Whether with the assistance of the Department of Children and Families (DCF), through a private agency, or with adult children, adoption can be a time of great stress and nervous anticipation, but also elation and relief. Depending upon the type of adoption, whether it's foreign or domestic, and the circumstances under which the adoption is taking place, it is important to follow the guidelines and procedures to ensure that the process is smooth and the result is final. Bacon Wilson provides legal services regarding adoption matters.

Many people shudder to think of the impact of financing long-term care with the financial resources that they've spent a lifetime building. Long-term care, more commonly known as nursing home care, is very expensive, with an average cost of $8,000 or more per month. There are various means of financing long-term care; however, most Americans believe that the federal government or Medicare will pay for their long-term care costs. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Our legal team can help you plan for the future and protect your assets.

There is no common law marriage statute in Massachusetts, so unmarried couples who live together enjoy none of the rights and protections that their married counterparts do. Unless their partnership is defined through a legal contract such as a cohabitation agreement, the law is likely to classify them as strangers in the event that the relationship dissolves. A cohabitation agreement forces each party to carefully consider his/her intentions, obligations, and expectations during the relationship and upon its demise. Our legal team can advise you in this matter.

The goal of collaborative law is to achieve a settlement that best meets the specific needs of both parties without the underlying threat of contested litigation. This method of alternative dispute resolution is becoming especially popular in family law, where parties agree that they want to do what’s in the best interests of their children. Additional family issues that may be resolved through the collaborative process including disputes between parents and the preparation of pre and post-marital contracts.

There are three principal types of ownership (tenancies) relative to real estate. The most familiar is what is known as "joint tenants". This means that if one person dies, the survivor owns all of the interest in the property. In a "tenancy in common", each owner of the property has an undivided interest in the whole of the property. In this type of tenancy, upon the death of any owner, his share will pass as directed by his will, or by intestacy if he does not have a valid will. A third, special form of ownership allowed in several states is what is known as a "tenancy by the entirety". In this case, only a husband and wife may own the property, and the property passes to the survivor.

Each type of ownership has advantages and disadvantages specific to your situation. Our lawyers can help you determine which suits you best.

There are two main types of custody: physical custody and legal. Both of these can be either shared between the parents or held solely by one parent. A growing number of parents are entering into physical custody battles. Sometimes a custody battle is necessary to protect the interest of a child. At other times, it is an attempt by a parent to increase visitation and increase their right to have a say in decisions that affect the child's welfare, education, and religion.

This area of law is extremely specialized. Some parents are unable to reach decisions about custody on their own and enlist the services of a guardian ad litem (GAL,) who conducts an investigation for the court and makes recommendations and conclusions about custody to the judge from a neutral vantage point. Other cases call for an attorney to be appointed to represent the child individually, making their wishes known to the judge.

In order to modify an existing custody determination or order, one must show a material change in circumstance enough to warrant a change in physical custody from one parent to another. Bacon Wilson attorneys can advise you on these issues.

Whether a spouse is filing a joint petition or a complaint for divorce, the process can be one of the most stressful times in a person's life. In today's economy, the most common problem for divorcing spouses is how to take their previously shared income and create two separate households, complete with their own set of bills and expenses. Parents are worried about their children, what to do with the house, retirement accounts, and how they will live once the divorce is over. It is an extremely emotionally charged process, and not one a person should undertake alone and without counsel. The possibility for one spouse to lose some of their rights to children, equity, accounts, alimony, health insurance, and a host of other factors is just too great to embark upon without solid legal counsel.

Many expectant parents have questions about how much leave they are entitled to after the arrival of a new child. The laws are different for expectant mothers and fathers. Depending on the employer, some expectant fathers may be unable to take paternity leave when their child is born. Conversely, depending on the employer, expectant mothers may be able to take up to twenty (20) weeks of leave under State and Federal Law.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides for twelve (12) weeks of leave, regardless of the gender of the employee, for the birth and care of a newborn child, care for a newly adopted or foster child, or leave for a serious illness to the employee. Leave can be for paternity, maternity, or specific personal health reasons, depending on the needs of the employee. But there are conditions that apply to the family and medical leave. Our lawyers can help clarify them for you.

