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.

Court Observations: Cobb County Superior Court

As part of my family law practice, I regularly watch hearings and trials in the counties where I regularly have cases. This allows me to learn about the skills of my fellow divorce attorneys, but more importantly -- this allows me to learn about the judges I will appear before: what kinds of arguments resonate with them, what their pet peeves are, and what their personalities are like. This, in turn, helps me better advise my clients about how to behave in the courtroom, and gives me insight as to whether a particular judge is likely to respond well to my proposed arguments.

Yesterday I observed a trial in Cobb Superior Court presided over by Judge J. Stephen Schuster. Schuster is an older white guy who lives in Marietta. He went straight through from undergrad at Tulane to law school at UGA, and graduated from law school in 1976. Before becoming a superior court judge in Cobb county, Schuster served as Cobb County Juvenile Court's presiding judge. Juvenile court hearings typically involve abused or neglected children.

The suit was a child custody case involving two parents, divorced 7 years ago, with a 15 year old boy, Tyler. Tyler had been living with his father and new stepmother, but now wanted to live with his more nurturing and more permissive mother. Tyler's stepmother testified that she and Tyler's father limited Tyler's cell phone usage by disabling the phone from working during school hours and late in the evening, to ensure Tyler was not up all night texting. Both parents were upset that Tyler had been caught watching porn on his father's computer -- though Tyler did not seem particularly upset about this, the judge reported.

The case had been dragging out for 18 months, and the Guardian Ad Litem in the case had prepared a report recommending custody remain with the father. At trial, however, after having witnessed Tyler's in-chambers discussion with the judge, the GAL changed his mind.

O.C.G.A. § 19-9-3 sets out the standard for custody. Where a 15 year old makes an election to live with one parent, the presumption is that this request will be honored unless it is not in the best interest of the child. Applying the best interest of the child factors set out in the statute (including the GAL's recommendation), the Judge granted Tyler's request, and changed primary custody to mom.