Divorce and Family Law

August Update — Alabama Courts Slowly Coming Back to Life

August 12, 2020 | Skier & Associates

Although the disruptions to our legal system because of the COVID pandemic continue, there is progress being made in re-opening the judicial system safely. In the past week, I have become aware that in many counties in Alabama, there will soon be jury trials with steps taken to ensure proper social distancing both during jury selection as well as the trial itself. In the Federal Court for the Middle District of Alabama, a jury trial was held this week, which will likely serve as a “test run” for future jury terms. We have taken part in a live evidentiary hearing in Federal Court before a Magistrate judge, and everything went smoothly as expected, although precautions such as plexiglass partitions and face covering requirements were in place.

At Skier & Associates, we have submitted the materials to the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles for two clients with hearings scheduled the week of August 17. Because the Board is not holding live hearings, these clients were required to submit their argument in advance of the hearing date. I have been critical of this decision in the past. We now understand that the Pardon and Parole Board hopes to begin live hearings once again in October of this year. We hope this plan comes to pass, as not only do applicants deserve to be heard, but on a personal level we miss presenting our clients’ cases in a live setting. Continue reading ›

July Update: Central Alabama Courts Continue COVID-19 Related Closure. Cases Delayed Indefinitely.

July 15, 2020 | Skier & Associates

Courtrooms throughout central Alabama either continue to be closed (Montgomery County, Federal Middle District Courts) or have recently announced closure (As of this week, Elmore, Autauga and Chilton County Courts have closed.) Even those courtrooms that are ostensibly open for business are currently severely limited in what kind of matters they can handle during the COVID-19 pandemic. Obviously jury trials (and Grand Jury hearings) are suspended indefinitely as there is no safe way to achieve social distancing requirements for jurors and others in the courtroom. Other types of hearings are going forward but the slow pace is still creating a backlog of cases that will, in our opinion, take years to resolve once things start moving again.

Interestingly, any Municipal courts within the Circuit Court’s jurisdiction are bound by a Presiding Judge’s order of closure. This means that cases in Montgomery, Wetumpka, Prattville and Millbrook Municipal Courts will be closed until the Presiding Circuit Judge’s order of closure is lifted.

The Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles continues to hold “hearings” but is not allowing live or virtual testimony or presentation of evidence. At the present time applicants must submit materials in support of their position and wait for the result to be announced. We have written previously in this space about the inadequacy of this process and continue to call on this Board to allow virtual hearings for those that request them. After all, a hearing on a Pardon application or Parole request are vitally important to the people involved and these applicants deserve to have their say. Continue reading ›

Re-Opening of Alabama’s Court System Post-Pandemic

May 13, 2020 | Skier & Associates

At Skier & Associates, our practice is varied. We have pending cases in numerous venues including Alabama State Courts (District Court, Circuit Court, Family Court in Montgomery, Autauga, Elmore, Butler, Lowndes and other counties) Municipal Courts (Montgomery, Prattville, Millbrook and Wetumpka City Courts for example,) Federal District Courts (Middle District of Alabama) and administrative bodies (Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles.)

All of these entities have approached their scheduling and handling of pending cases differently during the period of shut-down, and all are taking different approaches to re-opening. This can be confusing for clients as well as attorneys. Continue reading ›

Domestic Violence, the NFL, and Alabama Law

September 18, 2014 | Skier & Associates

News and sports television, radio, and other media have been buzzing in recent days about what seems like an epidemic of domestic violence that is suddenly coming to the public’s attention. This is largely due to several high-profile professional athletes being accused of abuse of their spouses or children. We have even seen repercussions of this locally as a prominent member of Montgomery, Alabama’s legal community has recently been arrested and charged with an incident of domestic violence; as of this writing, calls for his resignation from his position are increasing.

What does Alabama’s law say about what constitutes “domestic violence” and what can result from a conviction for this offense?

Basic Facts About Child Custody Modifications

April 25, 2014 | Skier & Associates

Often, divorced parents become dissatisfied with custody arrangements that are put in place by their divorce court years after the order was entered. Whether one parent feels that the other parent is not keeping up their end of parental responsibility, or a parent who does not currently have any physical custodial rights now wants them, there are many reasons that a parent may be interested in having a custody order modified. Depending on what the specific circumstances are, however, the approach may differ from case to case.

