Family Law Archives - Phoenix Family Law Attorney | DeShon Laraye Pullen PLC

Paternity Testing: The Single Parent’s Need for Legal Guidance

deshon Pullen — Fri, 28 Aug 2020 15:28:33 +0000

Paternity Testing: The Single Parent’s Need for Legal Guidance

Paternity of a child is not always as easy to determine as people would like. The test may become necessary even when one of the parents has no doubts. Either parent may deny their role out of fear, anger, or for many other reasons. A paternity test can prove helpful for some, but it can also add legal concerns. Learn how legal guidance can help parents go through this complicated process.

Possible Unexpected Results

The man who proves to be the father may not be the one expected. If a paternity test proves the father is not the husband, the issue could lead to complications like a divorce. It is also possible for testing to not provide an accurate response. Home testing kits rely on people performing them correctly, and not every medical office has the same quality of processing.

Parents that hire legal representatives can gain court orders for testing to take place through a facility the court trusts and accepts. The results become court-admissible, so they are useful in divorce proceedings and other hearings. The guidance of an attorney can extend beyond the paternity test so mothers know what steps they should take next.

Potential Custody Issues

Custody battles may occur once one of the parents has proof of the father’s identity. Parents who have an attorney ready before the test takes place are in a better position to protect their custodial rights. It may be beneficial to make the first step and hire an attorney so they can order the test and begin custody planning before the potential father starts the process for himself.

Planning early allows consideration for acceptable arrangements for custody. The parent can get the help they need from their attorney to create several options to present to the other parent. Early research gives a legal team the time to gather arrest records and other evidence of safety concerns that may exist for the child concerning their father or paternal grandparents.

Preparations for Support

Child support considerations can also cause single parents to consider paternity testing. Not all single parents need additional financial help, so it is not always worth the time and effort to worry about the test. However, some can only pay the bills and cover all the expenses of raising a child with contributions from the other parent.

Legal assistance can help parents to manage child support cases as well. In Arizona, parents only pay child support if they have the ability. The court uses a self-support reserve test. The test was designed to ensure that the person paying child support will have enough money to also cover their own basic needs.

The self-support reserve means the parent must earn an income that is at least 80 percent of the current minimum wage for a full-time job. The court reviews the income at the time of the request for support and not what the parent made when the child was born.

An attorney can explain child support laws and the potential amount possible for the parent to receive in child support payments. The payments depend on the income of both parents with some considerations for children with special needs and other situations. The parent can make an informed decision about whether to pursue paternity testing and child support.

Paternity testing helps with even more than support and custody issues; it can give mothers access to family medical histories for their children. A child may become eligible for family military benefits or gain inheritance rights. At the law offices of DeShon Laraye Pullen PLC, we can help you decide if paternity testing will benefit you and your child. Contact us today to schedule a consultation.

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Take Steps In The Right Direction

deshon Pullen — Fri, 29 Jun 2018 10:33:25 +0000

Getting Started With The Divorce Process

Being in the midst of the divorce process creates internal conflict. Essentially, you are driving a vehicle, trying to focus on the road ahead yet continuing to be tempted to look in the rearview mirror. Legalities that help you move forward clash with emotional matters where you find yourself rehashing the past.

While there is no template for how to handle your divorce. However, five steps can help you move in the right direction.

Gain Clarity

Simply put, know what you need and want. Be candid and honest while keeping in mind what your soon-to-be ex wants as well. In the end, it can help you choose your battles carefully in what you want to fight for and what you can live without.

See Divorce As Business

No one will deny the emotionally charged aspects of a marriage ending. However, that union is based on a legal contract and your divorce is a legal proceeding. Keeping those emotions in check helps the process of divvying up assets and responsibilities.

Know The Numbers

Take the time to know where you are financially. That starts with ordering a credit report. From there, gather tax returns and financial statements that detail assets and debts. Also, secure a bank account and credit card in your name and track your expenses.

Establish “Team You”

Having a support system of friends and family is paramount. However, you will also need experts on your team who are not as emotionally invested. Retaining an attorney who will help you make good decisions is an important first step. Trusted legal counsel can guide you through not only the financial aspects, but also the personal issues that may arise.

Next Chapter Preparation

Cooperation is key in getting to a finalized divorce. However, that doesn’t mean that you should downplay your needs to get a signature on a document. Know what you want. Equally as important, know what you are signing. It is “page one” of the next chapter of your life.

