Maryland Divorce Lawyer Blog

Arbitration Clauses in Marital Settlement Agreements and When You Can (and Cannot) Get an Arbitrator’s Ruling Reversed

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

When you and your spouse decide to end your marriage, it is often best to resolve as many issues as possible (if not all) between the two of you. Settling your divorce issues by agreement rather than litigation is often less stressful, faster, and less antagonistic. Nevertheless, you should understand that the things you put into a mutual agreement — once a judge signs off on it — are just as binding as a litigated judgment. For this reason and more, it is wise to have an experienced Maryland divorce lawyer by your side throughout the process to help ensure you understand what your agreement calls for and that it reflects the outcome you want.

A recent alimony dispute illustrates the importance of understanding a settlement agreement and being bound by its terms.

R.M. and S.M. were a couple who married in 1983, separated in 2017, and divorced in 2021. As part of the process, the couple worked out a settlement agreement. The agreement had several common elements, such as a provision about the division of property. (The wife, for example, got the marital home in Maryland and the condo in Colorado.)

The Impact a Marriage’s Duration Can Have on an Alimony Award in Maryland

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

Alimony (spousal support) is an integral part of many divorces. Unless the spouses resolve the issue of alimony on their own (such as including a provision in a marital settlement agreement that neither will receive alimony, a court will decide if either spouse should receive alimony and, if so, which spouse, how much, and for how long. Judges make these determinations based on several statutory factors, one of which is the length of the couple’s marriage. Duration is just one of nearly a dozen factors, however. To understand more about alimony and your divorce, you should get in touch with an experienced Maryland divorce lawyer.

When it comes to marital duration and alimony, the short version is: the longer the marriage, the greater the likelihood of an alimony award. If yours was a decades-long marriage, the greater the possibility that some form of alimony is appropriate.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, there is the celebrity divorce of retired basketball star Dwight Howard and reality TV star Amy Luciani. The pair became engaged in December 2024, married in January 2025, and then went their separate ways less than six months later. (The wife filed for divorce on July 1.)

The Many Factors Involved in Distributing Property in Divorce (and Potentially Granting One Spouse a Monetary Award)

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

When you divorce after many decades of marriage, you may have numerous assets to divide. There may be houses, cars, 401(k)s, and more. This process, if contested in court, may involve presenting arguments regarding marital versus non-marital property, commingled assets, and monetary awards. To ensure you walk away from your divorce with a fair outcome, you owe it to yourself to go into your divorce hearing properly armed, which includes having an experienced Maryland divorce lawyer represent you.

The divorce case of a Talbot County couple illustrates this reality.

Richard and Laura married in 1993, then eventually divorced in 2022. The couple successfully worked together to settle several divorce issues, including the sale of their business and the disposal of the marital home.

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.