Divorce & Family Law
Divorce and Family Law
Every family is unique, and every family’s needs are unique. Whether you’re planning your dream wedding at Lake St. Clair or getting ready to end a marriage that is no longer working, you deserve to be treated with care, respect, and dignity.
The law offices of Rodnick, Piraino & Ingber, PLLC in Warren, Michigan, can assist you in every stage of your family’s legal journey. With over 34 years of legal experience fighting for clients in Macomb County and around the State of Michigan, our family law team can help you navigate life’s most challenging times.
Call us at 586-574-0020 or contact us online today for a
confidential consultation about your case.
Types of Cases We Handle
We are here to assist you with all your family law needs, including:
- Prenuptial and postnuptial agreements
- Mediation to resolve challenging issues and disagreements
- Personal protection orders to keep you and your family safe
- Filing for divorce
- Separate vs. marital property
- Property division
- Child custody
- Child support
- Parenting time
Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements
Both parties must also sign the agreement.
A postnuptial agreement is like a prenuptial agreement, except that it’s created after the marriage takes place. For such an agreement to be valid, it must meet the same conditions as a prenup. In addition to those requirements, however, those with postnuptial agreements will likely be required to prove that the agreement wasn’t made just to retain a larger share of the marital property because divorce was looming.
A prenuptial agreement, also known as an antenuptial agreement, is a contract between two people planning to marry. It is designed to help minimize future conflicts if the marriage doesn’t work out. For instance, the agreement may specify expectations for property division and spousal support, so there is no ambiguity about these questions later.
Michigan courts have found that a prenuptial agreement must be:
- Fair, equitable, and reasonable
- Voluntary
- Made with full disclosure of all relevant information
- Not fraudulent or unduly influenced
Filing for Divorce
Before you can file for divorce in Michigan, you must meet certain requirements under Michigan law:
- You or your spouse must have lived in Michigan for at least 180 days before filing.
- If your spouse no longer lives in Michigan or didn’t live in the state when the cause for divorce first arose, then one of you must have lived in Michigan one year before the filing date.
- You or your spouse must have lived in the county where you file for at least ten days.
- The marriage must have broken down, with no reasonable chance to preserve it.
When you file for divorce, you’ll have greater success with the results when you hire a lawyer to represent you. The attorneys at Rodnick, Piraino & Ingber, PLLC can ensure you’ve taken all the necessary steps and filed your divorce correctly. Additionally, they know the pitfalls to avoid that may complicate your divorce and cause it to take longer. Having a skilled attorney on your side gives you the opportunity to focus on building your new life while your lawyer does the legal work.
Mediation and Arbitration
When a couple is getting divorced, there’s a good chance both partners have become so mired in conflict that they’ve developed an adversarial relationship. When this happens, they can have difficulty discussing challenging issues without escalating into open conflict.
Mediation and arbitration are two ways of dealing with this situation. If the couple agrees to mediation, a neutral third party trained as a mediator will work with them to help them reach a mutually beneficial agreement.
Mediation is ideal for anyone going through a divorce, but sometimes, the other party is unwilling to negotiate, or both parties are so hostile to each other that they can’t reach an agreement.
In this case, Michigan allows both parties to agree to binding arbitration to resolve issues such as:
- Child custody
- Child support
- Parenting time
- Spousal support or alimony
- Division of property
- Enforceability of any prenuptial agreement
- Responsibility for debt
- Truck Accidents
Child custody issues are some of the most emotional matters to resolve in any divorce. Both spouses often want custody of the children or want to protect their rights to parenting time. Child support and spousal support can also be challenging issues because there is money involved.
Our family law team is full of experienced trial lawyers who can help you with these often excruciating situations. We can advise you on whether mediation or arbitration is the best choice in your individual situation, and we will vigorously defend your rights in court.
Personal Protection Orders
Our firm understands that your personal safety and the safety of your children is of utmost importance. We are committed to helping our clients obtain the legal protection they need. If you are facing domestic violence, stalking, or any other form of harassment or abuse, we can guide you through the process of obtaining a Personal Protection Order.
Michigan law allows either spouse to file a Personal Protection Order (PPO) to restrain the other party from committing certain acts, including:
- Threats
- Harassment
- Violence
- Stalking
A Personal Protection Order is a legal document issued by the court. It serves to safeguard the well-being and security of individuals in potentially dangerous situations by outlining exactly what behavior is unacceptable and providing legal consequences for violating the terms of the PPO.
Michigan law has made provision for three different types of PPO. Our firm can determine which type of PPO is best for you. We can obtain the necessary background information to show the court why you need the PPO and take your case before the correct court to pursue the PPO you need.
Separate vs. Marital Property
Division of property issues are especially complex. The court must determine which assets are separate property owned by one spouse before marriage and which are marital property. Generally, separate property is retained by the spouse who owns it. Separate property is whatever property the person brought into the marriage and any property obtained during the marriage by inheritance or award, such as a workers’ comp award or a personal injury settlement.
Michigan is an equitable distribution state. That means the marital property will be distributed in a fair way, but not necessarily 50/50, between the spouses. If one partner has tremendous separate property, they may receive a reduced share of the marital property so that the parties are left in a reasonably equitable condition after the divorce is final.
Call a Skilled Family Law Attorney in Warren, Michigan, for Help Today
No one enters a marriage with the anticipation of getting divorced, but despite the couple’s best intentions, many marriages end in divorce. It makes sense to plan for the worst ahead of time by signing a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement.
If divorce is inevitable, you need the assistance of an experienced Michigan divorce lawyer to protect your interests and those of your children. Our attorneys have decades of experience in precisely these kinds of cases, and we’ll stand up for you and your children while working toward the result that benefits your family the most.
If you’re preparing for a marriage or going through a divorce in Warren, Michigan, contact the law firm of Rodnick, Piraino & Ingber, PLLC, for guidance with every aspect of the situation. Call us at 586-574-0020 or contact us online today.
