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High Net Worth Divorce in Arizona

High Net Worth Divorce in Arizona

by | May 4, 2020 | Alimony, Annulment, Divorce, Legal Seperation, Parenting, Paternity

Defending the People of Arizona

With more than 100 Years of combined experience

High Net Worth Divorce in Arizona

When younger couples get divorced in Arizona, the process may be fairly straightforward because they may not have had much time to accumulate very many assets. However, if you have been married for a long time and have built substantial assets during your marriage, you may have to go through a type of dissolution called a high net worth divorce.

This type of divorce can be very complex because of the different types of assets that may be involved. High net worth divorces may involve complex asset classes and holdings worth hundreds of thousands up to millions of dollars. People who go through these types of divorces will likely need to get the help of a competent family law attorney who is experienced in handling high net worth divorce cases.

The Schill Law Group understands complex asset and debt division matters and is prepared to help.

How is a High Net Worth Divorce Different from a Regular Divorce?

A high net worth divorce will frequently involve complex legal and business issues that are not involved in regular divorces. High net worth couples may have vastly more extensive assets, including businesses, real estate holdings, art collections, trusts, stocks and bonds, investment accounts, retirement accounts, jewelry, and more. All of these types of assets may need to be identified, located, and valued to accomplish an appropriate division of property.

Under A.R.S. § 25-211, Arizona is a community property state.[1] This means that all of the assets that you have accumulated during your marriage that are not deemed separate property are considered to be equally owned by both spouses and subject to equal division. In many high net worth divorces, however, there may be antenuptial agreements in place.

High net worth divorces are likelier to include disputes about whether certain assets should be considered to be separate or community property.

How are Trusts Handled in High Net Worth Divorces?

Some wealthy couples have trusts established to hold substantial amounts of their assets. The handling of the assets of a trust can be crucial for the outcome of the property division in a high net worth divorce. When a spouse funds a trust with community property, it can transform the assets in the trust from being considered to be the separate property of that spouse to being considered to be the community property of both spouses to be divided in the divorce.

Normally, a trust that was created by a third party to benefit one spouse but not the other will be considered to be the beneficiary spouse’s separate property. The other spouse might argue that the court should consider the trust when it determines the amounts of spousal and child support that the other spouse should be granted.

When a trust is involved in a divorce, an attorney will need to seek disclosure from the trust. This can be hard because trust accounts may be located outside of the U.S. Trustees for U.S. trusts will normally send disclosures in response to a request. Offshore trusts might have trustees that fail to respond. When that happens, you might have to file a petition with that country’s court to seek an order for the trustee to provide disclosures.

How are Businesses Handled in Divorces?

Many high net worth divorce cases involve private businesses. When a private company is owned by one of the spouses, multiple complex issues will need to be addressed. The business will need to be properly valued. If the company has assets that are spread around the world, the valuation will be more complex. Often, business valuations will require significant investigations and the work of forensic accountants.

After a business valuation is completed, the divorcing couple will then need to determine how to distribute it in the property division portion of their divorce. One spouse may not be willing to give up his or her interest in the company. The spouse that wishes to keep control of the company might need to give a larger portion of the other assets to his or her spouse to retain control of the business.

How is Real Estate Handled in a High Net Worth Divorce?

While a regular divorce might involve dividing the marital home, high net worth divorces may involve real estate holdings beyond the home. Wealthy couples might have rental properties, commercial properties, and vacation homes. An appraisal of each of the various properties that are owned will need to be completed to understand what their fair market values are.

Some of the real estate properties might be the separate property that one spouse brought into the marriage. Other properties might be community property. Finally, some separate real estate might become community property if marital funds were used to make improvements. All of these issues will need to be addressed to ensure a fair division of the property.

Types of Complex Valuations in a Divorce

There are multiple types of complex valuations that might be necessary for a high net worth divorce. Some of the types of valuations that might need to be completed include the following:

  • Retirement accounts
  • Investment accounts
  • Stocks and bonds
  • Jewelry
  • Art collections
  • Intellectual property
  • Real estate
  • Businesses
  • Yachts
  • Other valuable assets

Different experts might have to value the assets from within their fields and submit written appraisals. In some cases, each spouse will hire his or her experts to testify about how they arrived at their valuations.

Spousal Maintenance in High Net Worth Divorces

Under A.R.S. § 25-530, spousal maintenance is a type of support that may be ordered by the court in cases in which the divorcing spouses have a large income disparity. Spousal maintenance is in addition to any child support that might be ordered, and it is frequently at issue in high net worth divorces. However, some cases involve prenuptial agreements through which the lower-earning spouse may have waived his or her rights to spousal maintenance.

In those types of cases, the lower-earning spouses might challenge the prenuptial agreements’ validity and claim that he or she signed under duress. A lower-earning spouse might also claim that the wealthy spouse failed to disclose all of his or her assets, meaning that the lower-earning spouse could not understand the rights that he or she was waiving.

