Month: November 2020

November 2020

Non-Traditional Income Sources and Divorce

November 24, 2020 / Children, Divorce Made Simple

Generally, tax returns, paystubs, and traditional wages are the easiest way to determine one’s income for purposes of child support and/or alimony. However, not all spouses earn income this traditional way. Non-traditional earnings, including dividends from income investments, passive income, retained earnings in a closely-held corporation (if excessive or inappropriate), Social Security benefits, as well as more-complex income streams may be taken into account when determining child support and/or alimony obligations. If a spouse earns non-traditional income, your divorce attorney may recommend you seek the assistance of an expert to support in determining a complete picture of the income available

Cocaine, Comparison, and Compassion

November 20, 2020 / NEXT: An Empowerment Series

“You use gratitude like cocaine,” she said. Her observation was as calm as if she were saying “The sky is blue today.” My mentor often shared wisdom I eagerly embraced. But the suggestion that I had been sticking the numbing needle of thanksgiving in my veins silenced me. Gratitude has long been my great go to. I had just shared what was going well in my life. My busy law firm. My healthy children. My meaningful coaching career. But my mentor could see beyond my rosy report. While my kids were okay, my sister was intermittently suicidal. My husband’s latest test results were encouraging, but the prognosis remained terminal. Reciting what might have been a good gratitude journal entry did not change the truth that

Stock Options in a Divorce

November 17, 2020 / Divorce Made Simple

Alternative forms of compensation, such as employee stock options are complex and present challenges in a divorce. An employee stock option is the right of an employee to buy a specific number of shares of stock in the employer-corporation at a specific price (strike price, grant price, or exercise price) at a specified time in the future. Usually, there are restrictions and conditions on the employee’s right to exercise options, such as maintaining employment with the company for a required number of years. The employer may also allow various portions of options to vest at different stages. When the required

Assumptions Observed

November 13, 2020 / NEXT: An Empowerment Series

I stride past the multitude of campaign signs, the one red, white and blue one that says “Polling Place Here.” A handful of men pace away the cold with hands in their jackets as they wait for the doors to open. I immediately spot the inspector. A short woman in a red polo, she appears in no mood to chat. I make my introduction brief. I assume she’s happy not to hear I’ll be observing. She knows I report counts of voters, wait times, and “incidents.” Outside poll workers measure out the 200 feet of string to mark the boundary

The Divorce

November 12, 2020 / Doing Divorce

I lay on my couch too listless to pick up the book I want to read or even to pick up the remote to watch a new murder docuseries I had saved. Maybe I will turn on music – but my phone is on the dining room table. I remember I need to take the garbage to the curb – eh, it can wait another week. I am numb. I am scared, worried, and uncertain about my future. I feel this now thinking about the country I love. I felt this in 2011 when I was in the midst of