Divorce – THE SUNLIGHT PROJECT

2012-10-27

Child Support Reform – Proposal

If the state is going to be involved in the administration of child support payments, administrate in a fair and balanced manner:

1. Child support payments go for the benefit of the child and not for the benefit of the parent. Child support payments should be in an amount that is fair and reasonable for the needs of the child.

2. The amount of child support payment obligations should not be part of any negotiation or negotiated settlement in a divorce case. The amount of income of the parent and the amount of parenting time may be agreed upon in a settlement; but not the amount of child support payments.

3. Both parents are required to make child support payments — divorced dad and divorced mom. The amount each parent is to pay should be based on income and on parenting time and in consideration of the actual/projected actual costs/expenses for the support of the children. (There may be cases where both parents are “deadbeats” — not just one parent.)

4. Child support payments should be taken from employment income as is a withholding tax. (No check-writing between the parties.)

5. Child support payments from each parent should be directly deposited into a trust account managed by the state that is in the name of the child/children with each parent as a custodian.

6. How much money each parent is entitled to withdraw from the trust account each month should be based on a review of the needs of the children and the budget. Debit cards could be used; when the maximum amount allowed for withdrawal has been reached by a parent, no more money can be withdrawn. If the parent is in arrears in making payments to the fund, no money can be withdrawn.

7. Any parent who makes a withdrawal of money from the account must provide documentation and an accounting of the use of the money. Costs/expenses should be categorized and evaluated. (Use of the debit card would help accounting. For example, at a store, the parent could check out in two stages, paying for her/his items with a personal card and paying for items for the children with the debit card.)

8. Each parent is sent a statement of account along with the monthly invoice to pay support; each parent has the opportunity to review the use of the money. Certain shared/variable expenses of the children should be paid directly by the fund and invoiced to the parents through the fund.

9. Child support obligations should be enforced against both parents where applicable, not only one parent.

10. Any money in the account when the child reaches the age of adulthood can be returned to the parents in proportion to the contribution and/or gifted to the child and used for college education, etc.

2012-10-27

Divorce For This Century – Proposal

Here is a proposal for divorce reform:

Structure divorce as an administrative process run like an ongoing mediation:

1. An administrator/mediator trained in conflict resolution manages the case/process. The administrator doesn’t have to be a lawyer or administrative law judge. Divorce lawyers are not permitted to appear in the administrative proceedings. Parties may retain a divorce lawyer at their own request but the divorce lawyer will not participate directly in the proceedings.

2. The parties are required to exchange standard information disclosures (e.g., asset statements from dates of marriage and divorce filing) and proposals for settlement (e.g. for division of existing assets). The administrator may request additional information and may appoint an accountant to review financial records of the parties. At the start of the case, each party will be ordered to set up their own individual account.

3. If there are dependent children, the parents are required to submit a joint parenting plan. If the parents cannot agree on a joint parenting plan, the administrator will address that issue first; but if the parents cannot reach an agreement, the initial order is that the parents will share equal parenting time during the proceeding and for two years after the divorce is final. Persons who were formerly employed as custody evaluators will be retrained and will instead serve as joint parenting facilitators tasked to help the divorcing parents reorganize there respective lives and households; joint parenting facilitators will remain assigned to the case and available to the parties/parents until the children reach the age of adulthood.

4. Parties are able to make all submissions made using standard fill-in forms (simple and understandable). Parties can revise their submissions during the initial months of the process.

5. Starting presumptions: (a) equal shared custody/placement of children is best for the children and that each parent is entitled to equal parenting time; (b) equal division of property obtained during marriage is equitable; (c) the return of divisible/documented pre-marital property to each spouse is equitable; (d) no alimony/maintenance is required to either party. Evidence/proof is required to overcome presumptions.

6. The administrator initially sets up a case resolution plan. The administrator then meets/mediates with parties monthly until case is fully resolved.

7. If parties do not resolve all issues by mediation within 18 meetings/months, the administrator will decide any unresolved issues. The parties can seek review/determination of the issues by an appeals panel.

8. Child support payment obligations are not part of the negotiation. The parents are each required to submit a proposed budget for their respective households. The parents are required to attempt to prepare a joint budget for child support expenses that are to be shared, such as for activities, special medical care, orthodontia, college savings. Both parents are required to pay child support into a fund based on their income and their parenting time and the budget. Each parent is entitled to withdraw a specified amount from the fund each month; if the parents share equal parenting time, each parent is presumptively entitled to withdraw the same amount from the fund. Parents are required to submit an annual statement providing a report/accounting of the use of amounts withdrawn from the fund and on actual child support costs/expenses.

9. The administrator has authority to “ticket” (impose fines/sanctions for) false/misleading statements and omissions and/or to refer a party for criminal prosecution for making false statements.

10. If a credible allegation of abuse is made, the administrator will keep proper distance between the parties. A special team of administrators will be trained for so-called high-conflict cases. The first goal will be to reduce conflict by removing any incentive for the conflict.

11. Issues relating to “quality of parenting” are not addressed in the proceeding. If one party/parent has objections to the parenting of the other party/parent, the objections are to be presented to an appropriate/different agency in a separate proceedings — to the child protective services agency.

12. Judicial review in the trial court is available for issues determined by the administrative appeals panel (with due deference to the administrator/panel). The initial determination of the court will be whether both parties participated in the administrative process in good faith; if the court determines that there was not good faith, the parties will be ordered back to the administrative process for up to one year under court supervision (monthly reports from the administrator).

2012-10-26

Where’s My Divorce?

The papers were filed. I paid the money (did I ever). I went to court a few times. The final papers were all signed (though they ended up having some sleaze on them).

The judge said I was divorced.

But I didn’t get my divorce.

Where’s my divorce?

There’s the rub, the reality. If you have children (as I do) you don’t get a divorce.

You get an __-year nightmare (fill in the blank with 18/19 minus your youngest child’s age) of having to deal with a person (your ex-spouse) that you would not want to deal with ever again.

If you love your children and are devoted to them (as I do and am), you may find that the person you have to deal with will mercilessly take advantage of the situation. You’ll be engaged in ongoing contact much of which is nonsensical.

I paid the money. I signed the papers. I want my divorce!

Where’s my divorce?

2012-10-25

Why The Sunlight Project?

“Sunlight is said to be the best of disenfectants.”

– Justice Louis D. Brandeis in a 1913 Harper’s Weekly article titled “What Publicity Can Do” (credit to www.sunlightfoundation.org).