New York Family Law Blog

Published on: March 18, 2011

Teen Parents Give Students a Hefty Dose of Reality

by Stephen Bilkis

While it is agreed that high school students need to be educated as to the dangers of unprotected sex, for the last twenty years or so the schools have been using the risk of disease and pregnancy as the defining scare tactic to stop young people from having sex, and for the most part, it hasn’t really been working, according to reports by a New York Family Attorney.

Despite the fact that we continue to pump kids full of information and fear in regards to the risk of unplanned sex and irresponsible behavior, the teen birth rate is still 41.5 out of every 1000 births, far higher than other developed nations, reports the New York Family Lawyer. Instead of using disease and pregnancy as the fear factor, however, many schools across the country are adopting curriculum programs that give their high school students another type of reality check, and this one seems to be catching the emotions and the understanding of the young people whom it addresses.

The programs consist mainly of real, financially bound, teen parents who come in and tell their stories and their struggles to the class, according to the New York Family Lawyer. Young people don’t realize that having a child is so much more expensive, emotionally, financially. We have one shot to make it as a parent in this world and when we come at it completely blindsided and unprepared, it is like an avalanche whose effects ripple out farther than we would assume.

Published on: March 15, 2011

School Board Shootings Blur Lines of Safety and Reality

by Stephen Bilkis

A recent shooting at a Florida school board meeting that left the suspect dead and one person injured had an eerie quality to it, a blurring of the lines of reality, according to one NYC Family Lawyer. The suspect spray painted a symbol that was used in a movie V for Vendetta about a masked, anarchistic revolutionary with a hefty respect for Guy Fawkes. The fact that he brought the drama off the screen and into a school board meeting is what seems to haunt the survivors of the incident.

The New York Family Lawyer reports that witnesses gave testament to the look of distance in the eyes of the troubled man who stood before them and threatened them that day in the board room. It was said repeatedly that he seemed completely lost in thought. Spirit and tenacity shined in one very brave woman, who sneaked up behind the gunman and began hitting him with the only thing that she had, which was her purse. Annoyed but not deterred, the gunman grabbed her and pushed her away.

But that momentary distraction was all it took for a brief amount of hesitancy and chaos to begin to ripple through the mind of the suspect, the beginning of doubt. His attempt to shoot to kill miraculously missed the mark. These people he was attempting to bring the big screen to life on were not ready to be extras, said the New York Family Lawyer who had information on the case. In the end, the gunman shot himself and no one else died, but would the situation have been averted if the school board meetings had better security outside of the meeting rooms?

Published on: March 13, 2011

Time is Up for Tax Free Trust Funds, but Those Who Were Privy Saved a Ton Of Cash

by Stephen Bilkis

The window of opportunity may have been small, but regardless it had millionaires and their financial staff worked up into a frenzy towards the end of 2010, reports a New York Family Attorney. There is such a thing known as the Generation Skipping Transfer Tax, which has been in place in America since 1986. This is basically a tax on gifts, inheritances and bequests that occur when skipping a generation, for example by bequeathing a trust fun to your grandchildren.

According to the New York Family Lawyer, there was a small yet imperative window of opportunity during the last two weeks of 2010, unbeknownst to most people, where such a gift could be set up for free. No tax, down from 55% gift tax. That is quite a gift; just ask any wealthy benefactor. Imagine wanting to gift your two million dollar estate to your grand kids only for them to have to pay a million dollar gift tax? Most Americans imagine that being rich is easy, that life is easy when you have money, but in cases like this, it is not so.

According to reports by the New York City Family Lawyer, the window closed once again on January first 2011. Those who got in fast got luck and saved a ton of cash. Those who missed the mark, well, the tax has been lowered for the next two years to 35%, which, though it is no where close to free, is still better than 55%, where it is expected to return in 2013. Moguls, millionaires, and wealthy Grandparents have two full years to take advantage of the 35% rate, but sadly, if you were not paying attention, you might still be kicking yourself for missing out on 0% tax.

