It’s true that when children have the involvement of both parents they do better academically and emotionally. But that’s not always the case.

In some instances, limited exposure to one parent is best for the child’s well-being.

In the best interest of a child

Arizona’s family courts usually lean towards creating a parenting time schedule that gives equal time to both parents, believing that it’s best for the child. Shared parenting responsibility and cooperation give the child access to both parents and more stability.

However, sometimes it’s best for one parent to request primary parenting time. This means that one parent would provide the child’s main residence.

There are several reasons why one parent may seek sole physical custody, including:

• The other parent has a history of substance abuse, domestic violence or neglect and it poses a risk to the child’s safety
• One parent lives far away, making joint custody impractical
• Incarceration of a parent
• The parent is absent or is minimally involved in the child’s life

In order to gain primary parenting time, a parent must file a petition with the Arizona Family Court, which should clearly state the reasons for their request and provide supporting documentation. The court will consider a variety of factors, such as:

• The emotional bond the child has with each parent
• The physical and mental health of the parents and their ability to provide a stable environment for the child
• How well the child is adjusting to home, school and the community
• The child’s preferences (depending on the child’s age and maturity)
• Any history of substance abuse, physical violence or child abuse

After reviewing the circumstances, the court will decide based on the child’s best interests. 

If you are considering requesting primary parenting time of your child, you will want to speak with someone who can guide you through the process. They will work to secure the best outcome for you and your child.

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Community property rules mean that spouses generally have to split almost everything they acquire during marriage. Unless they reach a settlement on their own, a judge applies the community property statute after reviewing an inventory of marital assets and debts.

People sometimes assume that they can protect specific resources as their separate property, only to later learn that they are actually part of the marital estate. For example, 401(k) retirement accounts usually have a direct association with one spouse’s employment. They make contributions with each paycheck and may even receive matching amounts from their employers as a job benefit.

Despite ostensibly belonging to one spouse on paper, 401(k)s are usually marital property that are subject to division under community property statutes. If the couple has not yet reached retirement age, the account holder may worry about losing some of their savings to taxes and penalties.

Are such losses inevitable during a divorce?

There are ways to avoid tax consequences and penalties

Technically, any withdrawal from a tax-deferred retirement account could lead to tax consequences. People usually have to report the withdrawal as income. Especially when making a large change, such as removing half of the account balance, the withdrawal of funds before reaching retirement age might result in a much higher income tax obligation for the year.

There can be a penalty that applies as well. The rules for 401(k)s try to prevent people from taking money out of the account before they retire. Any sizeable withdrawal typically results in a 10% penalty based on the amount withdrawn.

Those penalties and tax consequences are not inevitable. In fact, there’s a relatively simple way to avoid them during a divorce. People simply need to have a lawyer draft a qualified domestic relations order (QDRO).

The use of a QDRO allows the professional managing the account to divide it into two separate accounts, each of which receives a specific percentage of the original account value. Provided that both spouses leave the funds in their individual accounts, neither spouse has to worry about taxes or a financial penalty.

While the thought of dividing retirement savings may make people anxious, it is possible to split a 401(k) without incurring further losses due to financial consequences. Learning more about the basic rules for property division in a divorce can help people achieve their goals as they prepare to rebuild their lives afterward.

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One of the most emotionally charged issues that comes up in a divorce is the tricky problem of dividing a couple’s shared possessions. There are times when it can actually be easier to split major assets – like bank accounts, real estate and cars – than it is to divide the household items.

Most people don’t realize just how emotionally attached they can get to their furniture, artwork and other mementos. Knowing when to fight it out over your possessions and when to let things go, however, is critical.

How should these items be divided?

Arizona is a community property state, which means that all marital property is supposed to be divided 50/50. However, you can’t exactly divide a couch or a painting down the middle.

Ideally, couples will come to some kind of agreement about their household goods. Often, couples choose to divide things according to their interests or needs – such as letting the spouse who likes to cook keep all the kitchen goods while the spouse who gardens keeps all the yard tools. Other items might be divided by “sets,” where one spouse keeps the living room furniture and the other takes the furniture from the bedroom. Smaller items may be split up according to value or by simply taking turns.

If you and your spouse can’t agree, however, fighting it out in court and requiring a judge to decide is just going to add to the time and cost of your divorce. In the end, nobody can decide what’s worth fighting over in a divorce except the people involved. However, having sound legal guidance can help you better determine what’s worth fighting for.

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If you’re facing marijuana-related charges, such as driving under the influence (DUI), a test may be done to check for the substance in your system. For example, the authorities may ask you to perform a urine test. This will demonstrate if you’ve been using marijuana or not, as it can be difficult to determine if a driver is actively high during the traffic stop itself.