Managing tax implications involved with asset division

Many tax implications might be involved in high net worth divorces. Both spouses will need to consider credits and deductions that might be lost after divorcing. Spouses who will have to pay spousal maintenance are not able to deduct the payments on their taxes any longer, and spouses who receive spousal maintenance are required to report the payments as income on their tax returns.

Transferring certain assets in divorces can trigger tax consequences. Some of the illiquid assets that might involve tax issues include the following:

  • Brokerage account funds
  • 403(b) accounts
  • 401(k) accounts
  • IRAs
  • Stock options
  • Annuities
  • Thrift savings plans

To prevent tax consequences when transferring some of these illiquid assets, a qualified domestic relations order may need to be prepared. This might help people to avoid penalties and taxes on what is transferred.

Concealment of Assets During a Divorce

Unfortunately, some spouses try to conceal or hide assets to prevent their spouses from getting their rightful share in divorces. They might try to transfer assets to family members or friends, hide them, or spoliate the assets. Others simply do not disclose all of their assets. For example, they might have accounts that are not disclosed and transfer funds from disclosed accounts to make it appear as if they have less. They might also move assets to offshore locations or place community assets in trusts.

Whenever a spouse believes that the other spouse is concealing or hiding assets, he or she will need to get help from an experienced attorney. A lawyer might work with a forensic accountant to find assets that have been spoliated, hidden, or concealed. If it is not possible to determine the extent of the person’s actions, the court can draw an adverse inference against the spouse who has engaged in this type of behavior.

Schill Law Group Experienced High Net Worth Attorneys

If you have accumulated substantial assets during your marriage and want to get divorced, getting help from an experienced high net worth divorce lawyer at The Schill Law Group is important. Our experienced property division and divorce lawyers understand how to handle the complex issues that are frequently involved in these types of divorces.

Contact us today to schedule a consultation by calling us at 480.525.8900.

 

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The Reality of Underage Drinking

The Reality of Underage Drinking

by | Nov 21, 2019 | Alcohol

Defending the People of Arizona

With more than 100 Years of combined experience

The Reality of Underage Drinking

Any person under the age of 21 in the United States who consumes alcohol is drinking underage, and the current underage drinking statistics are alarming. Research shows 7.1 million Americans aged 12 to 20 admit to drinking. This is concerning because kids who drink before they turn 15 are 6.5 times more likely to experience an alcohol disorder in their lifetime.

There are legal consequences that come with underage drinking if you get caught, including fines, community service, and even jail or probation. We’ll outline more about all of this below.

Defining Underage Drinking

In many parts of the world, it’s legal to drink at age 16 or 18. However, the United States has stricter laws. These laws are put into place to discourage alcohol use for anyone under 21. Anyone under 21 isn’t allowed to:

  • Buy or attempt to buy alcoholic beverages
  • Consume alcohol
  • Drive with even a trace amount of BAC (blood alcohol content); each state differs on the specifics
  • Misrepresent their age or possess a fake ID
  • Possess alcohol
underage drinking

Adolescents and Binge Drinking

Binge drinking is a popular way for many underage drinkers to consume alcohol. Binge drinking is where you drink a large volume of alcohol in a short time. For males, binge drinking is consuming five or more alcoholic beverages in under two hours. For females, it’s drinking four alcoholic beverages or more in the same time frame.

Binge drinking is extraordinarily risky for anyone that engages in it, especially underage drinkers. It can lead to an alcohol overdose or alcohol poisoning. This is a potentially life-threatening medical emergency. Additionally, excessive binge drinking can take a toll on a person’s relationships, work, school performance, professional goals, and personal life.

Defining a Drink

What classifies as a drink? In the United States, a drink is a beverage that has round 14 grams of pure alcohol. This is equal to:

  • 1.5 ounces of distilled spirits with a 40% alcohol content
  • 5 ounces of wine with a 12% alcohol content
  • 12 ounces of beer with a 5% alcohol content

If you look at any alcoholic beverage, you’ll see the beverage’s “pure” alcohol content by looking at the alcohol by volume (alc/vol) on the container. This amount will vary by brand and beverage type. For standard drink sizes, these measurements are fairly accurate.

However, all served drinks don’t necessarily fall into these standard sizes so it can be difficult to keep track of how much alcohol you’re consuming. An overpoured glass of wine, a large glass of beer, or a mixed drink with a generous amount of liquor could have a much higher alcohol content than the drinker realizes. As many adolescents drink at parties from large containers, they can easily have two or three times the amount that you’d normally find in a standard serving in one cup.

Underage Drinking Signs

Usually, friends, teachers, or family members are among the first to recognize that someone is drinking when underage. Each person can exhibit different signs, and the severity levels can fluctuate. Some signs are easier to identify than others, but you should take all of them seriously when you notice them.

