Divorcing couples often make common mistakes during the legal process that can cost them time and money. By slowing down the process, taking legal advice, and hiring a mediator, many critical issues are avoided.

The 10 most common mistakes made during a divorce can complicate the dissolution of marriage, making it harder to resolve marital issues. As a result, the final consequences of the dissolution of marriage can often be devastating to the newly divorced couple.

Details of This Year’s Annual Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra Nutcracker

With James Lowe conducting the orchestra to Rhonda Stampalia’s choreography, the magical world of the Nutcracker Suite has once again arrived here in Jacksonville to ring in the holiday season. With the event scheduled this year for Friday, December 14 at 8 PM, Saturday, December 15 at both 2 PM and 8 PM, and Sunday, December 16 at 2 PM, a great holiday tradition lives on at the Times-Union Center, Moran Theater, in Jacksonville.

With the downturn in the economy, there are times you simply cannot pay all of your bills. However, skipping on child support or spousal support (alimony) can get you into deep trouble that would be hard to get out of. Generally speaking, refusing to pay or skipping on your child support and spousal support payments is generally frowned upon by the court system as well as society. Many times, the courts step in and force collections for nonpayment that might result in a garnishment of your wages or seizure of your assets.

Over the next coming months, it is finally time to dust off your snow boots and get ready for the sixth annual Winter Wonderland held at the St. Augustine amphitheater. Beginning Friday, November 23, 2012 and running through Sunday, January 6, 2013, the public will have access to North Florida’s best outdoor ice skating rink.

The host of the event, the St. Johns County Cultural Events Division, hopes to have an even higher attendance than last year expecting nearly 80,000 parents, children, and friends to participate in their Winter Wonderland activities.

The culture of our society would have us believe that many of the myths we have concerning men and divorce are true. However, even though the marriage is over and divorce is imminent, there are many misconceptions about how we perceive the role of a divorced man and his dissolved marriage. The following top six myths concerning divorce in men might provide surprising results.

Once again, the St. Augustine Art and Crafts Festival will be held at the end of November, on the weekend following Thanksgiving. By tradition, it is held at Francis Field at 29 West Castillo Drive, in St. Augustine. In an effort to boost the local economy in the United States’ oldest city, the St. Augustine Art Association is offering their premier outdoor art fair. It generally attracts thousands of holiday shoppers, visitors, and art lovers to the same location.

Attempting to enjoy the holiday after a divorce can be a challenging time for either spouse. Many times, families create their own unique identity and levels of expectation in celebrating special occasions. Your new divorce may require that you change your level of expectations, restructure the family identity, and create new ways of enjoying the time of year.

Although mediation over a divorce proceeding can be a difficult and unfamiliar path, it is a far better way to go than having the fate of your divorce left for the court to decide. During the divorce, both sides tend to experience ongoing conflict and major disappointment in an attempt to resolve nagging issues caused by the collapse of the marriage. When left to court proceedings, there tends to be a win/lose determination, and a feeling of being out of control throughout the process.

Divorce proceedings of individuals that have average means are much less complicated than marriage dissolution by individuals that have a high net worth. When couples have substantial assets and are considering a divorce, it is imperative to hire an effective team of lawyers they can handle the process and navigate the couple through the major complexities of their case. Only then can both parties emerge from their marriage dissolution to enjoy a favorable position.

The quickest way to get in trouble with the legal system is to hide your assets in a divorce proceeding. Most individuals who choose to hide assets from their spouse, their attorney and the judge are often caught. Once the judge is notified that a spouse has been hiding their assets, they typically order the spouse to pay all of your legal fees and incurred expenses. Additionally, the judge has the ability to force the spouse to forfeit the assets in dispute simply because of their illegal action.

There are tax implications concerning spousal support as a result of the dissolution of marriage. Typically, the most common implication is deciding exactly who can claim the deduction on spousal support, both at the state and federal level. Any individual that has been ordered to pay spousal support to their ex-spouse has the legal right to deduct the full amount of their payment to reduce their taxable income. Alternatively, the spouse that receives the spousal support is required by both federal and state law to report the money as taxable income.

Giving up basic custody and parental rights of your child can be a painful and heartbreaking experience. Typically, the loss of parental rights is often caused by a court’s determination that there has been some type of abandonment, neglect, or abuse of the child. Generally, the loss of custody is a temporary status, unless you have signed away the rights to formally give up control over your child’s care and welfare.