Clients involved in family law disputes in North Carolina need both personal & professional support through times that are highly emotional, but require calm and reasoned decision-making. We provide clients with legal representation in the following areas of the law:

• Alimony, Spousal Support, and Spousal Maintenance
• Child Custody, Parental Responsibility, and Parenting Time Decisions
• Child Support
• Divorce, Dissolution, Legal Separation, and Annulment
• Domestic Abuse and Domestic Violence
• Juvenile Law and Juvenile Delinquency
• Marital Property

Alimony, Spousal Support, and Spousal Maintenance? Alimony or spousal support is support paid by a supporting spouse to a dependent spouse. The amount and duration of alimony or spousal support depends on a number of factors including:

• The length of the marriage
• The age of each spouse
• The health of each spouse
• Educational levels of each spouse
• The income of each spouse
• Standard of living the parties enjoyed during the marriage

We can help you determine whether alimony or spousal support is an issue in your situation and, if so, what amount and term would be fair to pay or to receive.

Child Support? Child support is generally ordered by the court in situations in which a child lives with one but not both parents. All states, including North Carolina, have guidelines by which courts determine child support. Courts plug numbers into the child support formula and come up with an amount of support that should be paid for the child or children. The child support guidelines are not an exact method of calculating child support in every situation, and parties can argue that because of special circumstances, a court should order more or less support than the guideline amount. Also taken into account is whether a primary residential parent is a parent of a child of the parties under the age of thirty months old.

Divorce, Dissolution, Legal Separation, and Annulment? Divorce, or dissolution is the legal process by which a marriage is terminated. We handle all issues relating to:

• Divorce or dissolution of marriage
• Legal separation
• Declaration of invalidity, which is commonly referred to as an annulment

Domestic Abuse and Domestic Violence? There is no excuse for domestic violence or domestic abuse. Domestic violence may involve physical, sexual, psychological, or emotional abuse. Domestic violence includes the following:

• Assault
• Sexual assault
• Reckless endangerment
• Kidnapping
• No contract orders
• Orders of protection
• Permanent restraining orders
• Temporary restraining orders
• Unlawful imprisonment
• Stalking

Marital Property- North Carolina is not a "community property" state but it is an "equitable division" state. That means that each spouse will be awarded what is fair under the circumstances. While that sounds easy enough, dividing a marital estate at the time of a divorce has become an increasingly complex process as the division of marital assets is no longer simply a matter of identifying and dividing real and personal property. Today?s divorce client requires the knowledge and expertise necessary to examine and evaluate issues relating to business interests, retirement accounts, pension plans, stock options, as well as an understanding of tax ramifications. When dividing a marital estate a court may consider the following:

• Length of the marriage
• Assets and debts of the parties
• Financial needs and liabilities of the parties
• Premarital or prenuptial agreements
• Separation agreements
• Tax consequences

We can assist you in determining what a fair settlement would be and in achieving that result either by negotiation or litigation. Contact Spence & Spence Today.