Multiple Reasons To Re-engage A Minnesota Family Attorney

Children resulting from a marriage add a huge complication when it comes to divorce

. Of course, we all love our children and would never trade them for the world. But when we end up in divorce, custody and child support issues arise and are rarely agreed upon. The emotions that go along with custody issues are also very raw and strong on both sides. Fortunately, your Minnesota family attorney was there to help you through that difficult process.

With your divorce finalized and the custody and child support agreements in place, you may have wiped your hands clean of the whole process, thinking you will never again be in need of that attorney. But that may not always be the case. You may decide one day, for whatever reason, that you want to legally change your children's last names. Perhaps you have gotten remarried and want to change their last names to that of your new spouse. Or the children's natural father may have stopped being a part of their lives and you have changed back to your maiden name and wish to do the same with your children. You may think that this will be a smooth and easy process, which you can handle on your own. But this is not so. You will need to go back and see your Minnesota family attorney, or a new one if you so choose, and seek his assistance in this matter.

The main reason you will need assistance from a Minnesota family attorney to legally change your children's last names is that the children's father has certain legal rights. As such, you cannot simply do as you please with your children. Changing one's name, when not simply due to a change in marital status, requires one to prepare special paperwork and file an application with the court. The court then has to approve the application for a name change. When you are doing it on behalf of your children, both parents must agree to the change. The only time this is not required is when the other parent has legally relinquished his parental rights. That often happens when one spouse remarries, the other is not involved in the child's life and the new spouse wishes to legally adopt the child. The natural parents must sign documentation that is filed with the court relinquishing all legal rights to the child. This also extinguishes any right the custodial parent may have to receive child support.

In most cases, the non-custodial parent has retained his parental rights. As such, your Minnesota family attorney will have to draft of the paperwork and serve it on the non-custodial parent. If the non-custodial parent agrees to the change, then the court will pretty much approve the application. Otherwise, the non-custodial parent must challenge the application, which will result in a hearing before the court where both parents must appear and provide good cause why the application should or should not be approved. However, it is typically hard to establish good cause when the non-custodial parent shows up at the hearing and has been involved in the child's life.

There are many different reasons why you may need the services of a Minnesota family attorney. Issues tend to come up even after a divorce is final requiring an attorney to step back in, or new issues may arise, such as when one seeks to change their child's last name. At the very least, seek an attorney's counsel before you decide to go and attempt to handle a family law matter on your own.

by: Sunil Punjabi

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