What is “standard visitation” in 2023?
Posted Friday, February 3rd, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys, South Carolina Specific, Visitation
When I first began practicing family law 30 years ago, “standard visitation” was pretty standard. A fit parent who was not the primary caretaker was
The family court’s failure to protect guardians ad litem does not appear to be improving
Posted Tuesday, January 31st, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Child Custody, Family Court Procedure, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys, South Carolina Specific
Over a decade ago I stopped doing guardian ad Litem work and blogged about why. I was tired of ad hominem attacks from unhappy litigants—and
Family law is the trailing indicator of cultural change
Posted Saturday, January 28th, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Jurisdiction, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to General Public
Yesterday I lectured for the South Carolina Bar’s annual guardian ad litem training on the topic “Post-COVID Child Custody and Visitation Case Law Update (2020-2022).”
Posted Monday, January 23rd, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Jurisdiction, Of Interest to General Public, South Carolina Appellate Decisions, South Carolina Specific
In 1971, South Carolina adopted article I, section 10 as part of the state constitution. That section reads, “The right of the people to be
The South Carolina family law appellate opinions of 2022
Posted Friday, January 20th, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys, South Carolina Appellate Decisions, South Carolina Specific
For over 13 years I’ve written about every published South Carolina opinion addressing family law. Every year since 2010 I’ve done a summary listing and
Posted Tuesday, January 17th, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Department of Social Services/Child Abuse and Neglect, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys, South Carolina Appellate Decisions, South Carolina Specific
The January 4, 2023, Court of Appeals opinion in SCDSS v. Scott, 438 S.C. 400, 883 S.E.2d 229 (Ct. App. 2023), granted a new trial
Best practice is to blind courtesy-copy clients on emails to opposing counsel
Posted Wednesday, November 30th, 2022 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Attorney-Client Relations, Law Practice Management, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys
I have long believed it to be best practice to courtesy copy clients on all emails one sends in that client’s case. Doing so helps
Supreme Court remands for new custody trial based on stale record
Posted Wednesday, November 23rd, 2022 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Appellate Procedure, Child Custody, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys, South Carolina Appellate Decisions, South Carolina Specific
On November 23, 2022, the South Carolina Supreme Court partially granted a writ of certiorari, and remanded the case of Rossington v. Rossington, 438 S.C.
Maybe you’re simply a bad parent
Posted Tuesday, November 22nd, 2022 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Attorney-Client Relations, Child Support, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to General Public
A sizable portion of my initial consults are with parents frustrated in achieving their custody or visitation goals in the family court. Often these parents
Why I’m sticking with remote mediations
Posted Thursday, November 17th, 2022 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Law Practice Management, Mediation/Alternative Dispute Resolution, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys, South Carolina Specific
Early in the COVID era, the South Carolina Supreme Court authorized mediations using video conferencing. Despite the return of relative normalcy to the operation of
