Maryland Divorce Lawyer Blog

A Cautionary Story About Not Hiring a Skilled Maryland Divorce Lawyer… and Also Skipping Your Divorce Trial

August 25, 2025 | by Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC

An old saying (often misattributed to the poet Oscar Wilde) warns of the many dangers that can befall you if you assume something to be true. That nugget of knowledge definitely applies in family law. Making assumptions can be the pathway to a legal outcome that is much more harmful to your interests than you intended. Rather than relying on your own assumptions, you are better off talking to an experienced Maryland divorce lawyer, who can help you make certain your rights and your interests are protected in your family law case.

If you go online, you will find that the Maryland Judiciary helpfully offers several pleading forms on its website. The form for answering a complaint is a template-style document that allows the user to admit or deny the allegations the opposing party has asserted in their complaint. At the end, the answer enables you to say that you want the judge to “Dismiss [or] Deny the complaint”, to “Grant the relief requested in the complaint,” or to deny some things and grant certain others.

It is essential to understand that choosing to simply go online, select a form template, and file a court pleading without hiring a lawyer can have serious negative consequences. The court generally will hold you to what you included in your document, even if you did not fully understand the impact of what you were doing. If you have any uncertainty or lack of clarity about what is taking place or what the legal consequences of your document are, you definitely should consult an attorney.

The Significance of Conditional Terms in Maryland Separation and Property Settlement Agreements

August 11, 2025 | by Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC

In divorce cases, details matter. Sometimes, seemingly minor details may matter a great deal. These details may be factual matters or they may be matters of law. A recent Maryland Supreme Court ruling highlights that point in a case centering around the validity of a marital settlement agreement. Whatever nuances your divorce case presents, you can best protect yourself by retaining an experienced Maryland divorce lawyer to represent you.

The spouses in the Supreme Court case, T.P. and D.P., each filed for absolute divorce in 2019. On Friday, September 25, 2020, the wife’s attorney sent the husband’s attorney a package containing a Separation and Property Settlement Agreement, which the wife had already signed. The package’s cover letter stated, among other things, that the agreement was conditional upon the husband signing that same day.

The husband indicated a willingness to sign, but stated that he could not do so until the next business day. Ultimately, the husband did sign the agreement on the following Monday (the next business day).

Some Thoughts on that Viral ‘Kiss Cam’ Moment in Massachusetts… and the Role Adultery Can Play in Maryland Divorces

July 25, 2025 | by Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC

For a few days, rock band Coldplay’s Foxborough, Mass., concert was the talk of the internet. What made the show go viral was a “Kiss Cam” moment that sent a couple diving for cover. The embrace and the pair’s subsequent mortified reaction spawned memes. It even got spoof treatment by the Philadelphia Phillies’ mascots. The viral snuggle also birthed many jokes about an impending divorce, as the man caught on camera was married… just not to his concert companion. Jokes aside, marital infidelity can play a serious role in a married couple’s divorce litigation. If you have questions about adultery and its possible impact on your divorce, be sure to seek out qualified answers from a skilled Maryland divorce lawyer.

Before Maryland overhauled its divorce laws in the fall of 2023, possible evidence of marital infidelity could have played a key role in how the divorce played out. A spouse could seek an absolute divorce on several fault-based grounds, one of which was adultery.

In October 2023, all that changed. Maryland is now a no-fault divorce state and has removed all of the fault-based grounds for divorce. Many experts in divorce and marital relationships see this change as beneficial, minimizing the impulse (or, sometimes, the need) to “air dirty laundry” to get a divorce. In this way, no-fault divorce has the potential to be more collaborative and less adversarial, which can benefit both spouses and, in particular, aid any children of the marriage.

Equitable Distribution and Assets Acquired During a Maryland Couple’s Period of Separation

July 11, 2025 | by Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC

A married couple’s financial portfolio is often a fluid and dynamic thing, constantly changing over time. That includes the time between separation and a final divorce judgment. For assets you acquired during the period of separation, the law generally deems them to be marital assets. Still, it may, when it is time for a court to reach equitable distribution and monetary award decisions, treat them differently than assets you acquired pre-separation. If you have questions about equitable distribution and assets acquired during separation, you should speak to a knowledgeable Maryland divorce lawyer.

A recent divorce case from Anne Arundel County provided the Appellate Court with an opportunity to educate readers about how the equitable distribution and monetary award processes work, as well as when a marital asset may not be subject to equitable distribution.

The case involved a couple who divorced after more than 20 years of marriage. Both spouses filed, but the wife filed first. The wife asked for indefinite alimony and a monetary award, among other things.

High-Net-Worth Spouses and the Divorce Process in Maryland

June 24, 2025 | by Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC

High-net-worth couples have marital troubles and often decide to divorce, just like everyone else. Unlike middle- and working-class spouses, however, high-net-worth couples face some unique issues when going through a divorce related to the volume, value, and complexity of their assets. If your divorce presents issues related to high-value assets, it is well worth your while to retain an experienced Maryland divorce lawyer.

One such high-net-worth divorcing couple is rappers Offset and Cardi B. In May, headlines revealed that the husband had amended his response to the wife’s 2024 divorce filing, asking for alimony. On the surface, that might seem surprising given that Offset is worth somewhere between $26 and $32 million. However, Cardi B is worth more than $100 million, which makes Offset’s argument look more plausible.

