November 9th, 2008 by C.J. LeClaire
Legal Blog.
The office of the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York announced on Thursday, November 06, that former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer will not face criminal charges for solicitation of prostitution. In March, 2008, Spitzer resigned as governor of New York after it was uncovered that he had been a customer of the Emperor’s Club V.I.P., a prostitution service that charged as much as $5,500 an hour. However, after a thorough investigation, prosecutors found no evidence that Spitzer had used public money or campaign funds to pay for his encounters with prostitutes.
The decision by some spouses to choose random sexual encounters, over remaining faithful in their marriage, is one that affects many couples. Eliot Spitzer, David Duchovny, and Peter Cook are among celebrities that have had this very private addiction exposed, discussed, and scrutinized by the media. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Divorce |
October 29th, 2008 by C.J. LeClaire
Leeds Morelli & Brown, LLP: Law Firm Blog
Oscar winning actress Jennifer Hudson’s mother and brother were shot dead in their Chicago home on October 24, 2008. A mere three days later, Police discovered Hudson’s 7-year-old nephew’s body with multiple gun shot wounds in an abandoned car. Media outlets have reported that the man police sources have pinpointed as the primary suspect is William Balfour, the estranged husband of Jennifer Hudson’s sister. Balfour is currently on parole after serving jail time for attempted murder. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Divorce |
October 16th, 2008 by C.J. LeClaire
Leeds Morelli Brown, Law Firm Blog
On October 10, 2008, Connecticut’s Supreme Court ruled that gay and lesbian couples have the right to marry. Connecticut is the third state, after Massachusetts and California, to decide that its state constitution mandates that its citizens be treated equally when applying for marriage licenses, regardless of their sexual orientation. Civil unions and domestic partnerships are offered to same-sex couples in New Jersey, Vermont, New Hampshire, Oregon, Hawaii, Maine, Washington and the District of Columbia. New York recognizes same sex unions from other jurisdictions. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Divorce |
October 13th, 2008 by C.J. LeClaire
Christie Brinkley Fights Back Against Her Ex-Husband
Divorce Blog Christie Brinkley is fighting back against her ex-husband, Peter Cook, claiming that his recent interview with Barbara Walters on “20/20” violated the terms of their divorce. Peter Cook sat down with Barbara Walters in an effort to set the record straight after the media aired the sordid details of the couple’s break-up during their nasty divorce. Cook, who during the trial admitted to having an affair with his then 18-year-old assistant, told Barbara Walters he hoped the world will see that he is not the scumbag pervert that he has been painted to be. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Divorce |
October 10th, 2008 by C.J. LeClaire
Leeds Morelli & Brown P.C. – Fighting to Get You Your Fair Share
Marriage, Divorce : Couple Splits house in Half
Various internet news pages are reporting that a Married Couple in Cambodia recently decided to end their union. Rather than bother with the expense of an attorney to help sort out their affairs, the couple physically divided their home. The wife kept her half of the home and the husband dragged his across the village to a new location. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Divorce |
October 3rd, 2008 by C.J. LeClaire
Leeds Morelli & Brown P.C. – Safe Haven Law
On October 2, 2008, the Today Show reported that a father in Nebraska dropped off nine of his ten children, ranging in ages one to seventeen, at an Omaha Hospital because he was no longer able to cope with raising his children. This recently widower father walked out of the hospital with no questions asked. The reason behind this is the controversial Nebraska Safe Haven Law. Extended family members have placed the blame on this newly enacted law, suggesting that if it were not for this law, he would have turned to family for help.
All states have a version of a Safe Haven law, which allows mothers to leave a newborn at a hospital or fire department, and walk away with no questions asked and without fear of prosecution. New York’s version of the law, passed in 2000, the Abandoned Infant Protection Act, decriminalizes the act of abandoning an infant, so long as the baby was left at a specified safe place and someone was informed. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Divorce |
September 26th, 2008 by C.J. LeClaire
A-Rod reaches divorce settlement
New York Yankees superstar Alex Rodriguez and his wife, Cynthia Rodriguez, reached a settlement agreement in their multi-million dollar divorce case late last week. Cynthia Rodriguez filed for divorce in July after more than five years of marriage, citing A-Rod’s alleged infidelities. The couple opted to keep the terms of their divorce private, though both parties say the agreement was amicable and in the best interest of their two daughters. A pre-nuptial agreement was in place before the couple was married. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Divorce |
September 23rd, 2008 by C.J. LeClaire
Fighting over Fido: Pet custody battles on the rise
New York Divorce & Family Law Attorneys Blog
Featured on NBC’s Today Show, on September 17, 2008, entertainment correspondent Jill Rappaport reported on the latest issue that’s being thrown before judges trying to sort out who gets what when relationships fail. That is, who will keep the family pet. Rappaport suggested, in addition to a pre-nup, couples entering into marriage should consider getting a pre-pup agreement as well. The family pet has become an important aspect in a divorce proceeding, as many people see their pet as akin to a child, and many courts tend to view the pet as another piece of property to be assigned to one litigant or another. The segment featured Mark Haskoor, a dog owner and divorcee. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Divorce |
September 19th, 2008 by C.J. LeClaire
Palin’s Email Hacked
Earlier this week, computer hackers broke into the private e-mail account of Governor Sarah Palin, the Republican vice presidential candidate. The hackers posted some of her messages and a long list of contacts on the internet. The FBI and secret service have launched an investigation, as it is a federal crime under the Electronics Communications Privacy Act to intentionally intercept a wire, oral, or electronic communication through the use of an electronic, mechanical, or other device. The attorneys at the law firm of Leeds, Morelli & Brown, P.C. have seen this type of activity in divorce proceedings, where a spouse taps into an e-mail account in an attempt to uncover an extra marital affair. Although it may be tempting to break into a spouse’s e-mail or eavesdrop on a conversation, such behavior is unlawful and an invasion of a person’s privacy.
It is not to say there aren’t lawful avenues to take when introducing a cheating spouse’s e-mails as evidence in a divorce proceeding. In a recent divorce proceeding in Manhattan, New York Supreme Court Justice Saralee Evans ruled that a wife had broken no laws by accessing files on her husband’s computer which she had recovered from the trunk of a family car. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Divorce |
September 7th, 2008 by C.J. LeClaire
The Law Firm of Leeds Morelli and Brown P.C.
High Profile Teenage Pregnancies-Bristol Palin in the Spotlight
Recently there has been a lot of talk about unplanned pregnancy in America. The resurgence of interest in this topic was created when the Republican Vice-Presidential nominee Sarah Palin announced that her 17 year old daughter Bristol Palin is five months pregnant. What ever your political beliefs may be, it is comforting to know that this child is going to be born into a loving family and that the father of the child is standing up and accepting his responsibilities in this matter. For many women in Ms. Palin’s situation, however things unfortunately do not work out so well.
The Law Firm of Leeds Morelli and Brown P.C. know that unplanned pregnancy is a reality in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx as well as Nassau and Suffolk Counties and indeed all of America. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Divorce |