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Family Law
What are the grounds for divorce? In South Carolina
there are five grounds for divorce: separation of the
spouses for at least one year (the "no-fault divorce"),
adultery, physical cruelty, habitual drunkenness
(alcohol or narcotic drugs) and desertion. Your lawyer
will ask you about your situation and advise you about
your case.
State law requires that a family court judge make a
specific finding that reconciliation is not possible
before the judge can grant a divorce.
Separation When you and your spouse have separated but
do not have grounds for divorce, you can apply to the
court for the right to live separate and apart. This is
done through an action for "separate maintenance and
support," which is a claim for spousal support. If the
court considers issues of alimony, child support or
child custody at this time, it can also deal with
equitable division of marital property. Separation
officially begins on the day that the spouses no longer
live together.
Custody and Visitation When parents cannot agree on who
should have custody of their minor children, then the
court must decide. Both parents should look honestly at
their new living situations, available time and other
resources and consider carefully which parent can
provide a better home life for their children. Because
neither parent automatically has a legal right to
custody, the court will consider the best interests of
the children. The court may order joint or shared
custody.
Support Spousal support is called alimony. Either spouse
may be entitled to monetary support from the other
spouse.
Both parents have legal responsibility to provide for
their children. A noncustodial parent usually be
required to pay a specified amount of child support to
the custodial parent. The court uses the Child Support
Guidelines which is a calculation of support bases on
the gross income of the parents.
Your Lawyer's Role Your lawyer's job is to represent and
advise you of your legal rights and obligations so that
you can better understand what a divorce settlement
should involve. By providing you advice, your lawyer can
help guide you through the divorce process. One lawyer
cannot represent both you and your spouse.
Fees While many lawyers have a specific fee for a
simple, uncontested divorce, the fee for most divorces
depends on the amount of time a lawyer and staff must
spend working on the case. This will depend on whether
the case is contested and whether there are issues of
custody, support and property division. In certain
cases, the court can order one spouse to pay all or part
of the other spouse's legal fees and related expenses.
Your attorney will discuss the fees with you during the
initial meeting
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