If you notice the signs of underage drinking, don’t wait for the problem to get worse. The more a teenager drinks, the more potential for both physical and psychological harm. Also, there’s more of a risk for long-term problems

These are some of the more common signs of underage drinking:

Academic or Behavioral Problem Development

When someone starts drinking at a young age, they may develop sudden behavioral changes. Mood changes are very common including anger, general aggressiveness, or defensiveness. Sudden mood swings such as going from happy and laughing to angry and upset are good indicators of drinking as well.

Academic issues usually follow. Disrupting class, skipping school, not doing homework, or failing in areas where they once excelled are signs there is a problem. This is easy to spot if your child did very well in school before, but it’s more difficult if your child was already struggling.

Appears to Be Under the Influence

Most alcoholic beverages have a strong and distinct scent. It can seep right through someone’s pores in their skin, or you can smell it on their breath. The more severe the problem is, the stronger the smell.

Because the child doesn’t want anyone to know that they drink, they could try to cover this smell by eating mints or applying large amounts of perfume or body spray. Along with the smell, other common indicators that someone is under the influence of something include slurred speech, bloodshot eyes, difficulty coordinating, and a flushed complexion. These are the biggest red flags to watch for when you think someone is drinking.

Concentration Issues or Memory Loss

When someone binge drinks, memory loss is a common side effect. However, having memory issues doesn’t just happen to people who are long-term alcoholics. Adolescents are particularly vulnerable to memory issues because their brain isn’t done developing.

The inability to focus and concentrate is another problem drinking can trigger. When someone drinks, it’s usually fairly easy to distract them. Focusing on a single thing for too long is also next to impossible. This sign is much more noticeable if your child is doing chores in the house or attempting to finish their school work.

Hobby and Activity Interest Loss

It’s not uncommon for many children in middle and high school to develop hobbies they’re passionate about or to participate in extracurricular activities. Drinking can make them less interested and engaged in their activity or hobby.

Instead of focusing on the things that fulfilled them and brought them joy, their focus on getting alcohol. Cravings for it can play a role here. The more severe the drinking problem is, the more intense the cravings will be. If it becomes bad enough, your child can get to the point where they can focus on little else other than finding alcohol and drinking.

Secretive and Switching Groups of Friends

While many teenagers are secretive to a point, if your child stops telling you things or becomes more secretive than they normally are, this is a red flag. Instead of telling you specifics of what they did during the day or where they’re going, they may be very vague and general. When you push a conversation, they’ll tend to get defensive or lash out.

When a person’s circle of friends changes, this could be a sign of alcohol abuse. Many underage drinkers prefer to hang around people who push them to drink more and encourage the habit. Secrecy can come in here too, and your child may work to make sure you never meet these new friends.

Reasons Why Adolescents Drink

As your child starts to make the shift from adolescence to being a young adult, they go through dramatic emotional, physical, and lifestyle shifts. Increasing independence and puberty could have ties to underage drinking. Other reasons why adolescents drink include:

  • Expectancies – Popular culture often glorifies drinking. From music that talks about having fun with alcohol and partying, to movies that show people drinking, kids can grow up with the impression that alcohol is a normal part of life, and can even be something that makes them “cool.” Someone who tries alcohol and expects it to be pleasurable might drink more than someone who doesn’t have that expectation.
  • Self-Medication – When someone can’t find a healthy outlet to get their unhappiness or frustrations out, they may turn to alcohol. It could make them temporarily forget about their problems or how they feel. Some see it as a release, or it helps them feel happy. Alcohol has relaxing effects so some adolescents use it to cope with their everyday anxiety or stress.
  • Boredom – When adolescents have trouble finding things to occupy them or get bored, they start searching for something to give them a thrill. Alcohol gives them something to occupy their time. Drinking is also a way to bond with like-minded people who encourage them to drink more.
  • Instant Gratification – Most people want results, and they want them right now. This is instant gratification. Alcohol works very quickly, especially if someone binge drinks. The initial effects of the alcohol usually feel very good, and kids see it as a shortcut to relaxing and being happy.
  • Lack of Self-Esteem or Confidence – If someone lacks confidence or self-esteem, alcohol gives them the courage they need to do things they’d never do while sober. You’ll dance even if you’re terrible at it, socialize even if you have anxiety, or kiss that person you’d never have the courage to kiss. If you say or do something outrageous, alcohol is almost a free pass. People will brush it off because there’s alcohol involved.
  • Rebellion – At some point or another, almost every teenager or young adult rebels. It’s a way to flaunt their independence, and it gets a rise out of their parents. Alcohol seems like a perfect way to rebel. It’s relatively easy to hide, especially if your kid never did anything wrong before.
  • Peer Pressure – Peer pressure is enormous in middle and high school. In order to feel accepted, many adolescents do things they would never normally do. If drinking is “cool,” they’ll do it because their friends are doing it. Also, groups of friends tend to encourage one another to drink more or start drinking. They don’t want to get left out, so they do.

