MARRIAGE, DIVORCE AND CHILDREN

Under Nevada law, you can get married if you are 18 years of age or older, without the consent of any parents or guardians. If the person seeking to be married is over 16, but younger than 18, he or she must have the consent of either parent or his or her legal guardian. If the person seeking to be married is under 16 years of age, parental consent by either parent or by the applicant's legal guardian is required along with a court order finding that there exist "extraordinary circumstances" warranting marriage. Pregnancy alone does not qualify as an "extraordinary circumstance," nor may pregnancy be required by a court before a finding can be made of "extraordinary circumstances."

Prior to getting married, you must apply for a marriage license with the county clerk in any county in the state. The license must be issued, however, at the county seat of that county. The county clerk may require evidence that the applicant is of age.

In order for there to be a valid marriage you need a valid marriage license and "solemnization" by an authorized official (generally a clergyman or judge).

Once married, both husband and wife have an obligation to provide for the support of each other and of all minor children. Either spouse may be held liable for necessities furnished to the other and/or to their minor children. The exception to this general rule is where one spouse "abandons" the other without sufficient justification for such abandonment.

All property acquired after marriage by either husband or wife is presumed to be "community property," unless (1) otherwise provided by agreement, or (2) otherwise ordered by a court. Community property means that both husband and wife have an ownership interest in the property regardless of whom acquired the property, although there are exceptions to this general rule.

The most common ground for receiving a divorce is where the husband and wife are "incompatible." Other grounds are:

You can only get divorced in Nevada if one of the parties is a resident of the state of Nevada for at least six weeks prior to the filing of the Complaint for Divorce. You must be able to provide a witness who lives in Nevada, to testify that you have lived in Nevada for at least six weeks prior to your filing for Divorce.

After filing a Complaint for Divorce, the Court will decide issues relating to the division of any commonly held property; whether spousal support is indicated; what custody arrangements should be made in relation to minor children (including child support); and any other issues requested in the Divorce complaint. Generally, property and custodial decisions involving non-appearing and out-of-state parties may not be decided by the Nevada Court.

Any "community property" (commonly held between the parties) will be divided equally as much as possible unless the Court finds a significant reason the property should be divided unequally. You can divide the property yourselves providing that the agreement you reach is in writing and approved by the Court. The Agreement must also outline child support considerations as well as specify the payment arrangements for debts owed.

A prenuptial agreement may or may not be enforced as it pertains to property and support issues, depending on a variety of legal considerations which are often very complicated. If you are involved in a divorce action that has an issue regarding prenuptial agreements you should contact Jeffrey S. Posin & Associates either by e-mail or calling us at (702) 396-8888 as these types of matters are decided on a case by case basis.

CHILD SUPPORT
When determining child custody issues, the Court takes into account what is in the best interest of the child above all else. Some factors taken into account in making this decision include, but are not limited to, stability and environment of the household. Each parent may be evaluated by the Court in order to make this determination.

Generally, child support is at least $100 with a scaled maximum based upon income, per child per month awarded to the parent who has primary physical custody of the minor child. However, the courts usually follow the formula below to determine the exact entitlement of the custodial parent.

• 1 child: 18% of the non-custodial parent's gross monthly income
• 2 children: 25% of the non-custodial parent's gross monthly income
• 3 children: 29% of the non-custodial parent's gross monthly income
• add 2% for each additional child.

The Court does have the authority to change the above amounts to allow for other financial considerations of the non-custodial parent, i.e., daycare costs, insurance, support of other children, etc., but the Court must provide rationale for this change in its order.

Nevada Courts will review and adjust (if needed) your Child Support Agreement at least every three years at your request, or sooner if significant changes occur in your life or the life of your child or ex-spouse.

If there is a question as to who the father of a minor child is, then a paternity suit may be brought by the child, the child's natural mother, or "an interested third party" (such as a guardian) to declare the existence or nonexistence of the father-child relationship.

CHILD CUSTODY
A court may terminate parental rights for the following reasons: abandonment of the child; neglect of the child; unfitness of the parent; failure of parental adjustment; or risk of serious physical, mental or emotional injury to the child. A court may also terminate parental rights if the parent exhibits only "token efforts" to support, communicate with, prevent neglect to, or eliminate the risk of physical, mental or emotional injury to the child. The primary consideration in determining whether to terminate parental rights is "whether the best interests of the child will be served by the termination."

If you are an abused spouse going through a divorce, a court can place a restraining order or an injunction upon the parties which essentially orders those parties not to interfere with each other, nor to interfere with the custody or visitation rights of either of the parties. Anyone violating that order while committing a violent physical act against a person may be fined up to $1,000 or required to perform a minimum of 200 hours of community service. Alternatively, the court may sentence the violator to a prison term ranging from five days to six months.

If you have an award of child support issued from any state other than Nevada, you may pursue the enforcement of your award through a government child support enforcement office whether across state lines or locally, for a minimal fee. Or, you could hire a private investigator to pursue enforcement at your former spouse's location. Nevada's child support enforcement office can be reached through the Family Support Division of your local District Attorney's office.

While entitlement to Spousal Support is not specifically outlined in the Nevada Statutes, the Court will make a determination regarding entitlement based on several factors: earning capacity of each spouse with or without education, how long the requestor has been out of the work force, etc. You may be entitled to temporary spousal support during the pendency of your divorce case.

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