Lawrence Family Law Attorneys

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Joseph, Hollander & Craft’s Lawrence family law attorneys are experienced and effective advocates for all of your family law matters. With client engagement as our primary focus, we aim to understand your specific circumstances, concerns, and goals and build a legal plan unique to your family situation. We provide you with a personalized experience and approach to your family law case, and can guide you through the legal process and any challenges that may arise.

Representation for All Family Law Matters in Lawrence, KS

Our family law attorneys in Lawrence provide customized, strategic representation to clients with a wide array of needs and goals. Clients often retain our firm for assistance with:

• Divorce, Annulment, or Legal Separation. Regardless of whether your matter is contentious or amicable, our Lawrence divorce lawyers are at the ready. We work to protect your assets and ensure property division is fair and equitable. Our Lawrence divorce lawyers manage complex property division matters and related disputes with ease—always intent on protecting your financial future.
• Custody and Parenting Time. Our Lawrence child custody attorneys can help you with every aspect of custody including legal custody, residency, and parenting time. We know your children’s needs are your top priority, and we will ensure your family’s specific circumstances are considered and represented each step of the way—be it in a divorce or paternity action or modification afterward.
• Child Support. Joseph, Hollander & Craft’s child support lawyers in Lawrence ensure both parents’ incomes and each child’s specific needs and circumstances are considered when obtaining, modifying, and enforcing child support orders. We also assist with all aspects of paternity representation.
• Adoption and Guardianship. Our team of attorneys in Lawrence helps clients whose families are growing, either through the adoption or guardianship process. Our family is ready to help yours at any time.
• Grandparent Rights. Our Lawrence family law lawyers recognize the importance of protecting a child’s relationship with all family members. Our family law attorneys assist clients in securing visitation rights for grandparents and work with parents to set boundaries or terminate visitation for grandparents.
• Prenuptial Agreements and Postnuptial Agreements. Joseph, Hollander & Craft’s Lawrence-based family law attorneys are skilled at preparing and reviewing premarital agreements and post-marital agreements; let us help you ensure your interests are protected.

Regardless of the situation you find yourself in, Joseph, Hollander & Craft can help you with your family law matter.

Skilled and Experienced Lawrence Family Law Attorneys

Our Lawrence family law attorneys are skilled and experienced litigators. You can trust them to fiercely advocate for you in and out of the courtroom, strategically negotiate your position, and carefully consider your future when addressing the familial and financial aspect of your family law matter.

The legal system can be bewildering, particularly while experiencing the emotional stress that can come with family law matters. Our Lawrence family law lawyers endeavor to make it easier for our clients. We clearly explain the law and the legal process and maintain effective and consistent communication with each and every client. We will ensure you understand all of your options and provide you with objective and practical legal advice for your specific family law case.

Contact our family law attorneys in Lawrence for a consultation for your family law matter.

Frequently Asked Questions About Lawrence Family Law Cases

What alternative dispute resolution methods can be used in a divorce case?

Most divorces do not go to trial. Many are handled by alternative methods of dispute resolution such as mediation, conciliation, and arbitration. Each of these methods assists parties in resolving issues such as property division, child custody, child support, and spousal support outside of the courtroom. Agreements made during these alternative dispute resolutions are only binding when put in writing and signed by both parties and their attorneys, if necessary. Even then, the court must approve the agreement.

However, alternative dispute resolutions are not always appropriate for your family law matter. For example, in a divorce where one party has been abused, or where parties simply cannot come to an agreement, the best available option may be litigation.

Will I get spousal maintenance?

It depends. Courts in Kansas first consider the need of the party requesting spousal maintenance and the ability of the other party to pay. Even when maintenance is ordered, the amount and duration of the spousal maintenance differ in each case and may be modified as the parties’ circumstances change.

Kansas law looks at many different factors when determining maintenance. Which factors carry weight and how the factors are evaluated is up to the discretion of the judge. A judge can look at the length of the marriage, each party’s earning potential and resources, the age of the parties, the standard of living the parties were accustomed to during the marriage, and other factors the court deems relevant. Kansas law does not allow spousal maintenance to be ordered for any period longer than 121 months. In rare cases, a maintenance determination may be reassessed after 121 months if the judge orders.

Can I change my name during the divorce process?

Yes, you can change your name during the divorce process. We can include the request with the rest of the paperwork.

Should I hire my own forensic accountant to assist with the division of property?

Joseph, Hollander & Craft often teams up with respected, certified accountants and other financial professionals to ensure our clients’ assets are properly valued and fairly divided.

A forensic accountant may be advisable if:

• You and/or your spouse own a business or significant investments.
• You suspect that your spouse might be hiding assets.
• There are discrepancies in your financials.
• You have collections which will lose value if they are divided.
• You have significant real estate holdings.

Can a criminal record affect child custody or support?

Your criminal record or the criminal record of your spouse can have an impact on child custody. The court will look at the best interests of the child when determining who should have custody. Certain charges and conviction convince a court that a child would be unsafe in your or your spouse’s care. Further, parents who are incarcerated may face termination of their parental rights entirely. If you are concerned about pending charges, Joseph, Hollander & Craft’s defense lawyers in Lawrence can help.

Court-ordered child support will not be directly impacted by a criminal record. That is, no judge will make a parent pay more or less child support simply because of that parent’s criminal history. However, child support payments are generally paid by the non-custodial parent. If your time with your child is limited as a result of your criminal record, then you may pay more child support than you would pay if you and your spouse spent equal time with your child.

Can my soon-to-be-ex claim my professional license as marital property?

No. Kansas law does not allow your spouse to claim your professional license as marital property. However, contributions your spouse made to your education, career, and business will be considered in setting spousal support and may also factor into property division.

Can I keep my family law issue private?

Like most court cases, divorce proceedings are public. This means that filings are generally available and hearings are open to anyone who wants to attend. However, under Rule 24: Protection of Personally Identifiable Information, personally information like birthdates, social security numbers, and minor’s names must be redacted from materials entered in the public record.

You can protect your privacy during a divorce by entering prenuptial and postnuptial agreements that specify what will occur in the event the marriage dissolves and thereby limits the extent of filings in a divorce. Another means of protecting privacy is to reach agreements out of court–through settlement discussions, mediation, or collaborative divorce. This will allow you to limit the details of your family relationships incorporated into the public record.

It is understandable that you might be worried about your family law case reaching the press, potentially damaging your business reputation in the community. At Joseph, Hollander & Craft, our Lawrence family law attorneys work to protect your right to privacy, no matter the type of case.

Do You Have a Family Law Attorney Near Me?

Joseph, Hollander & Craft’s office is located at 5200 Bob Billings Pkwy in Lawrence, at the intersection of Legends Drive. The firm offers onsite parking. For your convenience, we maintain offices in Overland Park, Topeka, Wichita, and Kansas City, MO. Proudly serving Douglas County, Franklin County, Osage County, Jefferson County, and Miami County.