o   Agency – Agency adoptions are probably the most common adoption.  Prospective adoptive parents generally need the assistance of an adoption agency to find a child who has been placed for adoption.  The adoption agency also conducts an adoption study and background study on the prospective adoptive parents and also post-placement assessments to determine the suitability of the adoptive parents.   

o   Direct Placement – When prospective adoptive parents have already connected with a prospective adoptee, whether through family, friends, or otherwise, the adoption process is called Direct Placement.  Although an adoption agency is not needed in these cases to connect a child and adoptive parents, an agency is often needed to conduct the adoption study, background study, and post-placement assessments referred to above.

o   Step-Parent – The process of a step-parent adoption is less formal than the agency adoption or direct placement adoption due to the fact one biological or legal parent is not relinquishing their parental rights.

·         Child Support – Every parent has a legal obligation to financially support their children.  However, not everyone agrees with this concept, and not for those who do, they generally do not agree on the amount that should be paid.  Fortunately, Minnesota has devised a simple and straight forward system to determine which parent will be responsible to pay child support and at what amount.  For most, the child support guidelines will dictate what the obligation will be. Minnesota also provides a calculator so parents can get a rough idea of what amount they can expect to pay or receive.

·         Cohabitation Agreement – Married persons have numerous rights as against each other in the event of a separation.  For instance, all property acquired by either during the marriage can be awarded to the other upon dissolution of that marriage.  However, no such rights are granted to unpaired couples.  Pursuant to Minnesota Statute, an individual does not have a claim against the earnings or property of another individual if the claim is based on the fact the individuals lived together in contemplation of sexual relations and out of wedlock unless both individuals have signed a contract governing said earnings or property.  With the use of a well drafted Cohabitation Agreement, unmarried couples can enjoy the same legal rights as married couples.

·         Custody – Whether you are divorcing or were never married, the most emotionally charged issue in your separation almost always revolves around the placement of the children.   When determining whether to award custody to the mother, the father, or whether both parents should be awarded joint custody, the Court looks to the best interests of the child.  These factors are set out in Minn. Stat. 518.17.  One common misconception is that once a child reaches a certain age, say 14, they can chose or determine what parent they live with.  Although the child’s preference is one of the 13 best interest factors the court looks at, a child never has the ultimate decision making authority no matter what their age.   

 ·         Divorce – A dissolution of marriage or divorce can involve many issues.  Generally all those issues can be categorized into the headings Custody, Property Division, Allocation of Dept, or Spousal Maintenance / Alimony.

 
    ·         Custody, Visitation/Parenting Time – See above.

    ·         Property Division – In a dissolution of marriage, the court is charged with 
            making a just and equitable division of marital property without regard to 
            marital misconduct.   Equitable does not always mean equal.  In many 
            cases an equal division is equitable, but there are many instances where 
            an unequal distribution is warranted.  For instance, if one party is older 
            and unemployable, they may receive a greater portion of the marital 
            property so as to be able to support themselves.  Or if one spouse 
            obtained a college degree during a short-term marriage at the detriment 
            of the other, the spouse who did not receive the degree may receive a 
            greater division of the assets.

    ·         Allocation of debt – The allocation of the responsibility of paying debt is 
            divided in the same manner as the division of assets or property. 
            Whenever possible, it is advisable that each party be ordered to pay the 
            debts in his or her own name.  When one spouse is ordered to pay debt 
            that the other spouse, it can be expensive and time consuming to force 
            the obligated spouse to actually pay the debt.  In the mean time, the other 
            spouse’s credit can be harmed because the creditors are not bound by the 
            divorce decree and can continue to pursue payment from whomever 
            incurred the debt. 

    ·         Spousal maintenance / Alimony – The court may grant a maintenance 
            award to either spouse if it finds the spouse seeking maintenance lacks 
            sufficient property to provide for their reasonable needs, or is unable to 
            provide adequate self-support through appropriate employment. 
            Depending on the circumstances a spousal maintenance award could last 
            as short as a year or for the remainder of the parties’ lives.  There is a 
            presumption that maintenance will be permanent in cases of a long-
            term “traditional” marriage where one spouse remained out of the 
            workforce to stay home with the kids and be a homemaker. In short-term 
            marriages where both spouses are capable of gainful employment spousal 
            maintenance is usually for a shorter period of time, often measured by the 
            time it will take the unemployed or underemployed spouse to become 
            educated or retrained and employed in a position that will allow them to 
            be self-sufficient.

·         Grandparent Rights – Provided the right circumstances, grandparents can be awarded visitation rights with their grandchildren.  Grandparent visitation rights are often requested when the child’s parent is deceased, but that not need be the case.  Even when both parents are alive and actively parenting the children, grandparents can be awarded visitation rights if the court finds it to be in the child’s best interests and the visitations would not interfere with the parent-child relationship.   

·         Parenting Time/Visitation – Like all issues involving children, it is best when parents can agree on a parenting schedule or plan.  Generally a parenting time schedule is determined at the time custody is determined.  Unless there are extreme circumstances, every parent is entitled to reasonable parenting time with their child. When parents do not agree on a parenting time schedule the court will sometimes order appoint a parenting time expeditor to help resolve the situation. 

·         Prenuptial Agreements – Prenuptial agreements or antenuptial agreements are a wise choice for any couple and almost essential for some.  There is defiantly a negative connotation to these agreements, but there doesn’t have to be.  Cynics will say that if you need a prenuptial agreement it is because you think your marriage will not last, or you don’t really love or trust your soon to be spouse.  But in reality, a prenuptial agreement can be a testament of love.  Not only does a prenuptial agreement save both spouses the stress and expense of protracted litigation in the unfortunate occurrence of a divorce, but it can also work to keep couples together by alleviating the unknowns. For couples getting married a second time around who want to leave a legacy to their children, it is practically a must.