When getting divorced, always consider: Child Maintenance, Child Custody, Parenting Plans, Assets and your Legal Options

1. Divorce – your legal options

Our law offices have a number of legal options that can be well explained for you by the legal expert. Divorce can be a costly affair, leaving a burning hole in your pocket. However, with the right legal expert on board, this needn’t be the case. The creators of this website had made free, expert legal advice easily accessible for your convenience. For more on your legal options and ideas for your divorce, see the following links:

comprising of:

Divorce guide

The free divorce starter toolkit provides you with the necessary tools to attend to the unopposed divorce on your own. The tools include a template Summons, Particulars of Claim and a Notice of Set-Down. Should you wish to have a one on one legal consultation with legal expert himself, then do feel free to call our law offices on 021 424 3486 for an online appointment today. Are you unable to take off from work to personally come and see us? No problem. We cater for telephonic consultations as well, whereby you could consult with us in the comfort of your own home. This applies to those residing out of the Western Cape as well. For some free helpful, online divorce tools, visit our Free DIY Online Tools to get Divorced. Call our law offices on 021 424 3486 for an online appointment today.

2. Assets and Divorce

We often find that two people who wish to get divorce sometimes fail to understand how their assets are divided in a divorce. At this point, the most important part is ensuring that you get what you deserve in your divorce. This phenomenon can be stressful on the partner who is the bigger income earner – or particularly the partner that owns shares and property. Most of the time, he/she wants to know if their spous can claim accrual in the event of a divorce. Our legal expert therefore urges you to have an Anti – Nuptial Contract (ANC) in place which can protect your assets in the case of a divorce.

3. Having a parenting plan in place

A parenting plan is an agreement between the two parents in which both parents found a common ground with regards to visitation rights with their children. The agreement should however, reflect the child’s best interest. As for drafting your parenting plan, we able to tailor your parenting plan according to the unique circumstances in a manner that will benefit both. The aim when drafting a parenting plan is to ensure that the children gets maximum benefit from both parents so that they don’t feel lost in the process of a divorce. Lets face it, divorce is as hard as it is and even more so, when children are involved. The last thing you’d want is have them suffering in the process. For more on child custody, divorce, child maintenance and professional legal drafting, call our law offices on 021 424 3487 for an online appointment today. Do feel free to visit our Parenting Plans Questions and Answers page for your convenience. Call our law offices on 021 424 3486 for an online appointment today. Get connected with us!

4. Child Maintenance

A divorce is always tough. However, a divorce involving children becomes even tougher due to the myriad of factors involved which opens a whole new can of worms for other legal issues. Child Maintenance and Child Custody can complicate and drag the whole process, unfortunately. Do not despair. In the How to Apply for Child Maintenance at Court – Step by Step Guide and Advice, our legal expert explains this process in an accurate, detailed manner:

