A recent New Jersey Appeals Court decision praised the use of interactive web technology for visitation with a non-custodial father as "creative and innovative" and said that the trial judge who rejected the plan, hadn't evaluated it fairly. The mother in the New Jersey relocation case worked as a freelance web designer. Mother had physical custody of her daughter through a prior divorce and her ex-husband had regular visitation with the child in New Jersey where they resided. As a result of a job offer which mother characterized as substantially benefitting herself and the minor child, mother proposed to relocate to California. She proposed a visitation schedule that would give father the same number of total days with the child, but grouped those days around school vacations. Additionally, she proposed setting up an interactive web site with a video camera so the child could "visit" with her father on a daily basis. This interactive web site would allow father to easily review school work, records and see the child via a web cam.

Father objected to this arrangement and after a post-divorce modification hearing, the Judge rejected mothers relocation plans and as part of his Order, largely dismissed the use of the internet as a reasonable plan to maintain the father/daughter relationship in addition to vacation periods.

The Appeals Court overturned the lower Court decision and remanded the case for further proceedings consistent with their opinion. In the opinion, the Appeals Court noted that the underlying Trial Judge "never focused on the actual alternate visitation schedule proposed by (mother)". The Court went on to say "we believe that Plaintiff's suggested use of the internet to enhance visitation was both creative and innovative".

While the use of the internet certainly cannot replace the normal physical contact with a child or substitute for a parent's presence at school activities or sporting events, it may be a factor in close cases. E-mail and instant messaging are already used frequently in relocation cases and the use of interactive web sites with video cameras could be an even better way to maintain the parent/child relationship. Acknowledgment of the use of interactive web sites and the internet in the New Jersey case will be cited by family law practitioners in future relocation cases.

Attendance at a Child Impact Seminar is now required for all parents involved in litigation filed in the Hillsborough County Superior Court, Southern District, where the interests of children are involved. For all cases filed after January 1, 2001 that involve either custody, visitation, paternity or any post-divorce or post-decree modifications involving children, parents must now attend this Child Impact Seminar. The Hillsborough County Southern District requirement is similar to model programs that have been instituted in other counties throughout the State of New Hampshire. The attendance at a Child Impact Seminar is also the norm in other states such as Massachusetts and Maine where parents are in litigation surrounding issues associated with their children.

The Child Impact Seminar is four hours in length. Participants are required to attend all four hours in order to receive the certificate of attendance. Until a parent attends the Child Impact Seminar and receives the certificate of attendance, final hearings cannot be scheduled in your family law case. The cost of attendance is $75.00 per parent and there are specific waivers applicable for those parents who are indigent and cannot afford to pay their own costs.

The sessions of the Child Impact Seminars cover a variety of topics designed to focus on the emotional impact of custodial decisions on children, assist with parental communication and cooperation and to otherwise assist parents in dealing with the impact that divorce and separation has on children. At the present time, the Hillsborough County Superior Court in Nashua, is in the development stage of establishing procedures and protocols for setting up the seminars and registering parents. As these procedures become available, more information will be available on this web site.

Congress is expected to enact sweeping changes in the bankruptcy law area and President Bush is expected to sign the legislation as soon as a compromise bill is reached between the House of Representatives and United States Senate. The new legislation is expected to become law shortly. Bankruptcy law experts expect that the law will go into effet six months after its enactment. Lawyers expect a rush of filings before the bill goes into effect as a result of the major changes proposed which will negatively affect debtors seeking relief under the bankruptcy laws.

The House of Representatives passed the bill on March 1, 2001. The United States Senate approved its version of the bill on March 16, 2001 and once a compromise bill is put forward, both Houses are expected to approve the final version of the bill which will then be signed by President Bush and enacted into law.

Experts agree that the bill is very pro-creditor. As a result of changes, consumer bankruptcy cases will involve much more work on behalf of lawyers and as a consequence, will cost more for consumers. One reason these cases will be more work, is that every debtor filing for Chapter 7 will need to go through a "means test". This is a complicated test of whether someone has enough income after expenses, over five years, to pay off a significant amount of his or her debt. Debtors who have enough excess income will fail the test and under the bill, if they were to file for Chapter 7, their filing would be presumed to be an "abuse".

Chapter 13 wage earner plans will also be more complicated and there will be stricter limits on the types of debts dischargeable, the length of time debtors are required to enter into a payment plan and there will be stricter limits on repeat filings. In both the Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 area, debtors will face additional obstacles in obtaining relief under the new law as opposed to the current bankruptcy code in effect.

Some bankruptcy law experts are suggesting that there will be a 50% increase in bankruptcy filings in the months just prior to the effective date of the new law. Some experts are telling their clients that if there is any possibility that you were considering bankruptcy, it would be important to make that decision now and not wait any longer. If you have contemplated the filing of a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy in the past, you ought to seriously consider filing that case prior to the changes that are being proposed. Attorney Garner can meet with you at a free initial consultation to discuss the options and alternatives available to you.