KUNIN & CARMAN is the firm of choice in domestic disputes where substantial assets – both tangible and intangible – are to be valued and distributed between the parties to a divorce.
KUNIN & CARMAN has represented clients with substantial real estate holdings, such as limited partnerships, commercial property, and residential property, including multiple vacation homes. We have represented clients where business interests with a fair market value in excess of a million dollars were at stake.
The firm frequently handles the valuation and division of complex pension and retirement plans, deferred compensation, stock options, executive employment benefits, contract rights, “golden parachutes” and severance packages with substantial monthly benefits.
Depending upon the circumstances surrounding a marriage, it may be annulled by the Nevada Courts as if it never existed.
In the event that a marriage occurred while either party lacked the mental capacity to enter into a contract, occurred while either party was intoxicated, occurred due to certain types of mistakes, occurred while a party was under duress, or occurred based upon fraud, the Courts retain much latitude to determine whether a marriage should be ended by an annulment or a divorce.
In the event that you are a Nevada resident, or were married in the State of Nevada, and intend to seek an annulment, it is imperative that you seek the advice of counsel prior to filing a Petition.
KUNIN & CARMAN understands the nuances of Nevada Law, and will assist you in presenting your case and maximizing your chances of successfully obtaining an Annulment.
The dissolution of marriage is accomplished by Divorce. Nevada is a no-fault state, which means that the reasons for the dissolution of the marriage are often inconsequential. The Court will terminate the marriage and declare the parties single and unmarried persons if one party claims incompatibility. For this reason, we encourage our clients to focus their energies on other areas, rather than focusing on establishing blame for the failed marriage. Once clients re-focus their energy, the legal matters can be readily addressed.
Do not hesitate to seek the advice of an attorney as timing can be crucial in a Divorce, and failure to seek the advice of counsel early in the process can drastically affect the outcome of your case. KUNIN & CARMAN will advise you in advance as to the potential pitfalls and perils that you face, and will utilize our years of experience in the field of Family Law to protect both your assets and interest.
As of October 1, 2009, individuals can register as domestic partners in the State of Nevada. In a nutshell, Domestic Partners have all of the rights and responsibilities of spouses. In order to register as Domestic Partners individuals must a) have a common residence; b) not be married or registered to another as a domestic partner; c) not related by blood in a way that would prevent them from being married in the state; d) be over 18; and e) be competent to consent to the partnership.
Domestic Partnerships are a relatively new concept in the United States. As a result, new court decisions are sculpting the law with respect to adoptions, child custody, visitation, paternity/maternity, and of course, dissolution (i.e., divorce). In Nevada, domestic relations law is continually changing; the new domestic partnership statute adds an entirely new twist to various family law concepts.
Although Nevada’s new Domestic Partnership law directly references Nevada Revised Statue Chapter 125 (NRS 125 – Dissolution of Marriage), the law references other areas of the law that will need to be referred to when addressing various issues.
In addition, statutes regarding Guardianships, Wills, Estates, and Probate (specifically intestate succession) are all impacted by the Domestic Partnership statute.
At KUNIN & CARMAN, we are dedicated to guiding you through the legal process in your specific domestic relation situation, including those situations conferred to Nevada's Domestic Partners.
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Rights of Husband and Wife (Spouses) |
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Premarital (Prepartnership) Agreements (Uniform Act) |
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Dissolution of Marriage (Dissolution of Domestic Partnership) |
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Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act |
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Obligation of Support |
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Custody and Visitation |
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Uniform Child Abduction Prevention Act |
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Parentage (Paternity/Maternity) |
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Adoption of Children and Adults |
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Termination of Parental Rights |
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There are two (2) types of jurisdictional disputes, those pertaining to actually obtaining a divorce, and those pertaining to child custody.
