Articles

Pennsylvania courts must have subject matter jurisdiction and personal jurisdiction over the parties. As long as the court has proper personal jurisdiction over one party, the court can properly grant the divorce on an ex parte basis. However, the court needs to have personal jurisdiction over BOTH parties in order to divide property, and to […]

STEP ONE: The Notice to Defend, Complaint and Verification (Form 1). A divorce case is started with the filing of a “Complaint.” There are two forms that must be attached to the Complaint: the “Notice to Defend and Claim Rights” must be attached on top, and the “Verification” must be attached on the bottom. The […]

Philadelphia Child Custody Lawyer There are three different types of child custody that you need to be aware of:  (1) Legal Custody; (2) Physical Custody; and (3) Shared Custody. (1) Legal Custody:  legal custody is the right to make decisions affecting the child’s life; most of the time legal custody is shared by the parents, […]

If it is determined to be in the best interests of the grandchild, the court may grant custody to a grandparent who: (1) Began the relationship with the child with the consent of a parent or by court order; (2) Has assumed or is willing to assume responsibility for the child; and (3) One of […]

Annulment in Pennsylvania (1) An annulment voids a marriage and declares it as having never been valid (as opposed to a divorce, which terminates a valid marriage). (2) Annulments are available for defective marriages that are legally void or voidable. (3) What you need to look for to see whether a marriage qualifies for the […]

The Fault-Based Grounds for divorces in Pennsylvania include: (1) adultery; (2) cruelty; (3) voluntary desertion; (4) involuntary desertion; (5) bigamy; (6) imprisonment; (7) indignities; and (8) institutionalization.   (1)Adultery:  if you engaged in voluntary sex with a non-spouse, then that is a fault-based ground for a divorce.  Adultery must be shown by clear and convincing […]

Alimony in Philadelphia Alimony is paid to the “economically disadvantaged” spouse.  There are three types of Alimony: (1) periodic alimony; (2) lump sum alimony; and (3) rehabilitative alimony. ·         Periodic Alimony: Periodic Alimony is where the court orders the husband to pay periodic alimony of $2,000 per month to the wife until her death or […]

Once the court identifies and values the marital property, the court will make an equitable division; (you should note that equitable does not necessarily mean 50/50). The court’s division of the property is not subject to modification once the divorce is final. The court is going to use several principles when trying to do an […]

Is it possible to get a cheap divorce in Philadelphia?   Yes, it is possible to get a cheap divorce in Pennsylvania.  Divorce Lawyer R. Badet only charges $599.00 for uncontested divorces where both divorce parties agree to sign the divorce documents.  How long will it take before I receive my divorce papers in Pennsylvania? […]

In a Pennsylvania divorce, there are two steps to the division of property: (1) There has to be a determination about what is marital property and what is separate property, and (2)  You have to make an equitable division of the marital properties; (you should note that equitable does not necessarily mean 50/50). Marital Property: […]