I recently discovered an interesting new blog – the Alabama Family Law Blog. This is produced by the Mobile, Alabama firm of Sherman & Jeffries, LLC. The blog contains a wealth of important tips for people involved in family law litigation. Some of these tips are:

1. Inform your lawyer right away if you have a prenuptial agreement. Simple as that might sound, many people don’t do it, and a lot of time and legal fees can be wasted as a result.

2. Make sure you show up for court if you’re supposed to. Family law judges in Canada don’t like entering default judgments either. If you miss your court date and move quickly, you can normally set the default judgment aside. However, chances are good that costs will be awarded against you.

3. Get your money fast. If you’ve got a joint asset that goes down in value, chances are that both spouses will have to share the loss until the asset is divided. While I haven’t seen assets decline substantially in value since Nortel and other high tech stocks crashed a few years ago, it’s something to keep in mind as the stock market often suffers “corrections.”

Also interesting to see was that Alabama is introducing a bill that would allow children 14 years or older to choose their custodial parent. While it’s not something I agree with, that’s pretty close to what happens here anyhow. Judges are very deferential to teenagers’ wishes, although that is not the sole criterion in deciding custody. I don’t agree with this, as frankly, I’m not sure teenagers are mature enough to decide what’s in their best interests. Most teenagers, left with the decision, would normally choose going to a social event over doing homework. That’s alright once in a while, but in long run, probably not in the teen’s best interest.