Military Family Law Attorneys in Rhode Island

We handle the following areas of Military Family Law:

• Alimony

• Child Custody and Visitation

• Child Support

• Divorce/Legal Separation

• Domestic Violence

• Enforcement of Orders

• Mediation

• Military Family Law

• Paternity

• Prenuptial Agreements

• Restraining Orders

A key issue when dealing with military family law is domicile. Military members have a unique set of rules and regulations controlled by federal law that can affect the ability of a state court to proceed with a divorce and the rules can also affect the ability of a state court to divide the assets of a military member or to resolve custody issues. In some cases the court may make a decision of divorce if there is jurisdiction over the party seeking the divorce, issues such as children, property rights and spousal support cannot be decided unless there is personal jurisdiction over both parties.

Military Family Law and Domicile

The two elements of domicile are physical presence and intent, which is proven by facts such as the filing of state income and property taxes, voting records, bank accounts, vehicle titles and registration, driver’s license and any other act or property that shows a permanency of residence. Military personnel are allowed to retain the right to their original domicile (where they pay taxes) regardless of where they are stationed in the world.

Military pensions are divisible in the event of divorce; however, they are subject to different rules than the rules that govern most pensions. Because this area of military family law requires a special knowledge of laws that are not applicable in civilian matters, an experienced military law attorney is essential and necessary in cases involving military families.