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The Continuing Evolution Of Co-Parenting

deshon Pullen — Mon, 23 Apr 2018 12:28:39 +0000

Is the current evolution of parenting time agreements ignoring the best interests of children in favor of what is best for divorcing parents?

Several states are considering laws to do away with the traditional one-parent guardianship in favor of a more flexible, co-parenting model. In 2017, Kentucky led the way by enacting a law that provides both parents a more level playing field and does away with the “one day a week/every other weekend” default prominent in many custody agreements.

Illinois hopes to join the Bluegrass State as lawmakers are considering a similar bill that would modify the language of state divorce law to recognize that “the involvement of each parent for equal time is presumptively in the children’s best interests.”

Supporters want to do away with the current template approach where one parent spends significantly more time with their children at the expense of the other. Enacting equal parenting allow both parents to have a prominent presence that would enrich the lives of their children.

Opponents of HB 4113 claim that the “one-size-fits-all” approach takes the focus away from children, treating them more like property. They also fear that the bill does not account for ex-spouses who live significant distances from one another and, more importantly, parents who are overly controlling and possibly abusive.

Final Thoughts On The Evolution Of Co-Parenting

Traditional parenting roles are ever-changing and laws should keep up with them. Questions remain as debate and one “experiment” continues. Are the changes necessary? Would a new system be beneficial or counterproductive?

Perhaps most important, are lawmakers trying to fix a system that may not be as broken as they think?

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The Dawn Of Free-Range Parenting

deshon Pullen — Fri, 30 Mar 2018 12:39:25 +0000

Helicopter parenting is a well-known term for a certain style of raising children. It gained prominence in the early 2000s with baby boomers and their rearing of millennial offspring. Their style of “hovering” ranged from calling kids to wake them up every morning to taking the side of their students when the dreaded call home from teachers occurred.

That approach to parenting became so commonplace that a lack of hyper-protection became cause for alarm, if not a call to law enforcement.Helicopter parenting has met its antithesis. Free-range parenting.

Utah Gov. Gary Herbertt signed a bill into a law that takes effect on May 8. The measure represents the first effort by a state to legalize self-sufficiency of children, a concept that has gone by the wayside. Parents that allow their kids to travel to school, play in a playground or remain in a car alone are no longer considered automatically neglectful.

The genesis of Utah’s new law started with legislators identifying states where parents were investigated or had their children temporarily taken away. The reason behind the inquiries? Children were reported alone in their yards or walking to and from school or the park.Some stories received high profile media coverage.

Final Thoughts On Free Range Parenting

The goal of the new law is to teach children independence, a trait that legislators and supporters believe will help them in the future. The legislation leaves vague the specific age where children are mature enough to do things on their own. Having it remain open-ended will allow law enforcement to handle cases individually.

Free-range/non-helicopter parenting is already trending beyond social media circles and into the federal realm. In a 2015 education bill, U.S. Senator Mike Lee tacked on an amendment that supported the self-sufficiency of children without parents facing charges for allowing something that, in a more idyllic era, was commonplace.

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Announcing Our Employee Of The Month For February 2018

deshon Pullen — Tue, 20 Mar 2018 12:56:29 +0000

Let’s Celebrate Jessica Hurley

Already a multi-time winner of various awards, Jessica Hurley is once again receiving much-deserved recognition. She is our February 2018 Employee of the Month.

Few members of the DeShon Laraye Pullen PLC family possess the vast knowledge of the firm and its staff that Jessica enjoys. Specifically, she recognizes the need for legal teams to focus on legal work. With that in mind, she voluntarily takes on additional work and responsibilities, including projects that directly interfere with peer employees’ vital tasks.

Jessica has earned her designation as a “rock star” who gets things done. She is always at the ready to help while staying on top of her deadlines and others.

Because of her unending value to our firm, we recognize Jessica for her invaluable contributions over the past month.

We would be remiss if we did not provide an honorable mention to Nicole Pacheco. A catastrophic accident that left her with a broken hip could not stop what fellow staff describes as “insane dedication” to the firm and her team. A few weeks after the horrific event, she was back to work while nursing a painful injury.

Join us in honoring these two hard-working, invaluable members of the DLP PLC team.

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Embryonic personhood and its effect on Arizona parents

deshon Pullen — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 12:32:01 +0000

Many Arizona couples unable to have children strive to keep their dreams alive through vitro fertilization. Technology continues to evolve to help make biological parentage a reality. However, the odds are often against them, as many embryos do not develop.

In those cases, dreams are sometimes dashed. In other instances, nightmares take the form of divorce actions after embryos have been frozen.