When you have to navigate a Maryland divorce where both of you are high-net-worth individuals, you probably will not have to deal with a catalog of hit songs and albums. Nevertheless, there are certain things that high-net-worth individuals need to keep in mind when going through a divorce.

Indefinite Alimony Versus Rehabilitative Alimony in Maryland: When Each is (or Isn’t) Appropriate

June 10, 2025 | by Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC

Alimony is an important aspect of many divorce cases. In almost all divorces, one spouse earns more than the other, creating the possibility (if not likelihood) of disparate standards of living post-divorce without alimony. If you are involved in a divorce where alimony is an issue, it is essential to recognize that the law in this state sets up some clear guideposts for when (and what kind of) alimony is appropriate. To ensure you walk away from your divorce with a just and reasonable outcome, be sure to retain representation from an experienced Maryland divorce lawyer.

The Maryland Appellate Court recently looked at the divorce and alimony case of a Gaithersburg couple. This case offers valuable lessons and reminders about the legal rules governing the types of alimony available in Maryland.

To set the background, the husband was an engineer at Microsoft, earning nearly $300,000 per year. The wife had risen from a fitness club lifeguard to working as a graphic designer and video editor, earning almost $90,000 per year before her job ended in early 2024. (He said she quit; she said the employer laid her off.)

What Maryland Law Says about Fraud, Coercion, and Duress in Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements

May 23, 2025 | by Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC

Getting a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement is often an excellent financial plan for married (or soon-to-be-married) couples. A well-written contract can help ensure that you, not a court, will decide your finances should anything happen to the marriage. Having a knowledgeable Maryland prenuptial agreement lawyer is vital to ensuring that the agreement you sign is valid, enforceable, and accurately reflects the objectives you wanted to achieve.

As with any legal process, there is a right way and a wrong way to procure a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement. Recently, Yahoo! Entertainment reported on one internet celebrity’s postnuptial agreement, which may be an example of a contract executed using impermissible methods.

According to Yahoo!, streaming star Amouranth accused her husband of forcing her to sign a postnuptial agreement “at gunpoint.” In addition to allegedly threatening her safety, the wife also accused the husband of using the safety and well-being of her pets as “leverage” in securing her signature on the contract.

What are ‘Crawford Credits’ and When Might They Impact My Maryland Divorce?

May 16, 2025 | by Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC

For many married couples, the largest single asset they possess is their marital home. When divorce arises, dealing with the marital home is often the most significant issue other than child-related matters. Even as you both navigate the divorce process, someone must pay the mortgage, property taxes, etc. Accounting for these expenses when it is time to divide assets can be crucial. To ensure you leave your marriage with a fair asset distribution, make sure you are not tackling the divorce process alone, but instead have representation from a knowledgeable Maryland divorce lawyer.

A recent divorce case from Howard County illustrates how thorny these matters can be. A husband responsible for paying the mortgage on the marital home, but did not receive something called “Crawford credits” based on those mortgage payments, took his case to the Appellate Court, but lost. Ultimately, he was unsuccessful because the law carved out several exceptions, one of which applied in his case.

To understand more fully why the court ruled against the husband, it helps to understand what Crawford credits are. These credits, which take their name from the 1982 Maryland Supreme Court case of Crawford v. Crawford, are a divorce law concept that impacts equitable distribution when a couple owns one or more pieces of real estate.

The Legal Rules Surrounding ‘Conflicts of Interest’ and the Process of Selecting an Attorney to Handle Your Maryland Divorce

April 30, 2025 | by Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC

A divorce case involves many steps and numerous decisions. One of those choices is selecting the right Maryland divorce lawyer. This decision may become particularly complicated if your spouse seeks to exclude your preferred attorney. The good news is that, in most situations, the rules regarding these “conflicts of interest” will not require you to replace your preferred legal counsel.

A recent case from Anne Arundel County illustrates just how far the rules regarding conflicts of interest do—and do not—extend.

In 2022, an Annapolis wife filed for divorce. Three years earlier, she and her husband had sued their neighbors and a property developer over stormwater runoff that allegedly damaged the couple’s property. The couple hired a local attorney who represented them in the property damage case.

Identifying Tactics that are Doomed to Fail When Used in Your Maryland Divorce Case

April 16, 2025 | by Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC

There is a time for debating and discussing one’s novel beliefs or opinions… and that time is not while attempting to litigate your divorce case. This is one area, among many, where having an experienced Maryland divorce lawyer represent you can be extremely helpful. Your knowledgeable attorney can save you from making the sort of mistakes that, no matter how important, useful, or valuable they may seem to you, are doomed to fail with the court and make you look unserious in the process.

In 2022, spouses H.M. and V.M. negotiated a Marital Settlement Agreement, which a Prince George’s County trial court approved and incorporated into the couple’s 2023 judgment of absolute divorce. One of the agreement’s clauses stated that the ex-spouses would sell the residence after their minor child graduated from high school, splitting any profits generated by the transaction.

After the child graduated in June 2023, the ex-wife was reluctant to sell the home. The ex-husband eventually returned to court to request that the judge appoint a trustee to oversee the sale of the house. The trial court ruled in favor of the husband. The wife took several post-judgment steps, but they were unsuccessful. The reasons for her lack of success are our focus today.