Published on: March 10, 2011

The Irony of Farming and Inheritance

by Stephen Bilkis

Recent reports from a New York Family Lawyer indicate that farming families can breathe slightly easier now that President Obama has signed a federal tax bill stating that farmers can pass on their estates of up to 5 million dollars per person to an heir, and to also be able to do so tax free, at least for another two years.

There has been a lot of speculation and worry in the farming industry where family farms are concerned, reports the New York Family Lawyer. Being forced to pay a 35% inheritance tax could mean that the children that you leave your farm to would have to sell part of it off just to pay for the right to keep it, and when it comes to farming, selling off the land itself is the worst thing that you can do, because once the land is gone, so is your ability to grow and plant. It is the irony of farming.

Based on reports from the NY Family Lawyer, farmers are in a better spot than they could be on this, but even so, proper planning and accounting should be put into practice well before the time to pass the family business on comes near. It is imperative to get financial assets in order with the help of a good accountant.

Published on: March 7, 2011

Mel Gibson Charges On Despite Impediments With New Movie Release

by Stephen Bilkis

Mel Gibson has a new movie coming out soon. The film is called The Beaver and will be in theaters on April 8 barring any further complications, according to a New York Family Lawyer that close to the scene. Gibson has been plagued by drama and heartbreak in his real life situation, fighting for custody of his baby Lucia and engrossed in an emotionally challenging legal debacle. These very public battles recently earned him a great deal of unwanted publicity as tapes of admitted physical abuse toward his then girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva began to surface. This drama has put the movie on hold on a number of occasions.

Tensions have risen between the estranged couple, sources revealed to the New York Family Lawyer. Neither one is talking to the other one and the process is admittedly a slow one. There is no doubt that the best interests of baby Lucia will be honored and that the situation will eventually be resolved, disappearing under the well worn rug of public spectacle and settling like dust into the memories of millions of fans who will no doubt be .

Ironically, the new movie mirrors some of the events that have given Gibson such grief recently, according to the New York Family Lawyer. Directed by Jodie Foster, The Beaver stars Gibson as a man with many issues and worries. His troubles are emotional, familial troubles that seem to become more controllable with the uneasy help of his very strange friend, a puppet that he wears on his hand. We haven’t seen Gibson as a crazy man in a while, at least not in the movies. Perhaps this will be interesting.

Published on: March 3, 2011

New Jersey Man Recalls Heartbreak and Joy in Book About Five Year Custody Battle, According to a NYC Family Lawyer

by Stephen Bilkis

There is a lot to be said for dedication and perseverance, according to a New York Family Lawyer. David Goldman is the king of perseverance and dedication in many ways. Back in 2004 his girlfriend took their then 4 year old son Sean to Brazil for what was supposed to be a vacation to visit her parents.

Once they got there, Goldman’s girlfriend broke up with him and said that she was staying in Brazil with their son, effectively disconnecting contact from Goldman with the most important person in his life, reports the New York Family Lawyer. Goldman was not going to be deterred. Bravely and against all odds, he filed for custody and fought for his son for five long years.

Reports that the New York Family Lawyer submitted revealed that even after Goldman’s ex girlfriend died in childbirth in 2008, both the step dad and maternal Grandmother would still not give up the fight for the right to keep Sean. Finally in late 2009, Goldman was elated to win custody of his son, who finally joined him for good.

Published on: February 28, 2011

Men Face Discrimination in Major Law Firms

by Stephen Bilkis

Being discriminated against is non gender specific, meaning that it can happen to any of us, male and female, regardless of gender, trans gender or sexual orientation, says a New York Family Lawyer who has been paying attention to the recent discrimination charges going up against large law firms for stereotyping males into a macho, robotic role into which their professional careers were expected to follow and their personal affairs were expected to meld.

