Coates, Battle & TyreeAttorney Richmond Virginia | Coates, Battle & Tyree2024-03-13T02:13:47Zhttps://www.coateslaw.com/feed/atom/WordPress/wp-content/uploads/sites/1503419/2023/01/cropped-CoatesBattleTyree-Site-icon-32x32.pngOn Behalf of Coates, Battle & Tyreehttps://www.coateslaw.com/?p=503102023-12-15T19:34:58Z2023-12-15T19:34:58Zvisitation and parenting time, have found their place in the virtual realm.
What is virtual visitation?
This approach refers to the use of technology to enable communication between parents and their children when children are residing with their other parent. This can include video calls, instant messaging and other online tools that allow parents to maintain a meaningful connection with their children, even if their physical presence is not possible.
Virtual visitation acts as a bridge, allowing parents to participate actively in their child’s daily life, regardless of physical distance. Regular communication fosters a sense of connection and emotional bonding, contributing positively to the parent-child relationship.
The state recognizes the importance of maintaining parent-child relationships, even when physical distances pose challenges. Virtual visitation is acknowledged and can be incorporated into parenting plans, provided it serves a child’s best interests.
Creating a virtual visitation schedule may be helpful in better ensuring consistency and predictability. Courts may require a detailed plan outlining the frequency, duration and mode of virtual communication. This plan should be flexible enough to adapt to a child’s evolving needs.
Additional considerations
It’s crucial to include specific details in a parenting plan to maximize the effectiveness of virtual parenting time. Courts appreciate thorough and well-thought-out arrangements that prioritize a child’s best interests.
While virtual visitation offers numerous benefits, addressing potential technological challenges is essential. Confirming that both parents have access to reliable internet connections and suitable devices is crucial for successful virtual communication.
Understanding virtual visitation and parenting time is vital for parents navigating the complexities of modern family dynamics. By embracing technology, parents can maintain strong connections with their children, fostering healthy relationships even when physical distances pose challenges.]]>On Behalf of Coates, Battle & Tyreehttps://www.coateslaw.com/?p=502152023-11-09T12:55:59Z2023-11-09T12:55:59Zthe financial security of your children during and after a divorce is crucial.
The role of financial security
Children’s educational needs are a top priority for most parents. Maintaining financial security can ensure they have access to quality education and opportunities for personal growth. Financial stability also contributes to children’s emotional well-being. Knowing that their basic needs will be met can ease their anxiety and stress during the divorce process.
Children should not experience a significant drop in their standard of living due to divorce. Financial security helps maintain their accustomed lifestyle. More importantly, children’s health should never be compromised due to financial constraints. Adequate funds must be available for healthcare and medical expenses.
Legal aspects of financial security
Child support is a fundamental legal resource that helps to ensure the financial security of children after divorce. It is typically determined based on the income of both parents, and it’s crucial to comply with these legal obligations.
Determining parenting time and custody rights go hand in hand with child support and is essential for children’s emotional well-being. Ultimately, working with a financial advisor to develop a detailed plan that outlines your children’s expenses and needs is a wise move. This plan should consider factors such as education, healthcare and your child’s daily living expenses.
The importance of co-parenting and communication
Effective co-parenting and communication can be vital in ensuring your children’s financial security. Therefore, you should work with your ex-spouse to make financial decisions that benefit your children. Collaborative efforts can lead to more effective solutions. Try to maintain consistency in both households’ financial matters, such as allowance, savings and financial responsibilities, so that these preventable sources of tension down the road are addressed proactively.
Divorce is undoubtedly a challenging process, but by prioritizing your children’s financial security, you can help them navigate this difficult time with greater ease. Remember that creating a solid financial plan and maintaining open communication may be key to ensuring your children’s bright and secure future.]]>On Behalf of Coates, Battle & Tyreehttps://www.coateslaw.com/?p=502062023-11-06T14:13:11Z2023-11-06T14:13:11ZLack of communication
Effective communication is the cornerstone of successful co-parenting. When communication breaks down, misunderstandings and conflicts are likely to follow. Establishing open and transparent lines of communication with your co-parent is imperative.
One practical solution is to use online tools or apps that facilitate shared calendars. This can enable both parents to stay up-to-date on important dates, such as:
School events
Doctor’s appointments
Extracurricular activities
Email and messaging apps should also be your best friends in co-parenting. They allow you to communicate without the emotional charge that face-to-face conversations might inspire.
Inconsistent parenting styles
Inconsistent parenting styles can be confusing and stressful for children. To provide them with the stability they need, strive to maintain consistency between both households. You might want to craft a co-parenting plan set of values that outlines your:
Parenting principles
Discipline strategies
Routines
A well-defined plan can help ensure the children experience a consistent environment in both homes. This plan does not have to be formalized with the court like a parenting plan, but can serve as a valuable resource nonetheless.