How to Apply for Child Maintenance at Court – Step by Step Guide and Advice

Step 1 … Get hold of all your proof of income. E.g. pay slips. If you are not working for an employer, you should get hold of proof that you earn a certain amount of money per month. If you are unemployed, that is in order. Get together a list of all monthly expenses incurred for yourself and your children. This would include rent, groceries, clothes, entertainment etc. This information is required when filling in the maintenance application form that is dealt with in Step 2 below. Find out all the details of the person from whom you are requesting maintenance from, e.g. his/her home and work address and identity number. Step 2 … Go to the Maintenance Court closes to your area and obtain an “Application for Maintenance Order Form” also referred to as “Form A”. Use the information you have gathered in Step 1 and fill in the form. The form is in the form of an affidavit and you therefore have to swear to the correctness of the information under oath and sign. Therefore, do not hide any information for the Court. Caution: If your information is not 100 % correct, you may be cross-examined on such correctness in Court and if it is found that you were not totally honest, this would not be in your favour. If you require any assistance in filling in the form, the maintenance officers would be happy to assist you. Once you have filled in the Application for Maintenance Order Form, return it to the maintenance officer who will process it for you. If the maintenance officer can provide you with a reference/case number there and then, request it. The Maintenance Court will send you and the person you are claiming maintenance from a letter or subpoena to appear at the Maintenance Court for an inquiry with the maintenance officer. Diarise the date immediately and make arrangements with your work and a babysitter as soon as possible. If you miss the date, it can take months to get another. Step 3… From the time you left the office of the maintenance officer and even from the time you decided to claim maintenance, keep all receipts you received for any items bought for you and your child. Therefore, if you buy nappies for your child or even a toy, keep that receipt as if it is gold. This is due to you having to prove to the court that you really do spend money on the child and you have the receipts to prove it. You will soon hear from the Maintenance Court where they will be giving you a date to appear back at the Maintenance Court for an inquiry. They would either inform you by post or by a subpoena. On that date both you and the person from whom maintenance is claimed would have to appear. If you are planning on making use of a legal representative, inform him/her early about the date so that he/she can be available to assist you at Court. In the notice to appear for the maintenance enquiry it is requested that you bring proof of all expenses and income for you and your child. This is why it is so very important for you to keep all proof of expenditure in a safe place. Hint: If you can afford to, bring original proof of expenditure and income and a photocopy thereof. The original you would then be able to take back home and bring it back when requested and the copy will stay in the Court file. Step 4 … This step deals with the maintenance enquiry where you and the person from whom you are claiming maintenance from will appear before a maintenance officer. The maintenance officer will speak to each of the parties and look at the documents provided. Each party will get a chance to explain why he/she requires maintenance and also why he/she can’t afford the maintenance requested. The maintenance officer will as far as possible try to resolve the matter there and then without it having to go to court. If the parties can agree to an amount, this amount can be made an order of court. If however an agreement cannot be reached at this stage, the matter, depending on the Court will either be referred to a prosecutor or for trial. Remember, if you are a father or a person currently paying maintenance / child support, a reduction is possible. The same goes for an application for an increase in maintenance / child support Download the Free Child Maintenance Calculator and start the process regarding child Maintenance today. You would be guided on the law and how much maintenance may be claimed. For more free expert, legal advice on Child Maintenance, click on the following links below:

How to Apply for Child Maintenance at Court – Step by Step Guide and Advice

Do you wish to consult with us telephonically or face to face? Feel free to make an online appointment via our website, or call our law offices on 021 424 3487 for an online appointment today.

5. Child Custody

We have fathers coming to visit our law offices on a regular basis – asking us: What do we do from here? How do I obtain visitation rights? Am I entitled to child custody? These are the common concerns our single fathers face and therefore, we have put together well thought out, free expert advice articles that can help you put things into perspective. Simply click on the links below:

For a one on one professional legal consultation with the family legal expert, call our law offices for an online legal appointment today! For additional expert, legal advice information that can be helpful with your divorce, click on the following links below:

For a one on one professional legal consultation with the family legal expert, call our law offices for an online legal appointment today!

Posted on 11 February 2025 by Telelaw

When getting divorced, always consider: Child Maintenance, Child Custody, Parenting Plans, Assets and your Legal Options

1. Divorce – your legal options

The creators of this website had made free, expert legal advice easily accessible for your convenience. For more on your legal options and ideas for your divorce, see the following links:

comprising of:

Divorce guide

Should you wish to have a one on one legal consultation with legal expert himself, then do feel free to call our law offices on 021 424 3486 for an online appointment today.

Are you unable to take off from work to personally come and see us? No problem.

We cater for telephonic consultations as well, whereby you could consult with us in the comfort of your own home. This applies to those residing out of the Western Cape as well.

For some free helpful, online divorce tools, visit our Free DIY Online Tools to get Divorced.

Call our law offices on 021 424 3486 for an online appointment today.

2. Assets and Divorce

This phenomenon can be stressful on the partner who is the bigger income earner – or particularly the partner that owns shares and property. Most of the time, he/she wants to know if their spous can claim accrual in the event of a divorce.

