At the risk of becoming tedious, we note the Department of Justice issued a press release last week vowing to “investigate and hold accountable medical providers and pharmaceutical companies that mislead the public about the long-term side effects of chemical and surgical mutilations.” The Attorney General added that: “…it is a felony to perform, attempt
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Once Divorce is Entered Goforth and Enforce Your Lien
By Mark Ashton
Goforth v. Goforth, (700 WDA 2024) is an enforcement action where the parties agreed to divide proceeds from a marital home sale but liens against one spouse corrupted the written settlement.
During their marriage the parties acquired a home together as tenants by the entireties. In July 2018 wife filed for divorce and in July…
The School Curriculum Kerfuffle
By Mark Ashton
Yesterday was oral argument in the U.S. Supreme Court in Mahmoud v. Taylor, a case pitting religious liberty of parents against the authority of schools to manage curriculum. The argument is already posted and you can listen to it here.
supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/audio/2024/24-297
Conservatives would describe the issue as whether schools can impose “woke” curriculum on students…
Measuring Our Financial Insecurity
By Mark Ashton
A report last week from an outlet called Moneywise found that for 65% of American women personal finances were their greatest fear. We don’t have data for the men but one can infer that the percentage is probably close to that. The study was published in early March by a banking enterprise called Laurel Road.…
PA. SUPREME COURTS ADDS NEW TURF FOR CHILD SUPPORT WARFARE
By Mark Ashton
In late 2022 the Supreme Court’s Domestic Relations Rules Committee recommended that the rules concerning unreimbursed medical expenses in support be revised. Yesterday, 28 months after the recommendation was advanced the Supreme Court amended Pa. R.C.P. 1910.16-6 in several important ways. The rule becomes effective in July.
The big change is mental health related expenses.…
TAX DAY MUSINGS
By Mark Ashton
Today is the day American taxpayers all line up to be “counted.” It is also a time when we naturally think about what we own and whether it will be enough. Part of trying to make certain it is enough is to manage income taxes wisely.
This is a special challenge in 2025 because the…
GETTING TO YES in Disputes Over Child Custody
By Mark Ashton
When couples separate, the tendency is to “lawyer up” at the outset and let your attorneys do the negotiating. In many aspects this is a sensible approach because most mortals don’t know a lot about divorce economics in terms of how propery and incomes are measured and divided.
Your children are another matter. You and…
The Complexities of Who is a Parent in Custody Matters
By Mark Ashton
Two cases decided by the Superior Court on April 10 illustrate the challenges courts are facing in custody cases. The first case is Northampton County’s Hess v. Zapata. This is not a standing case but it shows how fast relationships between adults are evolving. The facts of Hess are mind boggling in their evolution. Our…
NO TIME TO FINISH THE DIVORCE
By Mark Ashton
The Dow Jones Index started April at 42,000. Then the administration invoked its long promised tariffs and by Friday the DJIA was down 6,000 points. This afternoon, it was announced the tariffs would be suspended for 90 days (except China) and in the next 8 minutes the Dow rose by 1,600 points. What happened? The…
The Perils of the “Soft” Loan.
By Mark Ashton
By the time you finish this, we might agree to re-caption this “The Perils of Non-Precedential Opinions.” The Superior Court may have done equity but, again, they used their “abuse of discretion” standard to ignore the law. The real challenge posed by Crawford v. Crawford is that it will be cited again and again in…