Colorado Springs Divorce Lawyer Blog

Written by Senior Partner Gordon N. Shayne
The Law Offices of Gordon N. Shayne

The term, “Domestic Abuse” is defined under Colorado Revised Statutes Section 13-14-101 (2) as follows:

“Domestic Abuse means any act or threatened act of violence
that is committed by any person against another person to
whom the actor is currently or was formerly related, or with
whom the actor is living or has lived in the same domicile, or
with whom the actor is involved or has been involved in an
intimate relationship. “Domestic Abuse” may also include any
act or threatened act of violence against the minor children of
either of the parties.”

For parties who are going through a divorce or child custody case, acts of Domestic Violence are relevant for the Court’s consideration in several ways. The most common way that incidents of Domestic Violence are involved in the Family court, is where the parties have children. Sometimes one or both of the parties have obtained Civil Protection Orders. Those Civil Protection Orders are commonly referred to as Restraining Orders, or Protection Orders. The elements of a Civil Protection Order is governed by Colorado Revised Statutes Sections 13-14-101, et. seq. For anyone who has been served with a restraining order it is always advisable to consider the serious impact that a restraining order will have, and immediately contact a lawyer.

Certain Domestic Abuse/Violence acts are “crimes” as defined by Colorado law. The arrest and/or conviction of a Domestic Violence crime may effect what happens in a divorce or child custody proceeding. Legal representation is therefore, essential. This is particularly true when a divorce ensues and a parent faces the prospect of being kept from having contact with their children. When a crime has been committed, and an arrest has been made, an automatic restraining order will go into effect that most certainly will limit the contact a parent has with the children. Some parents manipulate the legal system by filing frivolous or bogus restraining orders that are meant to restrict a parent’s contacts with children. This also happens when a spouse calls the police and reports the commission of a Domestic Violence crime.

Continue reading "DOMESTIC VIOLENCE/ABUSE & DIVORCE" »

GORDON N. SHAYNE
ATTORNEY AT LAW

The law in the State of Colorado permits either a Husband or a Wife to file a Dissolution of Marriage action. Those cases are commonly called “divorces.” The parties to a divorce will not be required to prove or allege the reasons why they want a divorce, because Colorado is a “No Fault Divorce” state.

When a divorce action is filed a petition is prepared and filed with the Clerk of the Court in the County where the parties reside. The petition must allege certain facts or elements. The Petition for Dissolution of Marriage must state that: “The marriage is irretrievably broken.” The meaning of those terms are that, one or both of the parties do not want to stay married based on differences that can not be reversed, and therefore the parties have differences that can not be healed, repaired or fixed. It only takes one spouse to say that the marriage is irretrievably broken, even if the other party disagrees and wants to stay married. This is the “No Fault” provision of the law.

It is important to keep in mind that even if your spouse has done something underhanded or behaved in a deceitful manner, most likely, that evidence will be deemed, “irrelevant” and will not be allowed by the judge. Here are some common examples of “fault” that usually will not be allowed:

1. Drug or alcohol addiction;
2. Extra marital affair, infidelity, or marital misconduct of any kind;
3. Criminal activities, arrests or convictions, such as Domestic Violence;
4. The entry of a Permanent Protection Order or Restraining Order by a judge;
5. Abandonment of the family or failure to provide support;

Continue reading "COLORADO’S NO FAULT DIVORCE LAW" »

Unlike the vast majority of states, the State of Colorado will allow parties to consider themselves "married" even though they have not obtained a marriage license or participated in a civil or religious ceremony formally consecrating their marital relationship.

A broad definition of the use of "Common Law" can be found on the Wikipedia site. Howver, the law in Colorado carefully defines a "common law" marriage as one where the "parties mutual consent or agree to be husband and wife, followed by a mutual and open assumption of a marital relationship."

The Colorado courts first recognized the existence of a common law marriage in a court decision in 1907. Therefore, the parties agreement that they are married, cohabitate as husband and wife, and engage in other conduct and circumstances that indicate that they have entered into a marital relationship, may be strong enough to convince a judge that the relationship should be treated by the law, the same as a ceremonial marriage. This is significant in light of the thousands of divorce and legal separation cases that are filed each year in the State of Colorado.

Continue reading "What Is A Common Law Marriage?" »

By Gordon N. Shayne, Senior Partner

Colorado Springs is home to some of the Nations proudest and top military facilities. Perhaps the most publicized facility in recent times is the "Mountain Post" at Fort Carson. This base has been serving our country since 1942 and has become one of the premier training facilities for the United States Army. Many of our troops are serving their 2nd and 3rd tours of duty in Iraq from their base here in Colorado Springs. The Law Offices of Gordon N. Shayne is proud of the men and women who serve our country, and especially those stationed here at Fort Carson and Peterson Air Force Base.

Here in Colorado Springs, the unfortunate reality and "collateral damage" of serving our country bring on stresses and strains result in a high number of Domestic Relations issues, i.e., divorce and separation. In many Divorce or Legal Separation cases, one or both of the parties are employed and on either active duty or reserve duty, in the United States Army, Air Force, Marines, or Navy. Many more involve cases where one or both of the parties are retired military service members. When a military service member wishes to obtain a divorce or legal separation, there is nothing that can be filed with the military courts. Instead, when they file they must do so pursuant to Colorado law, in the filing of a petition in the District Court. Very simply, military members and ex-military members are governed by the same civil proceedings as civilians.

In my practice of law and with over 28 years experience in the area of Domestic Relations, I can truly say that some of the saddest cases I've dealt with have to do with military personnel returning from a lengthy tour only to find that their family has been destroyed by the strains of the soldier being away. There are times when a soldier returns and the experiences he or she has had in Iraq or Afghanistan or other foreign war regions are so impacting to his or her mental state that the family simply cannot deal with the returning spouse. Certainly we need to focus on the needs of those families that are faced with Post Traumatic Distress Disorders (PTSD) that present a real issue for our returning troops.

Nonetheless, we try to be sensitive to the issues that seem to cause a higher number of military divorces and in handling those cases, we strive to understand the extraordinary service that our military personnel provide our nation; both the soldiers and their families.