While you may have differences with your co-parent, be open to compromise. Flexibility is key to maintaining consistent rules and expectations for the children, even if the day-to-day practices differ.
Using children as messengers
Using your children as messengers between households can cause emotional harm and strain your co-parenting relationship. Communicate directly with your co-parent, especially when it comes to important issues or scheduling changes. Avoid putting your children in the middle, as it can create feelings of guilt and anxiety.
And please encourage your children to share their thoughts and feelings with both parents. Try to ensure they know they can openly discuss their experiences and concerns without fear of judgment.
Co-parenting after divorce is undoubtedly challenging, but by avoiding these three critical mistakes, you can provide your children with a more stable, nurturing and loving environment. Remember, the goal is to prioritize your children’s well-being and happiness throughout this journey.]]>On Behalf of Coates, Battle & Tyreehttps://www.coateslaw.com/?p=502042023-10-31T19:34:11Z2023-10-31T19:01:19ZStartling statistics
While numerous accounts see prisoners enduring horrible treatment, statistics tell an alarming story.
Federal prisoners who lost their lives while in custody of a facility managed by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) were at 381 in 2019.
State prison mortality rates were at 330 per 100,000 state prisoners in 2019, with BOP-operated detention centers at 259 per 100,000 federal prisoners
Nearly 90 percent of 65,027 state prisoners and 7,125 federal prisoners died in custody from 2001 to 2019 due to illness.
Deaths caused by drug or alcohol intoxication in state prisons skyrocketed from 35 in 2001 to 253 in 2019
3,853 prisoners lost their lives in state and private prisons under a state contract, a rare reduction of 284 deaths in 2018
For every 100,000 prisoners in state and privately operated prison facilities In 2019, 261 lost their lives from illness, and 46 took their own lives
Mortality rates involving homicide with state prisoners grew from 10 in 100,000 in 2108 to 12 per 100,000 in 2019
Even after prisoners are released, the trauma of violence and abuse continues, not to mention the unsanitary conditions and less-than-adequate healthcare. Reforms are paramount and long overdue to keep those incarcerated safe and those on the outside prepared for a new chapter in their lives.]]>On Behalf of Coates, Battle & Tyree, P.C.https://www.coateslaw.com/?p=492452022-12-20T21:14:14Z2022-12-19T19:36:08Zthis couple's story is unusual in some ways in at least one important way, their story is all too familiar: They had no health insurance, and now they are facing the prospect of bankruptcy because of medical debt.
Medical debt is a huge burden on the American economy. According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Americans spent an average of $12,530 per person on health care in 2020.
Given that the median annual household income in the United States is somewhere around $71,000, health care can be a major expense for families. Huge numbers of people cannot afford to pay for care when they need it, and so carry debt.
For those without insurance, the problem is especially bad. Three out of five uninsured people in the United States have some amount of medical debt.
Personal bankruptcy
There are many ways to get out of debt, but one of the fastest and most effective is through filing for personal bankruptcy. The two main forms of personal bankruptcy are known as Chapter 7 and Chapter 13, after their places in the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.
Chapter 7
Chapter 7 is the most common form of personal bankruptcy. It's also the fastest. If you file for Chapter 7, you can expect to see most of your debts eliminated in just 3-5 months.
If you file for Chapter 7, you will have to liquidate some of your assets in order to satisfy your creditors. However, the Bankruptcy Court and Virginia law allow for important exemptions that will let you keep your car, equity on your home and important household items.
Chapter 13
Chapter 13 bankruptcy is slower than Chapter 7. It takes 3-5 years instead of 3-5 months. However, it has some advantages for those who are eligible.
Rather than forcing you to liquidate your assets, Chapter 13 requires you to work out a plan to pay off your debts over time. If you keep up with the payments, at the end of the period, the court will discharge many of your remaining debts.
Because it requires you to make regular payments, Chapter 13 is best for a person who has a job, or another form of steady income.
Medical debt and bankruptcy
Both types of personal bankruptcy can help eliminate medical debt.
Debts are usually categorized as either secured -- meaning they are backed by some sort of collateral -- or as unsecured -- meaning they are not backed by collateral.
Medical debt is unsecured, because there is nothing for the hospital to repossess from you in order to satisfy your debt. Both types of personal bankruptcy are well suited to discharging unsecured debts.
]]>On Behalf of Coates, Battle & Tyree, P.C.https://www.coateslaw.com/?p=490842022-09-19T18:10:42Z2022-09-16T18:07:25ZWhen is a custody modification justified?