Following Ruby Torres breast cancer diagnosis, the Arizona resident had her embryos frozen prior to starting treatment. Her goal of having children with her husband hit a roadblock when the couple separated. Matters went from bad to worse when her husband refused her request for the embryos that would allow her to have biological children.

According to Mr. Torres, he simply did not want to bear the financial burden of parenting. Citing a medical agreement signed by both spouses prior to their divorce, a judge subsequently ruled that the embryos should be donated to another couple or a fertility bank.

Mrs. Torres appealed the case that bears a strong resemblance to a child custody dispute. The legal dispute is far from resolved.Seemingly swooping in to save the day, members of the Arizona State Senate considered a new bill that would establish something unprecedented in the United States.
Embryonic personhood.

The Effect Of Embryonic Personhood

The purpose of SB 1393 is to designate that the “custody” of embryos should go to the spouse who would allow the embryos to develop to birth in spite of any objections from the other parent. Supporters tout the bill ad more of a “clarification” that protects parents’ rights to in vitro embryos in divorce proceedings. Opponents fear that passage of the legislation would take away the rights of spouses who may not want to have children.

On Thursday, senators passed the bill that will now go to the Arizona House of Representatives.

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The DLP PLC Employee Of The Month For January 2018

deshon Pullen — Thu, 15 Feb 2018 12:40:28 +0000

Celebrating Lisa Eick

As we enter the second month of 2018, we at DeShon Laraye Pullen PLC want to recognize Lisa Eick as our Employee of the Month for January, an award voted on by her peers at DLP PLC.

Currently, Lisa is the legal assistant for attorney Sara A. Swiren at our Scottsdale office. Staff members who nominated her provided numerous accolades that include:

Being a true team player by helping others in spite of her always-busy schedule
Recognizing when colleagues need help before she is asked to assist
Willing to stay after-hours as needed, including Friday evenings to handle billing
Committing to improving not only herself, but also others at the firm
Taking on management of the calendar as needed for all other teams

We at DLP PLC congratulate Lisa Eick on this well-deserved recognition for her hard work and dedication.

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Recognizing Our 2017 Employee Of The Year/Employees Of The Month

deshon Pullen — Wed, 31 Jan 2018 12:42:47 +0000

DeShon Laraye Pullen PLC is proud to announce our Employee of the Month for December of 2017.

Congratulations to Meredith Leyton for her third designation.

Her colleagues that nominated her for her most recent award cited that she:

“Is always willing to help, even when it’s not her job.”
“Is just the bright spot in our office.”
“Doesn’t complain about anything even when she’s clearly overwhelmed.”
“Is always smiling.”

Previous Employee of the Month winners throughout the year includes:

November 2017: Leticia Munozcano
October 2017: Amy J Witzleb
September 2017: Jessica Hurley
August 2017: Lisa Eick and Casey Scatterday (Tie)
July 2017: Nicole Pacheco
June 2017: Meredith Leyton
May 2017: Meredith Leyton
April 2017: Jessica Hurley
March 2017: Lisa Eick and Staci Maret (Tie)
February 2017: Sara A Swiren
January 2017: Amy J Witzleb

Our 2017 Employee of the Year

With the year ending, we are also happy to announce our 2017 Employee of the Year: Sara A. Swiren.

Her accolades throughout the previous year include:

“Dedication and drive.”
“Elevates the firm by going above and beyond.”
“Always striving to improve and learn more.”
“An asset to the firm.”

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Join our growing family

deshon Pullen — Sat, 16 Dec 2017 18:20:12 +0000

Become A Member Of Our Growing Team

At DeShon Laraye Pullen PLC, we continue to expand our client base. Because of our growth, we are continually looking to add to our award-winning team. To ensure that we are providing the highest levels of personalized representation, we need talented individuals to fill various roles.

For those considering careers as an attorney or paralegal at our firm, we require a comprehensive understanding of current Arizona family law. Candidates for legal assistants must have experience in that specific type of support role. We also prefer applicants who have direct experience in family law.

Regardless of the position, we ask that all prospective candidates excel in a fast-paced environment. They must also work well individually or as part of a legal team.

Additional information on open positions at DeShon Laraye Pullen PLC, along with our application procedures can be found here.

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Join our growing family

deshon Pullen — Sat, 16 Dec 2017 12:44:51 +0000

Become A Member Of Our Team

Regardless of the position, we ask that all prospective candidates excel in a fast-paced environment. They must also work well individually or as part of a legal team.

Additional information on open positions at DeShon Laraye Pullen PLC, along with our application procedures can be found here.

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