One important thing to note is that marijuana can show up in a urine test for up to 30 days. Whether it shows up depends on the frequency of use. If you used marijuana one time in your life and it was 30 days ago, it should be well out of your system. However, if you have been using it every day for the last five years, then it may show up in a urine test for the next month – even after you stop.

Complicating a DUI

This can really complicate things if you are facing impaired driving charges. Say that you got pulled over driving home from a friend’s house, and the police say you were impaired at the time. You claim that you weren’t high and you didn’t break the law. The police don’t have a breath test reading to rely on as they would during an alcohol-related arrest.

As noted, a urine test does show the presence of marijuana in your system, so the police can claim that shows you were high at the time of the traffic stop. You counter by saying that you hadn’t used any marijuana that day and you certainly weren’t high.

In a situation like this, things can get highly complex and other evidence may need to be examined. It’s very important that you understand all of your legal defense options when facing these charges.

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Child custody orders in Arizona can be modified, but it requires following a legal process and meeting specific requirements. Whether your circumstances have changed or your child’s needs have evolved. 

Here, you will find helpful information about navigating the legal process when requesting a modification of child custody orders. 

Understand the legal grounds for modification

To request a modification of child custody in Arizona, you must demonstrate a significant change in circumstances. This could include relocation, a change in the child’s needs or a shift in one parent’s ability to care for the child. The court will unlikely approve a modification request without proof of substantial change.

Wait for the appropriate time

Arizona law generally requires parents to wait at least one year before requesting a custody modification unless there are urgent circumstances, such as the child being in immediate danger. If domestic violence or abuse is present, the court may allow a modification without waiting a full year.

File the necessary court documents

To begin the modification process, file a “Petition to Modify Child Custody” with the court that issued the original order. The petition must clearly outline the changes in circumstances and why a new custody arrangement is in the child’s best interest. Arizona courts focus on the child’s well-being when considering any custody changes.

Attend a court hearing

After filing your petition, you’ll attend a court hearing. Both parents can present evidence supporting their case for or against the modification. The judge will review all evidence and testimonies before deciding whether the custody order should be altered.

Navigating custody modifications can be complex. It’s recommended to seek legal guidance to ensure all necessary steps are completed properly and in your child’s best interest.

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The use of social media can be a risky thing during divorce proceedings. This is because your posts can significantly contribute to the decisions made regarding property division, spousal support, and child custody, among other divorce-related matters.

So, should you deactivate your social media accounts until your divorce is finalized?

Here is what to know:

Can you remain positive?

Being positive can be a challenge when going through a divorce. You may not be on the same page with your soon-to-be ex-spouse concerning certain issues. And this may frustrate you to the point of saying “negative” things to and about them in person and on social media.

That’s why it’s crucial to go to therapy during divorce to learn how to manage your emotions. Accordingly, it can be possible to stay calm and positive when interacting with your spouse.

Leaving negative or untruthful comments on your spouse’s posts or posting your frustrations about the divorce on social media may depict you as bitter or uncooperative. Your spouse’s team can use this to get the upper hand in child custody decisions if you have kids or other issues.

Can you stay private?

Consider changing your privacy settings on social media during your divorce for privacy and peace of mind. Only your close friends should see what you post. You can also ask your friends not to tag you in their posts.

Despite doing this, you still need to be cautious about what you post or the activities you participate in when in social settings, with cameras all over. Your post or an incriminating photo can easily reach your spouse.

If possible, you can avoid social media altogether during divorce. But if you can’t, be careful about how you use it. Learn more about this and other aspects that can disadvantage you during your divorce.

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If you’re like a lot of Arizonans who are considering divorce, you may think you have a pretty clear idea of what separate property is and what marital property is. That may be true.

Separate property typically includes any property you had before you got married (like a car or a condo, for example). It may also include any inheritances or gifts that were given only to you and not to you and your spouse jointly, even if you received assets during your marriage.

If you kept those assets separate from any marital assets throughout the marriage, your spouse shouldn’t be able to demand a portion of them under Arizona’s community property asset division model. However, challenges may arise if separate assets have become commingled with marital assets.

How commingling happens

Commingling can happen all too easily. It may even be necessary or at least convenient at a specific time. Say you decide to rent out your old condo. You use your joint credit card or bank account to pay for upgrades and repairs. That may make sense. But, that’s no longer going to be considered a separate asset as a result of your efforts. Or maybe you deposited your inheritance in a jointly owned investment account. Those funds are now commingled with marital assets.

Commingling assets is simply what married couples typically do. Oftentimes, it’s for the family’s benefit. You might have used the dividends you earned from those additional investment funds to pay for your child’s college education, for example.

If your marriage ends in divorce, you need to be prepared to share commingled assets with your spouse – and vice versa. The most practical way to avoid that is to have a prenuptial or even a postnuptial agreement stating that any separate assets brought into the marriage and any inheritances and gifts are not part of the marital estate to be divided.