There’s no one answer to this question. Keep in mind that the court is always going to be assessing what’s in your child’s best interests, so it’s going to consider everything from your child’s wishes, the parents’ physical and mental health, the parents’ financial positioning, and the parents’ willingness to foster a positive relationship between the child and the other parent.
But the court can also take any other facts into consideration that it thinks are relevant to its determination. This throws the door open to legal arguments for modification. So, even though the validity of a modification request will depend on the facts of your case, there are some situations that will almost certainly warrant a motion to modify. Here are some of those more compelling issues:
Parental substance abuse: A child’s exposure to parental substance abuse can be severely detrimental to your child. It can leave them with a greater risk of being subjected to abuse or neglect, increased fear and anxiety, behavioral issues, and poor school performance.
Abuse and neglect: Whether physical, emotional, or verbal, abusive behavior and neglect can cause lifelong trauma in your child. A court is going to want to protect your child from that as much as you do.
Changed physical or mental health: A medical condition alone isn’t enough to seek modification. But if that condition affects the other parent’s ability to safely care for your child, the issue is problematic. This is often seen when a mental health condition goes untreated.
Parental interference: In most cases, the court is going to find that continued contact with both parents is in the child’s best interests. But if one parent blocks the other parent from having meaningful contact with the child, the court may find that the existing custody arrangement isn’t in the child’s best interests, thereby driving it to grant a modification request to give the parent whose time was interfered with more contact with the child.
Relocation and opportunities: When a parent seeks to relocate with the child, the court is going to look at those best interest factors carefully before approving the move. This means that the court will likely consider what sort of custody arrangement provides your child with access to better educational opportunities, contact with family members and friends, and retains their cultural connections.
Aggressively building your case for modification
Fighting for the custody modification that you think is best for your child isn’t easy. In fact, the matter might be hotly contested. But don’t let that dissuade you from standing up for your child to advocate for the arrangement that protects your child and their best interests. Even if you’re feeling a little leery about moving forward with your case, though, we encourage you to discuss your circumstances with an experienced legal team so that you know your options and how best to pursue your case.]]>On Behalf of Coates, Battle & Tyree, P.C.https://www.coateslaw.com/?p=490552022-07-05T22:34:10Z2022-07-05T22:34:10Z
Profits: Insurance companies are in the business of making money. One way they do so is by paying out as little as they can in claims while collecting as much as possible in premiums. With that in mind, it’s easy to see that the insurance company that’s talking to you is looking for a way to avoid paying you what you’re owed.
Adjusters will use your statements against you: Even the nicest insurance adjusters have a job to do. They’re going to be listening closely to every word that you say to see if there’s a way to twist your words against you so that a claim denial or decreased settlement is justifiable. So, be careful with what you say to these individuals.
Slick negotiation tactics: Insurance companies are highly experienced in handling claim disputes, and so are their attorneys. That means that while you’re negotiating a settlement, you might be hit with statements that make you feel like your claim is weak or that the insurance company can’t offer you more than what they’ve put on the table at that time. Don’t fall for these tactics. Remember, there’s a good chance that they’re trying to get you to agree to something that is far less than you deserve.
Unwarranted delays: In an attempt to prolong the investigation process to try to find something to use against you, the insurance company may delay paying out your claim. This can also create an enormous amount of financial pressure on you, which may drive you to settle your claim for less than it’s worth.
Minimization of your injuries: The insurance company is probably going to downplay your injuries and your losses. This means that they aren’t going to trust what you have to say, and they’ll probably try to make you get evaluated by a medical professional of their choosing.
Surveillance: Remember, insurance companies want to do everything they can to avoid paying you what you’re owed. One way they do this is by watching you. If you claim that you can’t lift heavy objects, for example, then the insurance company might go so far as to hire an investigator to follow you around to see if you end up lifting heavy objects in contradiction to your claim. This evidence can then be used against you.
Stand up to the insurance company that you’re dealing with
Dealing with an insurance company can be stressful, especially once they have you doubting your claim and you start to worry about how you’re going to make your recovery work from a financial standpoint. But an attorney who is experienced in this area of the law can help you push back against aggressive insurance companies and their legal teams. Hopefully you can successfully fight for the compensation that you deserve.]]>On Behalf of Coates, Battle & Tyree, P.C.https://www.coateslaw.com/?p=486742022-04-08T21:39:20Z2022-03-14T20:59:30Z divide the marital property in a way that meets standards of fairness.
None of this is easy, but some types of property are a lot easier to divide than others. A joint checking account, for instance, can be dissolved and the money divided in half, or according to the terms they parties have negotiated. It's more difficult to divide something like the family home. The spouses will either have to sell it and divide the proceeds or devise a way for one spouse to purchase the other's share.