This is an emerging area of law, and an extremely difficult one. It is the burden of the grandparent seeking visitation to prove that a decision by the judge to deny visitation is not in the best interest of the child. Since parental decisions, no matter how wrong they seem to be, are given presumptive validity, it must be alleged and proven that failure to grant visitation will cause the child significant harm by adversely affecting the child's health, safety, or welfare. It must also be established that a strong current relationship exists between grandparent and grandchild.

An affidavit must be submitted to the court at the onset of the action, which particularly and sufficiently sets forth facts strong enough to rebut the presumption of parental fitness. It is certainly not a lost cause, and well worth the battle to many grandparents, but grandparents should know that the burden rests on them if they desire to establish grandparents' rights.

When parents contemplate the possibility of dying prematurely or suffering a catastrophic illness, they are naturally concerned about what will happen to their children. Parents of disabled children are often especially concerned about the quality of their children's lives should the parent become unable to provide needed care.

These concerns can be addressed by writing a letter of intent (LOI). An LOI is a document in which parents include important information about their child's history, personality, interests, care, development, needs, and current situation. It also includes the parents' hopes and expectations regarding the child's future.

Although an LOI is not a legally binding document such as a contract or a will, courts and future care providers will rely on it for guidance and insight into the needs of a child who can no longer be cared for by his or her parents. It serves as a voice on behalf of a child whose parents can no longer be that voice.

Writing a letter of intent can be a highly emotional experience and requires special attention and legal assistance to complete. Our firm can help in this matter.

If your goal is to come to the resolution of an issue while maintaining control, rather than accepting something imposed by a third party, then mediation might be perfect for you. The process of mediation consists of certified mediators who assist disputing parties to reach an agreement. Various parties may participate in the mediation process, including states, organizations, communities, individuals, or other representatives with a vested interest in the outcome in a variety of disputes, such as commercial, legal, diplomatic, workplace, community, and divorce or other family matters.

Our certified mediators are also practicing attorneys who possess the experience and expertise necessary to effectively mediate matters for parties to a dispute.

When an aging parent needs assistance to continue to live at home, many children opt to provide the needed care personally. The caretaker child arrangement begins when either the parent begins residing with the child in the child's home, or the child begins residing or continues to reside with the parent in the parent's home and child provides the care similar to that of a board and care facility.

When a child provides care for a parent, it is best to establish a care agreement. This is a contract between the parent and the child, and possibly the child's spouse, in which the parent agrees to pay the child a monetary sum (in either a lump sum or on an ongoing basis) or to finance an improvement to the child's home. In return,the child agrees to care for the parent until either the parent passes away or is no longer able to perform the activities of daily living, which include:

• Bathing
• Eating
• Dressing
• Transferring
• Toileting

When establishing a care agreement, there are numerous considerations and potential pitfalls to be addressed. At Bacon Wilson, our experienced legal team can help.

Also known as prenuptial agreements, antenuptial agreements are used in traditional pre-marital planning for couples. Simply put, they are contracts drafted to determine the property ownership of individuals prior to marriage and to insulate the premarital property from the spouse upon marriage. Parties can protect their assets at the time of marriage from becoming part of the marital asset pool and being distributed to their partner upon divorce or inherited at death. Bacon Wilson can help you develop a prenuptial agreement that suits your particular needs.

Whether entering into marriage for the first time or a subsequent marriage, a spouse should always revisit their existing estate plan or create a new one. Acknowledging a spouse by including them in your estate plan, or ratifying and confirming an antenuptial agreement, is critical to preserving your rights and maintaining control over designation of assets to your heirs. Bacon Wilson can assist you in estate planning matters.

With the divorce rate reaching 50%, remarriages require estate planning. The first spouse to die may wish to ensure that assets are available to or for the benefit of his or her children from a previous marriage. Perhaps a trust will need to be established for these children.