There are different degrees of commingling, of course. For example, maybe you kept that condo just to use as an informal office where you could work in peace. If your spouse’s contribution to it has been the use of a joint credit card to pay for new carpeting, that likely doesn’t mean that they’ll be entitled to half the value of the condo during your divorce.

Negotiating asset and debt division during divorce can be a complicated endeavor – even in community property states. It’s crucial to understand how the law works and how to protect your right to a fair settlement. Getting experienced guidance is a wise first step.

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Divorce is rarely easy, but some couples manage to navigate the process with a minimum of animosity – especially if they make conscious choices about trying to negotiate a fair and reasonable split and approach each other with kindness.

Your hopes of an amicable split, however, can go out the window really fast if you make a few key mistakes. Here are three “wrong moves” you can make that will turn your divorce into the stuff of nightmares:

1. Start blasting your feelings on social media

You may be very accustomed to sharing the details of your life on your social media page – but you may want to keep the vast majority of your feelings about your divorce (and your spouse) to yourself if you want your divorce to go smoothly. One acerbic or disparaging post about your spouse can cause hard feelings to rise to the surface and turn what might have been a reasonably cooperative negotiation process about custody, support and the division of marital assets and debts into a battle. Step away from your keyboard for the duration.

2. Start dating before the divorce is final

You may have emotionally moved on from your marriage a while ago – long before the paperwork on the divorce gets started. Your spouse may not quite be on the same page. Even if they initiated the divorce, seeing you happily (and publicly) embrace a new partner may stir up a lot of embarrassment and hurt on their end. If you’re looking to avoid unnecessary drama, hold off on dating until the ink is dry on your divorce.

3. Fight over the small stuff

Change can be hard – but resist the urge to cling to the past, especially if that means fighting over things that can be replaced, like household goods and furnishings. Sit down and make a priority list of what really matters the most to you in your divorce and try to be generous with your spouse about everything else. Small acts of goodwill – like letting your spouse keep the glassware from the wedding even though it came from your great aunt – can buy you a lot of cooperation during this process. Meanwhile, fighting over every small object can erode any chance of an amicable split.

It’s always wise to have sound legal guidance from the start of your divorce, but it’s equally important to consider how you want your divorce to proceed and act in a way that makes that more possible.

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Like many other states, Arizona has legalized recreational marijuana. It can be sold at a licensed dispensary, and people can buy it simply for adult use – not just medical use. Since 2021, dispensary owners have been able to get the proper license and set up businesses making sales of cannabis products like flowers, plants, seeds or edibles. 

As a consumer, you are not allowed to make these sales yourself. You may be able to buy plants and grow them on your property for personal use, but you cannot start selling those plants to friends and family members. You need to have the proper license to run a dispensary. Recreational marijuana sales are legal, but not necessarily for everyone.

But how does this law apply to sharing marijuana products? Say that you’re going to watch a football game with your friends and you bring a package of edibles. Can you share them with your friends or would you be accused of drug distribution?

Money can’t change hands

Sharing is permitted under Arizona law, as long as both people are at least 21 years old. If they’re under that age, they’re not allowed to possess marijuana at all, so you cannot share it with them. This is essentially the same way that the law works for alcohol products.

Additionally, you do truly have to be sharing, meaning that you don’t get any financial compensation. Your friends are not using you as a middleman and making purchases. You’re sharing of your own free will, without receiving any money in exchange, keeping it from being a drug sale.

As you can imagine, misunderstandings with these new laws could lead to criminal charges. If you find yourself facing such allegations, be sure you know what legal defense options you have.

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Some DUI stops begin as minor issues. Perhaps a person’s license plate light has burned out, so an officer pulls them over to let them know. The officer then realizes that the driver is impaired and makes an arrest.

But these cases can sometimes be problematic for the prosecution, as the defense can argue that there wasn’t really probable cause. The driver didn’t make any mistakes or put anyone in danger. They were just pulled over on a technicality and now a DUI charge would change their life forever. As such, police will often look for more concrete reasons to make a stop, watching for clear indicators that the driver is impaired behind the wheel.

Signs they look for regarding impaired driving

Although signs of impairment can take many forms, here are some of the most common ones that police officers look for:

• Someone who is driving at night but doesn’t have their headlights on. 
• A car that keeps drifting between lanes or drifting over the centerline and into oncoming traffic. 
• A driver who has a near miss, such as almost driving off of the road or almost hitting a parked car. 
• Someone who is driving erratically and unpredictably. 
• Someone who is speeding or even driving far below the posted speed limit. 
• Drivers who don’t react as expected to the road conditions, such as a driver who stops well in front of a red light or who does not proceed forward when that light turns green. 

The probable cause for the traffic stop is just the first step. Officers will often then collect other evidence, such as the results of a breath test or a field sobriety test. Those who are facing serious criminal charges in Arizona need to know all of the defense options at their disposal.

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