Underage Drinking Health Risks

Whatever reason kick starts a drinking habit, there are a number of health risks that can soon follow. Although severe health problems may not be as common in adolescent drinkers as they are with adults, there are risks. They include:

Brain

An adolescent’s brain continues to develop until they’re out of their late teens or into their early 20s. Drinking can lead to subtle changes in the brain that can have a long-term impact on memory and cognitive ability. For example, your child could have problems concentrating or focusing, and this gets much worse when they drink more.

Growth

When a child goes through puberty, they experience huge shifts in their hormones, including sex hormone increases. These hormones encourage the body to produce growth factors and other hormones that regulate various systems. These hormones are also essential for normal organ development. Drinking during this time can upset the natural progression of growth hormone production, and this can impact your child’s bone, muscle, and organ development.

Liver

Liver damage and elevated liver enzymes are common in people who drink. If your child is obese or overweight, their liver enzyme levels can go up with only a moderate amount of alcohol. Binge drinking can send these enzyme levels skyrocketing. In turn, this interferes with how well the liver works to rid the body of toxins and waste.

Underage Drinking Consequences

Drinking while underage can come with dozens of short-term and long-term consequences. Unfortunately, most young people live in the here and now, and it never crosses their minds to worry about their drinking pattern consequences until it’s far too late. To make it worse, some consequences may go dormant for years before they resurface. Any underage drinker is likely to experience at least one of the following:

  • Abuse of other substances
  • Health concerns
  • High risk of suicide attempts
  • Legal trouble – DUI, arrest, fines, community service, license loss or suspension
  • Physical or sexual assault
  • Problems in school
  • Sexually transmitted diseases
  • Social issues
  • Unwanted or unplanned pregnancy

There are more long-term effects associated with underage drinking. The severity of the long-term effects usually depends on how much the adolescent drank and for how long. It can lead to respiratory infections, nerve damage, memory issues, liver disease or failure, cancer, and cardiovascular disease.

To make it worse, a lot of these conditions don’t get better with time. Instead, they start to get worse. When a major organ or system in your body starts to fail, it can ripple out into other areas of your health.

Contact Schill Law Group for More Underage Drinking Statistics Today

Do you want to know more about underage drinking? Maybe your child is drinking alcoholic beverages and you need help with legal issues because of it. If so, we can help. You can get in touch today to set up your consultation.

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Everything You Need to Know About Vehicular Manslaughter

Everything You Need to Know About Vehicular Manslaughter

by | Nov 19, 2019 | Accidents

Defending the People of Arizona

With more than 100 Years of combined experience

Everything You Need to Know About Vehicular Manslaughter

What is vehicular manslaughter? Hopefully, something you’ll never have to experience for yourself. The number of deaths per year on American roads now stands at over 40,000, so it is important to understand the legal implications of a traffic collision.

Defining Vehicular Manslaughter

Any driver who unintentionally causes an accident that results in the death of a pedestrian, passenger, or someone in another car, could find themselves charged with vehicular manslaughter. This is also known as vehicular homicide. These charges are often brought when the driver was operating their vehicle recklessly, carelessly, under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or in an otherwise illegal manner. Each state has its own specific definition of vehicular manslaughter.

This charge is a relatively new addition to the category of homicide offenses. Before vehicular manslaughter existed, drivers could receive a standard manslaughter charge, i.e. the charge of unintentionally killing someone as a result of recklessness or negligence. Juries had a hard time deciding on a manslaughter charge in the case of a car accident. The introduction of the vehicular manslaughter category helped to address this by offering lesser penalties than the manslaughter charge.

drinking and driving

Conditions Leading to Manslaughter Charges

What kind of driving will typically result in a vehicular manslaughter charge? The answer to this question varies from state to state. However, the following situations will usually carry a vehicular manslaughter charge.

Driving While Intoxicated

Proving that a driver was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the accident is one way to demonstrate reckless driving. Self-incriminating statements, eyewitness testimony, and chemical evidence like breath, blood, or urine tests can prove intoxication. Many states require prosecutors to show that the driving was actively careless, and proof of intoxication alone might not be enough to convict.

Drivers who have blood alcohol levels of 0.08 or higher are driving under the influence. Some states have different standards for different driver classes, for example commercial vehicles or young drivers.

Drivers under the influence of prescribed drugs could also receive a vehicular manslaughter charge if their driving causes a death. For example, if a driver takes medication and drives after their doctor warns them about the side effects, and the medication container has obvious and clear warnings not to drive while taking it. This may be enough to show that the driver acted negligently or recklessly.

Driving While Tired

Many accidents happen when a driver is very drowsy, or when they’ve fallen asleep. When someone dies as a result of this, the driver will not automatically face charges of vehicular manslaughter. The question is whether or not the driver in question acted recklessly or negligently while behind the wheel.

