Texas Supreme Court Accepts 2 Gay Divorce Cases

I typically do not recommend that same-sex couples in Georgia legally marry in another state if they are going to continue to reside in Georgia for one big reason: if things go badly and they want to get divorced, someone has to move out of state to do it.  (There are a few exceptions, depending on where they were married.)

Georgia has a six month residency requirement for divorces, which means that in most cases, a person must be a resident of the state of Georgia for at least six months prior to filing for divorce. And in Georgia, a court will not hear a same-sex couple's divorce petition because Georgia law does not recognize them as legally married in the first place.

Texas law is similar to Georgia law in that way, but something big is happening in Texas: last month, after placing two gay divorce cases on hold since 2011, the Texas Supreme Court accepted two cases where same-sex couples for review. Here's the link summarizing the cases: http://www.scotxblog.com/case-notes/the-texas-supreme-court-accepts-two-gay-divorce-cases-for-argument-this-fall/

Oral arguments will be broadcast live on November 5, 2013. You can listen here: http://www.texasbarcle.com/CLE/TSCSearch.asp

*I am not licensed in the state of Texas. If you have a Texas problem, you should find a Texan lawyer.

Show Me the Money: Finding Funds for Low-Income Children

Last week, I attended the first continuing legal education class offered by the newly-created Child Protection & Advocacy section of the State Bar of Georgia, titled “Show Me the Money! Financial and Other Resources for Georgia’s Children.”

The training brought together child advocates, case workers, attorneys, guardians ad litem, and policy makers to outline how foster parents, adoptive parents, appointed advocates, and others can access governmental funding to help the children in Georgia who have special needs, are living in poverty, or do not have permanent homes. These needs can include food, mental health services, a place to live, or cash payments for medical equipment.

As a Guardian ad Litem (GAL) who frequently conducts custody investigations pro bono to qualified low-income families via the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation and the DeKalb Volunteer Lawyers Foundation, I have been amazed at the resilience of some of the children I have interviewed, despite the crushing poverty around them.  I have also seen how something small like a little financial help or the presence of a committed mentor can be a game changer in redirecting the course of their lives.

The Georgia Family Connection Partnership has published a guide that outlines the forms of federal funding available to low-income children and their families. Communities seeking statistics and data to support their grant-writing efforts can contact GFCP for empirical data to support their grant proposals.

If you are adopting from foster care, or if your child is disabled and cannot work, or if you know a child who needs prescriptions, health insurance, or medical treatment, there may be funds available.

Resources:  Barton Child Law & Policy Center, Emory University School of Law; DeKalb Children's Advocacy Center; Voices for Children

Child Advocates Needed - No Legal Experience Required

On any given day, there are 7000 children in foster care in Georgia. Sometimes, all they need is a little support and assistance from a caring adult who will stick up for them, and help connect them with the resources they need.

Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) are trained volunteers who are appointed by juvenile court judges to work with certain children who are in the child welfare system. They are usually not lawyers. Instead, CASA volunteers help ensure that a child does not languish in foster care.

Today, about 60% of foster children have a CASA volunteer advocating on their behalf, but about 2,900 kids still need an advocate. 19 counties in Georgia have no CASA advocates at all.

To learn more about what CASA does, and find out how you can become trained as a CASA volunteer, visit www.gacasa.org. For more information about CASA programs in the metro Atlanta are, click here.

Source: "Call to Service: Georgia CASA" by Angela Tyner, Director of Advocacy and Program Development, Georgia CASA, THE YLD REVIEW, Volume 54, Issue 2, Winter 2012.

NOTE: The CASA logo is registered trademark that belongs to CASA, not to me.

