Mark S Guralnick’s Answers

Both the agreement and the "sphere of influence" argument will be up for grabs. However, the new information you just provided strengthens your case, and I would argue that support should be terminated immediately under the express terms of the agreement. Call, and let's set it up. Mark (973) 682-9999

Harassment comes in two forms -- the criminal case and the domestic violence case. If the person is not related to you and is not somebody you've ever had a dating or intimate relationship with, then you can file a criminal charge of harassment against the person by calling local police or going to the police department and advising them that you wish to file a private criminal complaint against somebody. This will lead to a hearing in Municipal Court. If the person is a family member, a...

There's a few places we have to look to answer your questions. The starting point is N.J.S.A. 9:17B-3 which says that persons over 18 are legal adults. So, first, how much beyond 18 years old is your son? Then we look at the famous precedent -- Newburgh vs. Arrigo -- that addresses the 12 factors involved in paying support and tuition for college kids... The court will be required to balance all of the factors -- the child's needs, interests, and independent resources, the family's reasonable...

I think you probably have a good shot at success. In fact, in my experience with emancipation motions (25 years so far), where a kid is failing in college, there's usually other evidence of his unproductive lifestyle. As you may know, the judge will be considering whether the child is now "outside the sphere of influence of his parents." In other words, is he acting independently, doing his own things, making his own life decisions (if even bad ones)? Or is a homebody, who still lives with...

If you and your spouse have a combined income that goes beyond the guidelines, then the court must consider the published child support factors which appear in the state statute. The factors to be considered are: (1) Needs of the child; (2) Standard of living and economic circumstances of each parent; (3) All sources of income and assets of each parent; (4) Earning ability of each parent, including educational background, training, employment skills, work experience, custodial...

Good question. First, you should act promptly to preserve your rights. If you were struck by a taxi, you want to promptly identify all target defendants, register the proper claims with the proper insurance carriers, and give the proper notice of your claims. As for the taxi medallion, New York law may permit you to reach such valuable assets, particularly if you can demonstrate a pattern of negligent entrustment, negligent driving, etc. Under New York law, in fact, if your facts are...

Under New Jersey Court Rule 5:3-7(b), whenever a party fails to pay child support or alimony, the court can proceed by: (1) fixing the amount of arrearages and entering a judgment upon which interest accrues; (2) requiring payment of arrearages on a periodic basis; (3) suspension of an occupational license or driver's license consistent with law; (4) economic sanctions; (5) participation by the party in violation of the order in an approved community service program; (6)...

That's a tricky question. As you probably know, you can do a number of things to strengthen your right to custody of your daughter. To terminate parental rights, however, the court would have to hold a formal hearing in which it concluded that continued contact with the child's biological father would no longer serve the child's best interest. This is often a difficult burden of proof, even in cases where the father is estranged. You would also need to establish that the biological father...

Your handwritten agreement is probably good. Generally speaking, the only thing that "overrides" a court order is another court order. So, if you ever wanted to be certain that you weren't violating a court order, you should obtain an updated court order -- which you can do either by motion, or often by signing a "consent order" and asking the judge informally to sign it. However, the courts favor the idea of parents working together to raise their children, and to address day-to-day...

You are exactly right. As long as you did not sign a contract for a restrictive covenant (such as an agreement not to compete with your former employer), and as long as you did not agree to protect your employer's trade secrets, customer lists, etc., any attempt to stop you from doing business with your former client would constitute an illegal restraint of trade in violation of both federal and New Jersey state law. It is not a simple issue, however. If your former employer believes you...