Divorce Jurisdiction
As it pertains to divorce jurisdiction, the Plaintiff or Defendant must reside in Nevada for the six weeks leading up until the filing of the Complaint for Divorce. This six (6) week requirement is often times abused by individuals from other States with stricter divorce laws. It is not unusual for an individual to come to Nevada and set up a sham residence in an attempt to meet the residency requirements to obtain a divorce.
If such jurisdictional conflicts exist, it is crucial that you consult with an attorney immediately. Failure to raise jurisdictional objections prior to responding to a Complaint for Divorce, or appearing in Court, may result in you being subject to the jurisdiction of the Court regardless of such jurisdictional defenses depending upon the circumstances of your case.
Child Custody Jurisdiction
As it pertains to child custody, jurisdictional issues can be very complicated. Questions regarding jurisdiction are not subject to general rules but are instead fact specific. It is important to consult with an attorney prior to filing an action. An action filed in an inappropriate jurisdiction is merely a waste of money. In advising our clients, we make sure that all possible outcomes are discussed and the client has a clear understanding of the risks involved in filing a child custody action in any given jurisdiction. We also have a network of some of the finest lawyers in the country who we can refer clients to if our initial determination of the jurisdictional issue concludes that another state is the appropriate site of jurisdiction.
Engaged, married or cohabiting couples may enter into agreements defining their property rights, and depending upon the type of agreement, their support and other rights and obligations. Such agreements require special expertise and attention. A well drafted agreement may serve as the foundation of an estate plan and may reduce the cost and uncertainty of litigation, should the marriage end by divorce.
The most important issue that any litigant will face is the Court's determination as it pertains to the custody rights of the parents with regard to their children.
The decisions litigants make regarding their desired custodial timeshare with the other parent are ones that are personal to them. Custodial decisions should not be based on financial considerations, such as child support. Parents should focus solely on their child's or children's best interests. Obviously, issues of domestic violence, substance abuse, psychological abuse, alienation and other facts and factors are relevant for any determination as to what is in the best interest of the children. KUNIN & CARMAN will assist you in presenting your case in the best possible light to the court, and will utilize our years of experience to avoid the potential pitfalls and perils faced by child custody litigants.
Whether you are seeking to collect child support, or are attempting to defend yourself from having to excessively pay such support, KUNIN & CARMAN will provide you the advice you need to ensure that your children are receiving the appropriate amount of financial support, or protect you from overzealous attempts to collect excessive support from you.
Often, in simple collection cases, the best and most cost effective advice we can provide is to utilize the free services of the District Attorney's office. In the end, the specific facts and circumstances of your case will dictate the best course of action.
There is no set formula for alimony in Nevada. The Court's decision regarding alimony is so discretionary, it is impossible to provide an accurate summary due to the number of factors and the different tendencies of the Judges in the Eighth Judicial District Court. Generally, a marriage of five years or more in which one party earns significantly more than the other, results in an alimony award. The amount and the duration depend on the Judge as well as dozens of other factors.
If you have questions regarding whether or not alimony would be awarded and the specific amount that could be anticipated, our attorneys can advise based upon their experiences with any individual Judge on similar facts. Alimony, more so than any other area of family law, is an area that requires the vast experience of KUNIN & CARMAN to give appropriate, realistic & reasonable advice particular to your individual case.
KUNIN & CARMAN encourages clients to mitigate their need for alimony as much as practicable, as our years of experience have proven that a person who contributes toward their own support is in a much better position to bring an amicable closure to their marriage. More importantly, a Court is more inclined to award appropriate alimony to someone who is making good faith efforts to contribute toward their own financial needs.
While modern DNA technology has made it easier for Courts to determine biological parentage, Nevada's recognition of the rights of non-biological parents has added much complexity in the area of paternity.
KUNIN & CARMAN has successfully fought to establish the parental rights of both biological and non-biological parents, and is fully aware of the hidden complexities in paternity actions.
As in many other practice fields, timing can be crucial in a paternity case and seeking the advice of counsel early in the process can affect the outcome of your case.