Our legal expert therefore urges you to have an Anti – Nuptial Contract (ANC) in place which can protect your assets in the case of a divorce.

3. Having a parenting plan in place

As for drafting your parenting plan, we able to tailor your parenting plan according to the unique circumstances in a manner that will benefit both. The aim when drafting a parenting plan is to ensure that the children gets maximum benefit from both parents so that they don’t feel lost in the process of a divorce.

Lets face it, divorce is as hard as it is and even more so, when children are involved. The last thing you’d want is have them suffering in the process.

For more on child custody, divorce, child maintenance and professional legal drafting, call our law offices on 021 424 3487 for an online appointment today.

Do feel free to visit our Parenting Plans Questions and Answers page for your convenience.

Call our law offices on 021 424 3486 for an online appointment today.

Get connected with us!

4. Child Maintenance

Do not despair. In the How to Apply for Child Maintenance at Court – Step by Step Guide and Advice, our legal expert explains this process in an accurate, detailed manner:

How to Apply for Child Maintenance at Court – Step by Step Guide and Advice

Step 1 …

Get hold of all your proof of income. E.g. pay slips. If you are not working for an employer, you should get hold of proof that you earn a certain amount of money per month. If you are unemployed, that is in order.

Get together a list of all monthly expenses incurred for yourself and your children. This would include rent, groceries, clothes, entertainment etc. This information is required when filling in the maintenance application form that is dealt with in Step 2 below.

Find out all the details of the person from whom you are requesting maintenance from, e.g. his/her home and work address and identity number.

Step 2 …

Go to the Maintenance Court closes to your area and obtain an “Application for Maintenance Order Form” also referred to as “Form A”.

Use the information you have gathered in Step 1 and fill in the form. The form is in the form of an affidavit and you therefore have to swear to the correctness of the information under oath and sign. Therefore, do not hide any information for the Court.

Caution: If your information is not 100 % correct, you may be cross-examined on such correctness in Court and if it is found that you were not totally honest, this would not be in your favour. If you require any assistance in filling in the form, the maintenance officers would be happy to assist you. Once you have filled in the Application for Maintenance Order Form, return it to the maintenance officer who will process it for you. If the maintenance officer can provide you with a reference/case number there and then, request it. The Maintenance Court will send you and the person you are claiming maintenance from a letter or subpoena to appear at the Maintenance Court for an inquiry with the maintenance officer. Diarise the date immediately and make arrangements with your work and a babysitter as soon as possible. If you miss the date, it can take months to get another.

Step 3…

From the time you left the office of the maintenance officer and even from the time you decided to claim maintenance, keep all receipts you received for any items bought for you and your child. Therefore, if you buy nappies for your child or even a toy, keep that receipt as if it is gold. This is due to you having to prove to the court that you really do spend money on the child and you have the receipts to prove it.

You will soon hear from the Maintenance Court where they will be giving you a date to appear back at the Maintenance Court for an inquiry. They would either inform you by post or by a subpoena. On that date both you and the person from whom maintenance is claimed would have to appear. If you are planning on making use of a legal representative, inform him/her early about the date so that he/she can be available to assist you at Court.

In the notice to appear for the maintenance enquiry it is requested that you bring proof of all expenses and income for you and your child. This is why it is so very important for you to keep all proof of expenditure in a safe place.

Hint: If you can afford to, bring original proof of expenditure and income and a photocopy thereof. The original you would then be able to take back home and bring it back when requested and the copy will stay in the Court file.

Step 4 …

This step deals with the maintenance enquiry where you and the person from whom you are claiming maintenance from will appear before a maintenance officer. The maintenance officer will speak to each of the parties and look at the documents provided. Each party will get a chance to explain why he/she requires maintenance and also why he/she can’t afford the maintenance requested. The maintenance officer will as far as possible try to resolve the matter there and then without it having to go to court. If the parties can agree to an amount, this amount can be made an order of court. If however an agreement cannot be reached at this stage, the matter, depending on the Court will either be referred to a prosecutor or for trial.