For example, charging someone with manslaughter may be appropriate when someone stays up for 36 hours straight and then decides to drive. resulting in a fatal accident. The driver is aware of their reduced capacity, and still opts to get behind the wheel.

Negligent Driving

Negligent or careless driving resulting in death is usually enough to result in a vehicular manslaughter charge. Traditional negligent driving involves driving in a way that lacks the care and consideration usually considered a minimum standard on the road.

For example, a driver who reaches into the car’s console and removes their eyes from the road while they drive will be considered negligent. They may receive a vehicular manslaughter charge if this inattention results in fatal accident.

Reckless Disregard for Safety, Criminal Negligence, or Culpable or Gross Negligence

In some states, drivers must be found guilty of other crimes along with negligence before they are considered for a vehicular homicide charge. This where factors such as gross, criminal, or culpable negligence, and reckless disregard for public safety, are factored into the process.

How does this work in practice? Well, if you broke the speed limit, had a higher than legal blood alcohol level, and you didn’t stop at a traffic signal, these elements would be added together cumulatively, resulting in a far greater penalty than that of standard negligent or careless driving.

Violating Safety Statutes

You can also receive vehicular manslaughter charges when an accident happens after you break a safety statute. Many states require that you have a clear windshield when driving, for example. If someone dies because you can’t see through your windshield, the state could charge you with vehicular manslaughter. Passing another vehicle in a no-passing zone, driving faster than the passing speed limit, and making illegal U-turns, are other examples of violations.

Different states also single out specific violations that may not necessarily be safety violations. If someone dies as a result of this, your state could charge you with vehicular manslaughter. In Iowa, for example, any driver who chooses to pass a stopped school bus and causes an accident resulting in death automatically commits a felony. Deaths as a result of other types of reckless driving, that don’t involve driving under the influence, are misdemeanors. Some other states consider causing a death while eluding police to be a felony.

Punishments for the Other Driver

It’s common for both drivers to be charged following a car accident. Maybe both cars were driving too fast, for example, and therefore both drivers are in the wrong. Damages and blame can be sorted out in a civil court, and blame is usually assigned using the contributory negligence theory. I.e. whichever driver the judge finds more responsible for the accident will collect less in damages, or will pay more in compensation.

It’s rare for contributory negligence to play a part in a vehicular manslaughter case. Let’s imagine that a road traffic collision victim has a blood alcohol level above the legal limit, but the defendant was street racing on the wrong side of the road at the time. In this case, the judge might not allow the jury to hear about the victim’s blood alcohol content.

curious

Can a Court Charge a Non-Driver with Vehicular Manslaughter?

In the vast majority of vehicular manslaughter charges, the defendant is the one who was allegedly driving. In some cases, however, the prosecutor can try to charge a person with vehicular manslaughter even though there is a dispute whether or not the defendant was driving.

One case of this nature received national attention because the defendant wasn’t actually the driver of the vehicle. The person was a pedestrian, Raquel Nelson, who received a charge of second-degree vehicular homicide after her four-year-old son was struck and killed as they prepared to cross a highway in Georgia in 2010.

Officials determined that the child’s death was a direct cause of Raquel Nelson’s attempt to cross the highway with her child in unsafe conditions. Along with the second-degree vehicular homicide charge, she also received a pedestrian crossing violation charge. The actual driver of the vehicle that struck the child was charged with first-degree vehicular homicide, after it was determined that they were driving under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident.

The state of Georgia classifies second-degree vehicular homicide as a misdemeanor. The definition of this charge is “to cause an unintentional death by violating any state traffic law”. This excludes traffic laws pertaining to reckless driving, DWI, DUI, driver duties involved in an accident that results in a serious injury or death, driver duties when approaching a stopped school bus, or eluding a police officer. The traffic law violation must be considered the legal cause of death.

In Raquel Nelson’s case, her charge came based on the traffic law that states a pedestrian must yield to oncoming traffic if not at a crosswalk. The exception is when a pedestrian, under safe circumstances, has already started crossing the roadway. She violated this provision by stepping onto the highway with her children when conditions weren’t safe. This resulted in her child’s death.

She pleaded not guilty to the charges, and the case went to trial. A judge found her guilty on both charges. She received 12 months of probation and 40 hours of community service. The judge also granted Nelson the choice of having a new trial or serving her sentence.

She chose to have a new trial, but she then filed a motion to block the retrial. She argued that there was insufficient evidence to support the conviction at the first trial and a retrial would fall under double jeopardy. The judge denied this motion, and Raquel Nelson appealed to Georgia’s Court of Appeals.

The Court of Appeals stated that Raquel Nelson’s case was the first in Georgia’s history in which a pedestrian received a second-degree vehicular homicide charge after a victim in their charge was killed attempting to cross a road in an unsafe way.

