights, and other surrounding communities in the Wayne County area.

Let Us Resolve Your Family Law Matters Today

The sooner you seek help, the sooner you are to reaching a resolution. Attorney Coogan is more than willing to help you with matters of divorce, mediation, child support, child custody, post-divorce disputes, wills, deeds, and so on. Our law office proudly boasts our reputation, having the opportunity to negotiate on behalf of hundreds of our esteemed clients.

Take advantage of our personalized approach to achieving the best solutions to your family law concerns. Call our law office at (313) 381-0044 or fill up the contact form through our Contact Us page. You may also visit our office at 4146 Oakwood Blvd, Melvindale, MI 48122.

Don’t delay the process. Reach out to the Law Office of Lawrence J. Coogan today!