Those involved in a New Mexico divorce are often stressed and overwhelmed, so being lost in a sea of unfamiliar terminology only adds to one’s discomfort. There are many specialized legal terms used in the marital dissolution (divorce) process that can make it difficult to understand one’s rights and to form realistic expectations. Our New Mexico Family Law Lawyers have provided some explanations of basic divorce terminology that can help demystify the divorce process.
Marital Dissolution:
This term is just another way to refer to the process of divorce. A marital dissolution may include some or all of the following issues: termination of marital status, alimony, property debt division, child custody and visitation, child support, legal fee awards, and other issues depending on the specific facts of the case.
Pendente Lite Orders:
This term refers to temporary orders rather than permanent orders like those in a judgment. Courts routinely make interim orders while a divorce is pending about such issues as spousal support, child custody, visitation, child support, temporary control of property, duties to maintain assets, and attorney fee advances. It is important to understand that the criteria used by the court to derive pendente lite orders may be very different than the criteria for permanent orders.
Community Property:
Generally, each spouse will have an equal interest in community property. The court will presume that property acquired during the marriage is community property unless it is acquired by gift, inheritance, or investment of separate property/funds of one of the spouse’s. If an asset that would otherwise be the separate property of one spouse, such as a 401K created prior to marriage, receives contributions from community funds, it too will acquire a community property interest to the extent it increased in value because of community fund contributions.
Child Custody:
This term really refers to two separate concepts that include parenting time (sometimes referred to as physical custody) and decision-making responsibility. Parenting time refers to the percentage of time that the child lives with each parent. Legal custody involves the power to make major decisions about education, religious training, health care, and similar matters. While legal custody is almost always shared by both parents, physical custody can be shared equally, granted exclusively, or primarily to one parent or anything in between these arrangements.
Alimony:
Alimony refers to payments made by one spouse to the other spouse based on a wide range of factors that include but are not limited to the financial needs of the recipient spouse, the paying spouse’s ability to pay, and the standard of living during the marriage. Alimony is an example of the type of issue where temporary and final orders may look very different. There are also multiple types of alimony that may be awarded that serve different functions, so it is important to obtain prompt legal advice if you have questions about alimony.
Why Procrastination Can Lead to Bad Results in a
New Mexico Divorce
The above information is designed solely to illustrate general principles of law, and does not constitute a specific legal opinion on individual cases. We suggest that you contact experienced legal counsel for a specific opinion tailored to your individual circumstances.
If you have more specific questions about divorce in New Mexico, we invite you to contact us. Jay Goodman & Associates offers a free consultation in our centrally located offices in Santa Fe and Albuquerque so that we can discuss your situation and answer your questions. Call us today to schedule your free consultation at (505) 989-8117 to learn about your rights and options.
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