The Court found that the Georgia courts had previously ruled that any non-driver could receive such a charge as a party to a traffic violation. They cited a 2003 Georgia Court of Appeals case when the Court upheld a conviction of first-degree vehicular homicide in the case of a defendant who gave alcohol to a teenage driver. The teenager then crashed the car and killed two passengers.

The Court of Appeals ruled that there was sufficient evidence to support the conviction even though Raquel wasn’t driving a vehicle. So, having a retrial was did not fall under double jeopardy. Facing a second trial with the same charges, she chose a no-contest plea to the jaywalking offense and agreed to pay a $200 fine if the court dismissed the pedestrian crossing and vehicular homicide charges.

Sentencing and Penalties

Several states operate different degrees of vehicular manslaughter when sentencing. Certain states authorize bigger punishments for convictions of drivers under the influence, for example.

In Georgia, any driver who causes a death while they’re intoxicated can receive a charge of first-degree vehicular homicide. This is a felony that can bring a sentence of 15 years in prison. A driver who commits a moving traffic offense and causes a death is guilty of committing second-degree vehicular homicide. This carries a maximum sentence of a year in jail, and is classed as a misdemeanor.

Vehicular manslaughter penalties vary from state to state. In Alabama, a person who gets a vehicular manslaughter conviction based after driving under the influence can be sentenced to a maximum of five years in prison. On the other hand, a person in Minnesota who commits the same offense can get up to 30 years of prison time.

Vehicular Manslaughter – Possible Defenses

There are several common defense strategies for vehicular manslaughter cases. One strategy is lobbying for the exclusion of incriminating evidence. This could be test results that show the person was driving with a blood-alcohol level over the legal limit. An attorney could argue that the court shouldn’t allow evidence like this because law enforcement officers failed to follow procedures, or they obtained the results in a way that is a violation of the person’s rights.

A person could also argue that being intoxicated wasn’t the legal cause of a death in an accident, and that the event was outside the defendant’s scope of control.

In Washington, a person can be acquitted of vehicular manslaughter if a judge or jury finds out that an outside act caused the person’s death. A person could show evidence that the reckless driving was not due to drugs or alcohol, but due to a medical emergency or condition instead.

However, if a person chooses to drive in spite of their known medical condition, they can still receive a vehicular homicide charge if the courts determine that choosing to drive was reckless or negligent.

What To Do If You Have Questions, or If You are Facing Charges?

If you’re facing vehicular manslaughter charges, the first thing to do is get an attorney. An attorney can help you form a plan on how to take your case to court and defend against it. If you need representation, reach out and contact us. Our talented staff members are ready to answer your questions or set up your initial consultation. We’ll help you get the best outcome possible for your situation.

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Fathers Rights in Arizona

Fathers Rights in Arizona

by | Nov 18, 2019 | Laws

Defending the People of Arizona

With more than 100 Years of combined experience

Fathers Rights in Arizona

Parents have the right to have a relationship with their children. State laws end up enforcing these rights a lot of the time, including what is known as father’s rights. In the state of Arizona, fathers have certain rights in regards to parenting, just as the children have a fundamental right to have healthy relationships with their parents.

Arizona established state laws to help encourage a parent/child relationship, and the courts don’t step in unless absolutely necessary. In the majority of father’s rights cases, the child’s best interest is a cornerstone in any decision.

boy playing with airplane

A Father’s Effect on a Child’s Life

Traditionally, the mother holds the position of a child’s primary care provider. But fathers also play a critical role in the child’s development and healthy growth. Both in and out of the courtroom, fathers have proven they can be capable disciplinarians and competent caretakers.

These two roles are essential to any child’s upbringing. Fathers can help instill social and cognitive development, as well as confidence and a sense of security.

Arizona’s Laws for Establishing Paternity

It’s still common for a mother to raise a child by herself without a father figure present. There may come a time when the father has to step up in the child’s life to help with raising them. This is why the father or mother must establish the child’s paternity very early on, ideally, right after the mother has the child.

Establishing paternity simply means that a court judge or government entity has made a ruling on which male is the child’s father. One of the easiest ways to establish paternity in Arizona is for the family to fill out a Voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity Form

Both the mother and father should sign this form. Having both parties sign this form makes the paternity official in the government’s eyes, and it legally outlines who the child’s father is for all intents and purposes.

If the parents can’t agree on who the child’s father is, any of the following people can start a paternity matter under Arizona state law:

  • The mother of the child
  • A male believed to be the father (putative father)
  • The person whom the child is living with or their guardian (custodian)
  • Any government agency that provides the child with welfare benefits or health insurance

A superior court system can start a motion to establish the child’s paternity where the mother, child, and putative father reside. Any government agency that provides any form of care for the child can bring up a motion to establish paternity outside of the court system

When it comes to determining paternity, either a ruling from a government agency or a court is valid. Both the government agency and the court can order genetic or blood testing to help establish the child’s paternity. The paternity test is only valid if it shows there is a 95% chance the male in question is the child’s father.

