What's Been Happening

Upcoming Presentations:

1) Celebrate Conflict Resolution Week (“CRW”) with the MBA (October 15 ^th through October 18 ^th ) . The MBA is celebrating CRW with events in Boston and in Brockton, come to one, or to all three! Cindy is a panelist on, “Perspectives: Exploring Prejudice, Cultural Bias and Individual. Please Click Link For More Information

2) Cindy is presenting at the Association of Professional Family Mediators Conference , on November 9 ^th , 2019. See info below or check out:  https://apfmnet.org

Presentation:  Creative Options to Maximize Money for Parents

 

Presenters:  Cynthia Runge, Debra Smith and David Goodman

 

Description:  Creative Options to help maximize money for parents in light of the tax law changes. This program will assist with identifying financial issues early on to plan for the impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The program will also highlight the benefit of working with a financial professional before the parties sign an Agreement thereby enhancing the understanding of the professionals, so they can help the parties become more empowered. Finally, the professionals will learn how to better support the parties with finding and obtaining the necessary financial information in the context of mediation and collaborative law processes. This workshop will help mediators and collaborative lawyers to become fluent in financial language to be more of a resource to parties they are working with; help mediators and collaborative lawyers know when to consult with a financial professional; and enhance the skill set of mediators and collaborative professionals.

3) In other news, Cindy has been selected by her peers for inclusion in the 26th Edition of The Best Lawyers in America for her work in Family Law.

Question of the Quarter - In light of October being Domestic Violence Awareness Month, we decided to focus on how it applies in a divorce.

How does the Court evaluate the role of domestic violence in custody disputes?

Answer:  The answer may be changing.

The Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) of Massachusetts recently heard arguments in a case called T.D. v. J.O. (SJC–12674) argued September 9, 2019, still under advisement.  The issue of the case is whether or not the court can consider prior acts of domestic violence in evaluating later custody decisions, regardless of whether the issue was raised at the time of the divorce and whether the statutory presumption regarding custody to an abusive parent is applicable. In T.D., the parties were divorced in 2015. During the divorce, the judge held that both parties engaged in physical assaults upon the other, concluding with a particularly violent attack on the mother by the father in 2011. Less than a year after the divorce judgment, the father filed a Complaint for Modification seeking sole legal custody of the children after the child came home with a bruised cheek. In the hearing for Modification, the judge would not consider abuse that happened prior to the judgment of divorce, even though it would have established a pattern of abuse. Instead, the father was awarded legal custody. The Judge’s rationale was that domestic violence in this case had been considered during the divorce, and modifications of the Divorce Judgment should only consider acts subsequent to the Divorce.

           At this juncture, we are still waiting for the SJC’s opinion. The issue of whether or not a court should consider prior acts of domestic violence during a marriage is one that may impact many cases. The difficulty is that some judges believe prior acts of domestic violence should not be considered if the issue has been previously litigated, while others believe that evidence of the prior acts shows a history of violence.

           Domestic violence involves a pattern of abusive and/or harmful acts by an abuser against a victim. All to often, the violence does not end after the divorce is finalized. There are many forms of abuse too involved for this short article [1]. However, this case has the ability to create a great deal of guidance for courts and practitioners to better assess the impact of prior acts of domestic violence in subsequent modification cases.

BY: Zoë Martin

[1] See several “warning signs” of domestic violence compiled by the National Coalition of Domestic Violence. See also https://www.mass.gov/service-details/domestic-violence-programs for Massachusetts based programs.