Meghan Freed interviewed by Avvo on Divorce Issues Faced By Same Sex Spouses

Meghan Freed was one of the family law attorneys interviewed by Avvo for the article How Same-Sex Divorce Differs From Regular Divorce.

Meghan commented both on issues that arise in property division and with respect to child custody.

Meghan Freed, attorney with family law firm Freed Marcroft in Hartford, Connecticut, agrees. “The real issue is that some same-sex couples were in lengthy partnerships before they could enter into a civil union or marry, and we don’t have a mechanism for taking that into account when it comes to assets,” she says.  How the length of your relationship is viewed when it comes to dividing assets may very well depend on the state in which you are seeking a divorce. Connecticut, for example, “does not consider assets accumulated during the pre-marriage relationship as marital assets,” Freed says. “This is significant because, when gay couples couldn’t marry, many accumulated significant assets during their cohabitation prior to marriage or civil union.”

Further:

While the financial portion of a divorce is tricky enough, when couples in a same-sex marriage have children, custody issues can make the landscape of divorce even more complicated.  “Some same-sex couples had children prior to their marriage that were never formally adopted by the non-biological spouse,” says Freed. “This can lead to significant issues with parental rights and responsibilities, including child support and visitation.”

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Freed Marcroft’s attorneys are committed to LGBT legal issues and speak and write frequently on divorce and family law issues facing same sex spouses and partners and their families.  

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