Arizona’s Best Interest of the Child Standard

The Best Interests of the Child Standard in Arizona is the guiding force for Arizona judges who are trying to preside over parental right or child custody cases. There are determining factors the judges must consider when it comes to the child’s best interests, including:

  • Both parents’ mental health
  • Both parents’ physical health
  • Both parents’ preferences
  • Child’s ability to adjust to current or potentially new surroundings in the community, home, or school
  • Child’s mental health
  • Child’s preferences
  • Relationship between the child and any siblings
  • Relationship between the child and each parent
  • Relationships between the child and other significant individuals

The court will consider which parent will be more likely to allow for frequent and meaningful contact between the other parent and the child. They also look at which parent took on the role of the traditional caregiver. Any parent that used duress or coercion as a way to get primary custody will cause the judge to look unfavorably on them.

This is especially true when you compare it to how the judge will look on the other parent that cooperates for the child’s benefit. Ultimately, the judge wants to know that the child is in a living situation that serves their best interests. The end goal is not making things fair for the parents, but rather, it’s to ensure the well-being of the child.

Father’s Rights to Visitation and Custody in Arizona

Both of a child’s biological parents have the right to seek custody or visitation, and both parents have equal rights in this regard. This right also stands whether or not the parents were married or not married when they had a child. Arizona judges rely on the child’s best interests standard to help guide their decisions regarding custody.

This guidance also applies to any visitation rights, whether they put them in place for the mother or the father. The judge usually assumes that it’s beneficial for the child to have both parents play a role in their upbringing.

father playing with daughter

Father’s Rights to Child Support in Arizona

Circumstances pending, the judge could appoint either the father or the mother as the child’s primary guardian or custodial parent and the other parent as the non-custodial one. The custodial parent is the one who will be largely responsible for the child’s care and upbringing. The non-custodial parent usually pays child support and gets visitation rights.

Child support is a way for the non-custodial parent to help provide financially for the child’s care and upbringing. Child support is supposed to pay for anything the child should need like their housing, clothing, food, or other items.

It doesn’t matter if the father or mother gets the custodial parent role. The custodial parent has a right to seek child support to help them raise the child. A father whom the judge names as the custodial parent has as much right to petition for child support from the mother as the mother would if she was the custodial parent.

In Arizona, custodial parents can use the Child Support Enforcement Program to help get child support payments from the non-custodial parent.

Married Father’s Rights

In the state of Arizona, if a couple is or gets married before they have a child, there is a presumption of paternity. The state presumes you’re the child’s biological father. The state considers paternity to be already established when you’re married.

As a result, you have a legal right to see and interact with the child, and you also get to participate in major decisions regarding the child. These decisions could be education, medical treatment, or religious training.

Being married when you have a child also gives you responsibility in the event of a divorce. This is true for child support payments if you are the non-custodial parent.

Married Fathers Get Equal Rights

Arizona law recognizes and protects equal rights between the mother and the father in the event of a separation or divorce. If you worked full-time while your wife stayed home and took on the role of the primary caregiver for the child, the court wouldn’t hold that against you when it decides parenting time or legal decision-making rights.

In Arizona, courts don’t follow the Tender Years Doctrine anymore, which favored mothers when it came to deciding the primary placement and visitation schedules. Today, both the mother and father have equal rights in the eyes of the court, no matter the child’s age. The court isn’t allowed to favor one parent over the other parent.

The courts have to take all of the facts of the case into consideration before they make their ruling and final decision. The parents and the court system should all focus on the child’s best interests throughout the custody and visitation proceedings.

Unmarried Father’s Rights

Any father who isn’t married to the child’s mother at the time of the birth has no legal rights to the child until they establish paternity under Arizona law. You can establish paternity through an affidavit (agreement) between both the mother and the father. There is also the option to get a court order to try and establish paternity with a test, and from that, establish rights for the unmarried father.

Arizona law allows an unmarried mother to make more significant decisions with regards to the child’s education, medical treatment, and religious training without seeking the father’s approval or without his consent. This changes if the father decides to seek his parental rights.

Custodial Interference

For unmarried fathers in Arizona who don’t go through the process of establishing paternity, custodial interference is a very real possibility. For example, you take your daughter to the park to play like you have hundreds of times before. You help her on the slide and push her on the swing. Suddenly, a police car pulls up and asks you for your ID.

Once you show it, the officer arrests you and tells you that they’re charging you with custodial interference. The police take your daughter away and give her back to her mother. You and the mother argued this morning before you took your daughter to the park. As a result, she called the police on you after you left to get her daughter back.

Is this legal? If you’re unmarried, it might be. If you’re not married to your child’s mother and you don’t establish paternity, you have no rights to that child. Now, if you had established paternity, this wouldn’t be legal.

