Ron Steingold's Answers

Ex-wife forged my name on my company's business checks for cash.What to do while I'm in the middle of divorcing her?.

You are describing a complicated situation with ramifications in several directions. I have over 25 years of experience in both family and small business law that may be useful. Contact me to discuss your situation more. Right away you will need temporary orders in the divorce case that establish who controls and operates the business while the divorce is proceeding, prevents business assets from being hidden or dissipated and assures that you will have access to all business records. The...

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I have legal custody of my children & my wife has limited visitation.

You can withold a visit if the mother has consumed alcohol in violation of the parenting plan. However you cannot completely withold visitation indefinitely. You need to bring a contempt motion to establish her violation. If the mother is repeatedly found in contempt then you might want to consider bringing a modification suit to change the visitation so that her visits occur only if supervised until she meets criteria for being clean and sober.

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Washington state - separate interest in LLC

Property acquired before marriage, by separate gift or separate inheritance is separate property. Property acquired during the marriage and property that is not traceable to its separate property source is community property. If you can show you acquired your interest in the LLC as separate property then it's your separate property. If the interest in the LLC was community property but you and your spouse agree that it should be your separate property then you and your spouse should sign a...

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Does my daughter continue to receive child support in wa state if she attends college

You need to look at the current child support order. Attending college is called "post-secondary education" in that order. Sometimes that order specifies that parents are to pay college and if so then child support continues as specified in that order. If the issue is reserved (which would be typical) then you need to file a petition to modify the child support order to include post-secondary education before the other parent's support obligation is set to end (typically when the...

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Legal Separation or Divorce in Washington State

I concur that you need to consult an attorney. Several points not mentioned by the other attorneys: 1) Procedurally, if your case is not agreed then it may take as long to get a legal separation as it would be to get a divorce. There may or may not be an advantage to filing for legal separation. 2) Regardless of whether you get a legal separation or divorce, any financial protection you'd get from your husband's debts would not be automatic before a decree is entered. If you are concerned...

Can I still modify through DCS?

Generally DCS requires 3 years between modifications but there may be other circumstances that would persuade DCS to administratively modify after just 2 years. I agree with the other attorney who said that it doesn't hurt to request a modification. But for a modification through the court if there's been any change of income in the past 2 years you are eligible to a modification.

Ex is alienating daughter

This is the kind of thing that is normally handled under the dispute resolution section of your parenting plan. Typically that section provides for mediation or a similar process to resolve parenting disputes short of going to court. Read your plan and follow the procedure for initiating the dispute resolution process. If you are unable to resolve the dispute that way then you will need to bring a motion for minor modification of the parenting plan so that the court can make some orders...

Can I terminate Property Management contract?

You describe actions which could constitute a breach of the management agreement if they knew about it and refused to act. However make sure you can prove that they knew or should have known about it. It's a fact question: to what address did the PUD allegedly send the notice and how do you know the notice was actually sent? Besides the question of whether the management company breached the contract, you should review that contract to see if there's any other basis to terminate it.

Does it cost much for a HOA to file a lien against a homeowner for late due?

I agree with the management company that RECORDING (not "filing") a notice of lien is a good idea. RECORDING a notice of lien does not prevent the HOA from mediating, you can do both. If mediation fails you might want to bring a lawsuit to foreclose on the lien but probably you'll want to just have the lien just stay of record until the property gets sold. (Once the lien is paid another notice has to be recorded.) Small claims court just results in your getting a judgment, which doesn't get...

My ex husband hides his income and assets in his girlfriends name, he owes 120,000. in child support and money that I loaned him

I am an attorney in Lynnwood, WA with over 25 years of experience in family law. I would be happy to speak with you about possibly taking your matter on a contingent fee basis. Call me. Ron Steingold 425-670-2814