In 1984, the Alabama Supreme Court established a rule, called the McLendon standard, by which petitions for custody modifications should be reviewed; if the original order was not one for joint custody, and the noncustodial parent seeks to modify the order, then that parent must establish that the positive good brought about by the modification must more than offset the inherently disruptive effect caused by uprooting the child. In addition, that parent seeking the change must show not only that he or she is a fit parent, but also that the change of custody materially promotes the child’s best interest and welfare.

Basic Facts Regarding Grounds for Annulments in Alabama

April 15, 2014 | Skier & Associates

There are two basic ways to dissolve a marriage in Alabama: divorces and annulments. Although media coverage of divorces is widespread, particularly with regard to celebrity couples, much less coverage is granted to annulments. The effect of an annulment is to declare an invalid marriage as having been void from inception. As opposed to traditional divorce situations, where grounds must be established as having taken place during the marriage, an annulment requires there to have been some extenuating circumstance at the inception of the marriage that rendered it ineffective. Additionally, there are other marriages that may be considered “voidable” rather than void at inception, and court action would have to be taken in order to have such a marriage declared voided.

Generally, fraud that is utilized to induce a marriage or to motivate a party to participate in a marriage may render such a marriage voidable. The prototypical “shotgun wedding” is a classic example of this. If a party to a wedding is improperly motivated to participate under threat of violence or death, otherwise termed “duress”, then a valid argument could be made in favor of an annulment.

The Importance of Establishing Proper Jurisdiction in Family Law Cases

March 21, 2014 | Skier & Associates

In domestic relations proceedings, establishing proper jurisdiction is paramount. Upon the proper establishment of the two forms of jurisdiction needed, petitioners in a family law matter will be ready to have their case heard, but the likelihood of being heard only by a judge is high; contrary to belief, there is no right to a jury trial in a divorce proceeding.

In Alabama, a court must hold both subject matter and personal jurisdiction over a divorce case before it may hear the case. Subject matter jurisdiction, the first required type of jurisdiction for a court to hear a divorce case, is present if: (a) the status of the marriage is before the court; (b) a valid, statutory ground for divorce is pled; and (c) the residency requirement is met. Subsection (a) is fulfilled when the divorce pleading is filed, so long as at least one of the parties to the divorce is domiciled in Alabama. Under subsection (b), the ground stated for divorce must be sufficiently proven; if at least one of these grounds is not proven, a jurisdictional defect is said to have taken place and the proceedings will be deemed void.

Because of subsections (a) and (c), personal jurisdiction (further detailed below) is necessarily included in subject matter jurisdiction. Filing fees are always required, and differ in amount based on the county you are filing in. If the required filing fees are not paid, a jurisdictional defect is considered to have occurred. Because of this, careful planning is required for a properly filed divorce action to hold weight in Alabama’s court systems. For this reason, if you are considering proceeding with a domestic relations matter, it is highly important that you consult with an experienced family law attorney.

Alabama’s Domestic Violence laws and what they can mean to an accused

February 8, 2014 | Skier & Associates

For the past twenty years or so, Alabama laws have been changing in order to address the problem of violence among those in family relationships. These Domestic Violence laws supplement existing laws such as assault, menacing, reckless endangerment, or harassment if the alleged victim “is a current or former spouse, parent, child, any person with whom the defendant has a child in common, a present or former household member, or a person who has or had a dating or engagement relationship with the defendant” (Code of Alabama, § 13A-6-132)

In many cases, the “Domestic Violence” designation can result in an increased penalty upon a conviction, and even in the deprivation of civil rights such as the right to possess a firearm. In nearly every case, however, it results in differences in the way cases are handled.

It is the practice in most courts that a person arrested for an offense involving domestic violence is immediately served with a protective order that seeks to prevent further incidents, and sometimes forbids any contact at all between the accused and the alleged victim. Violations of these orders can lead to additional charges being brought against the accused. Because of this. it is important to carefully read these protective orders and strictly comply with their contents.