Screenwriting Workshop Begins May 15

If you have, throughout your divorce process, made your friends say, "oh no he did not," or "are you kidding me??!" more than three times, then maybe you have a good story to tell. Writing can be a low-cost therapeutic way to process your emotions about a difficult time. So, if you think you have enough for a book or a movie -- here's your chance to kick it off:

Screenwriter Beaty Reynolds will be offering a three-week workshop at 6:30 p.m., May 15, 22, and 29 at the Phillip Rush Center and a portion of the proceeds from the classes will be donated to Georgia Equality. The Phillip Rush Center is located at 1530 DeKalb Ave. Atlanta, GA 30307.

Rooted in independent filmmaking, the classes will focus on character-driven story development and tackle the FOUR CRITICAL ISSUES that sabotage the vast majority of screenplays. The seminar will include in-class writing exercises. The cost is $75.00.

During his 20 years in Hollywood, Reynolds wrote screenplays for such producers as actress Diane Keaton, Laura Ziskin ("Pretty Woman," "Spiderman" series), Diana Kerew ("Paris Trout"), Arlene Sellers (Circle of Friends) and Mark Gordon ("Saving Private Ryan"), as well as Paramount, Sony Pictures, Fox, Columbia Studios, NBC, CBS, and HBO. He is the writer of “Puppy Love,” which won best short film at the L.A. Independent Film Festival and stars Grace Zabriskie. An except from his novel JUNKYARD PEOPLE was published in the MID-AMERICAN REVIEW. Reynolds' plays have been performed in New York, New Orleans, and Atlanta.

He is the writer and producer of THE MIGHTY KING OF LOVE, which is currently in post-production in Denver and Los Angeles.

Contact to Sign Up: Beaty Reynolds @ 303-909-8995 or beatyre@msn.com

Why You Need an Advance Directive for Healthcare

Thanks to the Georgia State Retirees Association, which invited me to speak to them yesterday about the importance of Advance Directives for Healthcare. Why should you execute an Advance Directive for Healthcare? Here are some of the big ones:

1) It's free. The Georgia Legislature created a form, so you don't have to worry about the language or pay a lawyer to do it.

2) It allows you to die with dignity. We are all going to die, but we will not all have choices about how it happens.

3) It costs you money NOT to execute one. Guess who pays the tab if you are in the hospital in a coma for months? Your estate. This can mean there is nothing left for you to leave your heirs in your Will after all, if they have to sell your assets to pay medical bills first.

4) You might want to override the default decision-maker. If you have an unmarried partner (of any gender), and you want that person to make decisions about what happens to you, you need to name that person as the decision-maker.

5) You want to spare your family the anxiety of second-guessing what you would have wanted. Don't assume your adult children just know what you want -- they might not.

Advance Directives do not need to be notarized, so if you can find two adults who will not benefit from your death, you can execute one right now. Do it.

Wellness Group for Gay Men Forming Now

Therapist Joseph Holbrooks with the Care and Counseling Center of Georgia will be leading an eight-week support group for gay men beginning Feb. 6 at the organization's Midtown office. The first session is free; future sessions will be $35/each. This is a chance to explore "wellness" from a holistic point of view.

Therapy can be invaluable for anyone who is going through a divorce or break-up. Details are on the flyer or go to www.cccgeorgia.org/counselors.html#Holbrooks

Workshop: "You Only Die Once" - An Overview of Advance Directives for Healthcare and Wills

Join me again this Sunday, January 22, 2012 at 9:30 a.m. at North Decatur Presbyterian Church (Medlock and N. Decatur) where I will be teaching the second of two classes about the legal and medical aspects of death with Emory Hospital Oncology Nurse Nancy Reynics.

Last week, we talked about Georgia's Advance Directive for Healthcare form, what happens if you do not have one, and the importance of choosing someone as your agent who will be assertive when dealing with doctors, to make sure your wishes are followed.

This week, we will finish that discussion and talk about some of the other practical aspects of planning for death: planning for your funeral and getting your affairs in order for probate.

These two sessions are part of an eight-week adult Christian education class sponsored by NDPC. All are welcome, regardless of religious belief, and there is no charge.