FAQs Regarding Father’s Rights

There are several frequently asked questions people have regarding father’s rights in Arizona. We picked out the most popular questions and answered them below.

Your significant other just had a baby. What are your rights if you’re not married?

You have no rights until you establish paternity. This doesn’t mean that you should be denied time with the child. If one or both parties dispute custody, a court will include a review of how both the mother and father treated one another with regards to access to the child.

If one parent decides to deny access without having a good reason, the court will review it later when they’re deciding the best custody arrangements. Good reasons for denying one parent access to the child include child abuse, drug abuse, domestic violence, or untreated mental illness.

Does the child’s age matter?

Whether they are six months or sixteen, the age won’t impact a judge’s decision. As long as they are a minor, you can dispute custody or seek visitation rights. You’re free to establish paternity starting at birth and going up to the time the child turns 18.

If you get a paternity test, will you have to pay child support?

Yes. Every parent has to pay for their child until they turn 18, and it doesn’t matter if the child lives with you or not. Non-custodial parents are the ones who typically pay child support to the custodial parent to help support their child.

You have your name on the birth certificate, and the hospital staff signed it; does that prove paternity?

As long as the mother or another party doesn’t contest your name on the birth certificate, yes. A signed birth certificate is enough to establish paternity.

Can you establish paternity without involving a court or government agency?

Yes. You can draft a legally binding agreement that both you and the mother sign without going to the court. However, you can’t claim this is a court order unless a judge signs off on the agreement you set up.

Is submitting paternity paperwork to the state of Arizona free?

No. Arizona charges a filing fee. The amount depends on what paperwork you want to submit to establish paternity. If you have trouble affording this fee, a court can waive it if you request it.

Find Out More About Father’s Rights

Do you want to know more about your rights? Maybe you need an attorney to help guide you through the process of establishing paternity. If so, you can reach out and contact us. We’re happy to set up a consultation today!

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In the Child’s “Best Interest”: How to Negotiate for Custody and Visitation

by | Feb 28, 2018 | Child custody, Child Support, Custody, Divorce

Defending the People of Arizona

With more than 100 Years of combined experience

In the Child’s “Best Interest”: How to Negotiate for Custody and Visitation

Divorces can be very rough on children. When two parents make the decision to separate from one another, the children may experience significant changes in their lives, and that can result in fear, anxiety, and even anger. In order to minimize these negative feelings, the Arizona court system works diligently to ensure that any decisions that are made regarding the divorce are in the “best interest” of the children involved. What does this mean, exactly? Taking a closer look at what constitutes the best interests of a child will help you ensure a smooth transition for your kids and prepare for court.

Putting Children First

As a parent, your job is to protect and provide for your children. This means that you are always going above and beyond the call of duty in order to ensure that your children are happy and healthy. Divorce doesn’t change any of that. Even when you and your child’s parent make the decision to divorce, your goal is to take care of your kids to the best of your ability. Although emotions and tensions may run high during a divorce, it’s imperative that you work to put your children first when trying to negotiate living arrangements, visitation schedules, child support agreements, etc. Partnering with an experienced lawyer from Schill Law Group can make the process of negotiating with your spouse much easier, and will ensure that someone is fighting on behalf of you and your children, even if you and the other parent can’t reach an agreement outside of the courtroom.

Allowing for Ample Parenting Time

Regardless of how you may feel about your child’s other parent, your child deserves the opportunity to have a positive and healthy relationship with their mother or father. You, your lawyer, and your spouse must come up with a schedule that allows for ample parenting time for both parties. You will need to consider which holidays and traditions are important to your child, and how time should be shared amongst yourselves so that the child is able to stay connected with both sides of his or her family. You will also need to consider how close you and the child’s other parent live to one another, and what is practical in terms of shared living arrangements or visitation. If a child lives far away from one parent, the two should have a regular schedule for communicating via telephone or webcam.

Constant Communication

Even after divorce, communication is essential for ex-partners who are co-parenting their children. If both parents have shared custody, both have the right to make decisions about the child’s upbringing and welfare. This means that if an incident occurs related to the child’s health, schooling, or behavior, both parents should be informed and involved. Without adequate communication, this cannot happen. It’s very important that the child receives input from both parents in order to live a happy and well-adjusted life.

Safety First

It’s always imperative that you consider the safety of your child before anything else. If you believe that the child’s other parent may be abusing drugs or alcohol, or may have violent tendencies, it is your responsibility to protect your kids. This doesn’t mean that you can withhold visitation from the other parent on your own, though. You will need to go through the court system and all of the proper channels in order to protect yourself and your children.

Divorce doesn’t have to be a traumatic experience for children. When the child’s best interests are taken into consideration, he or she can grow up to be healthy and happy. Contact the team at Schill Law Group today to start building a case for your child’s best interests in your divorce.

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