KUNIN & CARMAN has represented both moving parents and parents objecting to the relocation of their children. We understand both positions and can aggressively fight for you.
Before you decide to relocate with your child after a divorce, you need to obtain legal advice and a complete understanding of the law that governs your ability to move when a parenting plan or custody order is in place. When it comes to relocation, timing is everything, and it is important for you to hire an attorney early in the process to ensure that your timing is right.
In objecting to the relocation of minor children, KUNIN & CARMAN has developed proven strategies to prevent relocation, and is fully aware of what factors the Court will utilize to decide your case.
In Clark County, one of the largest assets in many cases is stock options granted to employees in the casino industry. Stock option valuation and apportionment is one of KUNIN & CARMAN's particular areas of expertise. It is important for our clients to understand not merely what options they are entitled, but the method of apportionment as well. KUNIN & CARMAN has handled a significant number of cases representing both the employee (optionee) and the non-employee spouse.
The most important aspect of apportioning stock options is to ensure that the unvested options are properly apportioned. It takes a special level of expertise to understand just how this is performed. KUNIN & CARMAN possesses this expertise and has performed the necessary calculations in many, many cases resulting in exceptional financial results for our clients.
An often overlooked asset of any marriage is an ownership interest in a business. Because a business generates to its owners a stream of income that will continue into the indefinite future, they are often times a far more substantial asset than either of the parties to a divorce anticipate. The value of a business is far more than merely the sum of its parts. Most businesses have what is called a "good will value" which substantially increases the fair market value of the business entity above that which is revealed on an asset and debt schedule.
The lawyers of KUNIN & CARMAN have an extensive understanding of the business valuation process, and we employ the finest experts to ensure that an accurate determination is made as to the fair market value of the business. We employ only the experts that we know from our experience the Judges respect, and whose opinions as to value that the Court will accept. Often times, the existence of a family owned interest in a business can result in the business being awarded to one spouse and a majority of the other assets being awarded to the other spouse.
The most important issue in any business valuation case is obtaining all of the necessary documents in allowing the expert to do his job. Then and only then can the appropriate division of community property be performed. We often attempt to get the opposing party to stipulate to use one business valuator so as to reduce the costs associated with the litigation. If we are unable to procure such an agreement, we also do everything we can to obtain the most respected expert so that the likely result would be the Court adopting our expert's value.
We assist in the placement of children for adoption, representing both adoptive parents and birth parents. It is illegal in the state of Nevada to charge a fee for this service. You do not pay our firm any monies unless and until there is an identified match between birth parent and adoptive parent. Then we charge at our hourly rate to work with a licensed child placing agency to complete the process, which typically involves obtaining Consents or Relinquishments, terminating parental rights, and finalizing the adoption.
Ishi Kunin is a fellow of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys and the author of the Adoption and Termination of Parental Rights sections of the Nevada Family Law Practice Manual.
In all termination of parental rights proceedings, the best interests of the child must be the primary consideration. Moreover, in deciding whether to terminate parental rights, the District Court must always consider the best interests of the child in conjunction with a finding of parental fault. The Nevada Supreme Court has said that severance of the parent-child relationship is tantamount to imposition of a civil death penalty. The laws affecting termination of parental rights are continuously evolving in the courts. We have the expertise to evaluate each case in accordance with the statutes and current law.
Ishi Kunin has been doing termination of parental rights proceedings since her first position as a Deputy Attorney General for the Welfare Division, terminating the parental rights of parents who abused and neglected their children. These children are then free to be adopted by the families that have loved and provided for them emotionally and financially. Ishi Kunin is a fellow of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys and the author of the Adoption and Termination of Parental Rights sections of the Nevada Family Law Practice Manual.
Some states are starting to recognize surrogacy as another way to create a family. The enforceability of Surrogacy Agreements varies from state to state. It is with pleasure that we offer our services to both Intended Parents and to Surrogates. We can correctly advise you of Nevada law and of the concerns when entering into an Agreement not supported by our statutes.