Alternatively, you may establish a trust for the benefit of your spouse, so that he or she will receive income and/or principal at the discretion of an independent trustee, with the remainder of the funds being distributed to children of your first marriage. In this way, your surviving spouse is protected during his or her lifetime, but the trust will ensure that the principal passes to the children of your first marriage, as opposed to leaving all assets to your surviving spouse, who could leave all assets to his or her own children upon his or her death. There may also be a need to establish a trust fund for your grandchildren's education or medical purposes.

With various states adopting rules relative to civil unions, same-sex marriages, and other legal relationships, several significant issues relative to taxes arise. One primary issue may be the recognition of the relationship for income tax purposes that would allow a couple to file a joint state income tax return versus the federal distinction.

The Internal Revenue Service does not permit same-sex couples to file jointly even in cases where there is a legal marriage, such as in Massachusetts. The 1996 Federal Defense of Marriage Act limits the impact of civil unions under federal law. However estate, tax, and long-term care planning (Medicaid,) are significant issues when determining whether the individual filing a return or requesting an application for governmental assistance will be considered married or single.

In addition, with the advent of adoptions by same-sex couples and the subsequent dissolution of some relationships, life will certainly become more complicated and more planning will be necessary. All significant documents must be reviewed to ensure that all plans are in order and are coordinated with all necessary documents. These include wills, health care proxies, powers of attorney, prenuptial agreements, and any other legal documents, such as beneficiary designations. It may also be important to review the older generations' estate planning documents to ensure that both biological children and adopted children are included within their documents.

All couples should contemplate how to protect the assets they possess from becoming marital property at the time of marriage to their partner. Couples must remain aware that upon marriage all assets of an individual become assets of the couple and that, absent the existence of a written mutual agreement to the contrary, the distribution of marital property will be decided by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' general laws in the instance of either divorce or death. Our legal team can advise same-sex couples in addressing the many issues that must be considered.

Married couples choosing to separate but not formally file a divorce action encounter a unique set of circumstances. Reaching what seems to be an amicable agreement about who will pay the bills and how much child support to pay may leave the recipient spouse out in the cold.

Absent a court order, these agreements are unenforceable. Oftentimes, spouses who trust the other experience a further breakdown in the relationship over time, resentful feelings develop, parties begin to move on with their lives, and the obligor no longer feels that he/she should pay the original amount agreed upon. Since actions for "legal separations" typically are done in contemplation of divorce in order to avoid an additional filing fee, a party can file the divorce action, obtain some temporary relief via a court order that is enforceable by the powers of contempt, and then give him/herself some time to live with the arrangement. This provides an opportunity to decide how to proceed when emotions are not running so high. Bacon Wilson's experienced attorneys can handle your separation and divorce arrangements.

A spendthrift trust is a trust that contains language that gives the trustee the authority to make decisions as to how the trust funds may be distributed to a beneficiary. This type of trust prevents creditors of the beneficiary from gaining access to the funds; however, the amount in trust that can be sheltered from creditors can vary widely from state to state.

Additionally, a spendthrift trust can dictate precisely how the beneficiary may use the funds. By doing so, the grantor, who is the person who established the trust, ensures that the beneficiary cannot squander the trust assets as they could if the assets were given to the beneficiary outright. Such protections can be extremely valuable, particularly for those who are not financially savvy or who are going through difficult times, such as unemployment, creditor issues, or divorce.

A spendthrift trust is flexible and can last for the life of the beneficiary or can be limited to a certain number of years. It is a sensible idea to investigate incorporating a spendthrift clause into any trust, as the benefits can be considerable.

Visitation, now called "parent time," is a very complex area of law. There are several types of visitation and an unlimited number of scenarios and schedules that can be developed and utilized when considering the needs and interests of the children, the appropriateness of one parent to spend overnights with a child, the work schedule of the parents, the location of residences, the ages of the children, and other factors. Visitation issues can arise for never-married parents, divorcing parents, after a specific incident has arisen, and during custody battles. Visitation agreements can also be modified at any time upon the showing of a material change in circumstance.