When familial duties required these men to assume the nurturing, care giving role in the family and dad took paternity leave to take care of the babies, the executives were much less than supportive of that decision. These men lost their jobs because they needed to take care of their children at a time when the mother couldn’t be there or needed help. In one instance, mother and children all needed the care due to mental illness. Why did these men lose their jobs and is this discrimination? The New York Family Lawyer reports that discrimination really is at a manageable level across the board, but unfortunately some instances still sift through the sieve.

It has become infinitely better than it was in the past to win cases of discrimination like these, according to the New York Family Lawyer, which is good news for us all. Unless sweeping changes are made in the ways that we view work and family is supported, there will be sore spots in society and none of us are really immune to discrimination. Our best bet is to try as hard as we can not to harbor discrimination within ourselves, which proves to be a good first step in reducing it.

Published on: February 25, 2011

Popular Nip/Tuck Star Files for Divorce

by Stephen Bilkis

Dylan Walsh, uber sexy star of the FX hit series Nip/Tuck, has chosen to have a lifestyle makeover of his own and has filed for divorce from his wife of six years, according to reports from a New York Family Lawyer. Yet another Hollywood romance left in pieces.

Walsh, a youthful 47, is best known for his role as Dr. Sean McNamara, an emotive plastic surgeon on the FX series Nip/Tuck who is notoriously good at fixing what people don’t like about themselves but runs into a host of ways that his own life is broken in the process. Walsh is an American who has also acted in dozens of movie and television performances, including Soldier Boy and Kate & Allie.

Walsh cited the commonly muttered justification of irreconcilable differences with his wife of six years, actress Joanna Going, who is best known for her many roles in made- for-television movies and who is also to star with actor Sean Penn in the upcoming movie release The Tree of Life.

Published on: February 21, 2011

Can Gay Divorce Be Legal if Gay Marriage is Not? Gender Inconsistencies

by Stephen Bilkis

According to reports filed by a vocal New York Family Lawyer, our legal system is skewed when it comes to the rights of gays and lesbians to marry and to divorce. It is one of the most perilous social dilemmas of all time, and it encroaches upon people’s freedoms and civil liberties, removing choice and breeding resentment and struggle. Who has the right to tell another person whom he or she may love or not love?

According to reports issued by the New York Family Lawyer, many people see the illegality of gay marriages as a social control tactic using gender based abuse and indifference as weapons that erode the very foundation of liberty in this country. This resistance to basic human rights is very real and very detrimental to the lives and relationships of people who cannot legally be with the ones that they love, and who cannot express that love as a binding legal commitment like anyone else.

In his report, the New York Family Lawyer also asks questions about the inconsistencies of the rights of gay people to get married and divorced in some states but not others, in which case their choice of life path, their love and devotion, goes completely un-noticed by the state officials as if it never existed, while across the border in Massachusetts, it becomes recognized and legally represented.

Published on: February 20, 2011

Abortion Rates Slowed in 2008

by Stephen Bilkis

The data is in for the 2008 year regarding abortions, said a New York Family Lawyer. If you are a pro-life believer, the news is good for you. If you are pro-choice, you might wonder if the data is good news or bad, since it could mean two different things. But no matter which way the data is interpreted, there was not a significant increase in the amount of abortions performed in the US from 2005 – 2008.

There were 1.21 million abortions in the year 2008. That averaged out to 19.6 per 1,000 women. During the year 2005, the other year when data was gathered, the rate was 19.4. Those numbers are down significantly from the peak in the year 1981 when the average was 29.3 abortions per 1,000 women. However, those numbers were surgical abortions. Nowadays, there are also medical abortions available by drugs that induce it.

A New York Custody Lawyer said that pro-choice people are saying the numbers are good in the fact that there are less teen pregnancies where women are faced with the abortion choice. Pro-life people claim that more people are choosing life, whether they go with adoption after the birth or keep the baby, alleges a New York Family Lawyer. Both groups say that women are being educated more and studying their options before they make any type of choice regarding an abortion. Neither side really claims a victory in the number, nor do they claim a loss.