Virginia Lawyers Weekly VA Lawyers Weekly

The circuit court correctly interpreted the parties’ prenuptial agreement regarding the disposition of certain property wife purchased from husband before they were married. However, the court incorrectly determined the amount of debt encumbering the property. Further, where the prenuptial agreement ...

Tagged with: Domestic Relations Judge Randolph A. Beales Virginia Court of Appeals

The circuit court’s division of husband’s military pension did not follow applicable federal law and this court’s precedent. Parties’ arguments “Wife argues that the circuit court failed to apply the correct law when issuing its order. We agree and reverse ...

Tagged with: Domestic Relations Judge Rosemarie Annunziata Virginia Court of Appeals

Where the trial court determined that the parties’ prenuptial agreement was enforceable under the Premarital Agreement Act, the evidence supports the court’s findings that husband made a fair disclosure of assets and that wife was not coerced into signing the ...

Tagged with: Domestic Relations Judge Robert J. Humphreys Virginia Court of Appeals

The trial court lacked authority to order husband to name wife as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy because she was not a named beneficiary during the parties’ marriage. The court’s valuation and distribution of assets is affirmed. Background ...

Tagged with: Domestic Relations Judge Wesley G. Russell Jr. Virginia Court of Appeals

When the parties’ entire post-nuptial agreement is read in context, the agreement unambiguously provides that certain trust benefits were intended to be paid to wife even after the parties divorced and husband subsequently died. Background Bonnie and Raleigh Worsham were ...

Tagged with: Domestic Relations Judge Stuart A. Raphael Virginia Court of Appeals

The trial court correctly ruled that father’s $600,000 inheritance was income for purposes of determining his child support obligation. Further, the court acted within its discretion by dividing the inheritance as income over a five-year period until the youngest child ...

Tagged with: Domestic Relations Judge Mary Grace O'Brien Virginia Court of Appeals

Where the trial court’s order dividing a husband’s military pension was contrary to federal law, the order is void ab initio and can be attacked beyond Rule 1:1’s 21-day window. Overview “Michael Yourko (‘husband’) appeals from the trial court’s dismissal ...

Tagged with: Domestic Relations Judge Frank K. Friedman Virginia Court of Appeals

Where, as part of the equitable distribution, the trial court awarded a preserved pre-embryo to wife and did not compensate husband for his share of the marital property, the court’s judgment is reversed. The case is remanded so the trial ...

Tagged with: Family Law Judge Marla Graff Decker Virginia Court of Appeals

Where the parties each claim the other violated their oral agreement concerning living together and sharing expenses after the final divorce decree was entered, their property settlement agreement, which provides that any modifications must be in writing, controls the resolution ...

Tagged with: Domestic Relations Judge Mary Grace O'Brien Virginia Court of Appeals

The circuit court had jurisdiction to modify a previous order relating to the equitable distribution of the parties’ retirement benefits, even though the correcting order was entered more than 21 days after the original order. Husband argues on appeal that ...

Tagged with: Domestic Relations Judge Mary Grace O'Brien Virginia Court of Appeals