It's even more difficult to divide certain kinds of complex assets such as stock options and retirement accounts. In many cases, these are among the most valuable assets a married couple owns, but there are special considerations necessary for dividing them in divorce.
Penalty for early withdrawal
If you have a retirement in your name from your employer, you may wonder why you have to divide it with your ex. The answer is that in many cases, such accounts are considered as part of the marital property. This is especially true in cases where the account grew over many years during a longer marriage.
The complication comes up because you cannot simply make a withdrawal from your retirement account they way can from a checking or savings account. Most such accounts cannot be easily accessed until you are of retirement age. If you withdraw from the account before then, the financial institution will impose a hefty penalty. On top of that, you will face a stiff tax penalty. Together, the penalties could destroy most of the value of your account.
QDROs
There is a way around this problem. Through a mechanism known as a Qualified Domestic Relations Order, or QDRO, you can divide a qualifying retirement account without actually withdrawing anything. The process works by getting a court order to instruct the financial institution to divide the account between the ex-spouses. Once the process is complete, your account is effectively divided into two accounts, one for you and one for your ex.
It's important to remember that the accounts won't necessarily be of equal value. "Equitable distribution" doesn't mean everything gets divided in half. Instead, you will probably spend a lot of time negotiating a settlement that meets the standards of Virginia law.
None of this is easy, but it is absolutely crucial if you want to have the financial resources you need to start the next chapter in your life. A skilled attorney can help you understand the process and advise you of your options.
]]>On Behalf of Coates, Battle & Tyree, P.C.https://www.coateslaw.com/?p=483382022-02-23T12:44:55Z2022-03-11T12:44:08Zadoption process.
Who can adopt in Virginia?
Both single and married adults who are at least 18 years of age can adopt a child in the state of Virginia.
What is an agency adoption?
There are two adoption options available, depending on your situation. Agency adoptions involve a child in custody of local department of social services (LDSS) or licensed child-placing agency.
Non-agency adoptions, on the other hand, are for children who are not in the custody of LDSS or other agency (includes parental placement adoption, step-parent adoption, close relative adoption, and adult adoptions).
What is the agency adoption process?
Adoptions require a great deal of patience and hard work. Here is generally how the agency adoption process works.
Orientation and training
The process will begin when you call the Adoption Resource Exchange of Virginia (1-800-DO-ADOPT). You will be referred to the LDSS or child placing agency for orientation, which is intended to give you a better understanding of adoption in general. You will then be required to undergo 28 to 30 hours of training with adoption workers and other professionals.
Application and assessment
You will then complete the application and return it to the agency. After a home study, where an adoption worker evaluates you, if the worker determines you are ready to adopt a child, the selection process will begin.
Selection and placement
You will review possible options and select a child. Once it has been determined that your family would be a good fit for the child you have chosen, you will have multiple visits with the child. When the adoption worker determines that the child and your family are both ready, the child will be placed in your home.
Finalizing the adoption
The adoption worker will continue to visit after the child is placed, and the adoption will only be finalized after a minimum of six months and a minimum of three visits.
For the final step of the adoption process, your attorney will file a petition with the court, and after reviewing a report from the agency, the judge will enter the final order of adoption.
An adoption attorney can do more than just finalize your adoption. If you have decided to adopt, you can consult with an attorney to help you with each stage of the process.]]>On Behalf of Coates, Battle & Tyree, P.C.https://www.coateslaw.com/?p=483342022-03-21T12:14:41Z2022-02-28T13:18:25ZWhat is termination for convenience?
Typically, when one party fails to live up to the terms stated in their contract, they are said to be in breach of contract and the other party may have legal remedies against them for that breach. Government agencies, however, have the inherent authority to terminate a contract for convenience. What does that mean? Unfortunately for the contractor, it is a phrase and concept which is construed broadly.
Termination for convenience means that the government can terminate a contract whenever it is in the government’s interest to do so. This may be as simple as the agency no longer requires the goods or services it contracted for, or has decided to handle them in-house. The government may propose a change to the contractual terms which the contractor chooses not to accept – this can be grounds for termination for convenience. Or the relationship between the agency and contractor may simply deteriorate, making it in the government’s best interest to move on.
Does the contractor have any remedy?
Most of the time, when an agency terminates a contract for convenience, it is not considered to be in breach of that contract. It will usually take some sort of malfeasance on the part of the agency before it is considered to be in breach. However, the contractor is entitled to a settlement following termination. The agency must give the contractor written notice that it intends to terminate the contract and the contractor is entitled to collect an amount representing those costs which could not be avoided as a result of the termination.]]>