Custody Articles

Written by an experienced Divorce and Family Law Attorney with offices in Boston | Andover | Newburyport | Newton

Grandparents Seeking Custody or Visitation

Forget the sappy Hallmark ads depicting grandparental bliss. Forget the press about the important relationship forged between grandparents and grandchildren. When it comes to visitation, grandparents using the courts to assert their rights to see their grandkids face...

Child Custody and Religious Upbringing

As the divorce rate of interfaith couples increases, judges are forced to address the issue of “spiritual custody”. This means determining custody disagreements regarding religious upbringing. Often, religion is something a person holds near and dear, especially...

What is the Role of a Parenting Coordinator?

When divorced parents in Massachusetts have issues related to decisions involving their children, the parents can employ the use of a parenting coordinator.[1] A parenting coordinator is a neutral court-appointed party who helps divorced parents to resolve...

Open Adoption Agreements

In a recent case, the Massachusetts Appeals Court discussed open adoption agreements. Specifically, it looked at the enforcement of clauses in agreements at the sole discretion of the adoptive parents. Background: In the case at hand, the adoptive parents adopted two...

2017 Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines

The 2017 Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines have just come out and, whether you are an attorney handling these cases or a party paying or receiving child support, it’s worth diving deep on this particular issue. Start here with our first deep dive into the new guidelines.

Affidavits of Care and Custody in Massachusetts

What is an affidavit of care and custody, and when does a party need to file one? Filing: The short answer to the latter part of that question: a party needs to file this document whenever there is a proceeding involving the care or custody of a child. In addition to...