Remember, if you are a father or a person currently paying maintenance / child support, a reduction is possible. The same goes for an application for an increase in maintenance / child support

Download the Free Child Maintenance Calculator and start the process regarding child Maintenance today. You would be guided on the law and how much maintenance may be claimed. For more free expert, legal advice on Child Maintenance, click on the following links below:

How to Apply for Child Maintenance at Court – Step by Step Guide and Advice

Do you wish to consult with us telephonically or face to face? Feel free to make an online appointment via our website, or call our law offices on 021 424 3487 for an online appointment today.

5. Child Custody

We have fathers coming to visit our law offices on a regular basis – asking us: What do we do from here? How do I obtain visitation rights? Am I entitled to child custody?

These are the common concerns our single fathers face and therefore, we have put together well thought out, free expert advice articles that can help you put things into perspective. Simply click on the links below:

For a one on one professional legal consultation with the family legal expert, call our law offices for an online legal appointment today!

For additional expert, legal advice information that can be helpful with your divorce, click on the following links below:

For a one on one professional legal consultation with the family legal expert, call our law offices for an online legal appointment today!

Best advice on finding a top divorce lawyer for your divorce case in Sea Point, Cape Town
Do you live in Seapoint, and are you considering divorcing your spouse? Or have you been threatened with divorce? Either way, a divorce is a legal matter, and it is best to find sound legal advice or assistance. Furthermore, divorcing someone has potential severe legal consequences you may not know of. The first consequence, of course, is that you are no longer married to your former spouse, and there is no legal obligation to maintain each other (unless you qualify for alimony). You may also not inherit from your former spouse’s intestate. Lastly, and obviously, you are free to marry someone else. However, do you know of the proprietary (property) consequences of getting a divorce? What about the assets and debt you and your spouse incurred in Sea Point or elsewhere during your marriage? Do you know what should happen to it? If not, it is best you find out about these critical aspects and others before getting divorced. Then there is the issue of parental responsibilities and rights after the divorce should there be minor children involved. This article aims to provide guidance on finding the best attorney or advocate for your divorce matter that can adequately and properly advise you or handle your divorce. The advice would apply whether you live in Sea point or anywhere else in South Africa. The issues we shall deal with are the following.
Gender of the Advocate or attorney;
Location of the Advocate or attorney;
Experience of the Advocate or attorney;
Costs of the Advocate or Attorney; and
The personality of the Advocate or Attorney.
What is the best gender of the Advocate or Attorney I need to use for my divorce? Is a male or female better?
Generally, the gender of your Advocate or Attorney should not play a role at all in a legal matter. However, depending on your background and the issues involved in your divorce, you may prefer a specific gender where you may feel more comfortable. A female who has been emotionally, physically and psychologically abused may be more comfortable with a female Attorney or Advocate. However, the same female client may prefer a male Advocate or Attorney. No more will be said on this issue.
What is the ideal office location of the Advocate or attorney? Does it have to be in Sea Point?
The location or office of your attorney or Advocate is essential if you wish to consult with them in person. It is also ideal, but not necessary, for their offices to be close to the Court where the divorce would be handled. However, many lawyers make use of correspondent lawyers for this purpose. Furthermore, location should not be an issue if you want a specific lawyer to handle your case. This is so especially seeing that people are making use of virtual meetings.
What level of experience should the Advocate or attorney have?
It is important to remember that not all legal matters require the best lawyer. If your divorce is straightforward, finding the best lawyer in the field is unnecessary. The best may be very busy and lack the time to give your case the attention it deserves. However, if your matter is complicated, then in that case, the most experienced and best lawyer out there is not warranted.
What about the Costs of an Attorney or Advocate?
For many, the costs of the Attorney or Advocate are the most crucial consideration when it comes to enlisting their services. Usually, the more experienced the Attorney or Advocate, the more they would charge. Another aspect that affects costs is the nature of the expertise of the Advocate or Attorney. If the issues in your matter are highly technical and complicated, an Advocate or Attorney with expertise and experience may charge more.
What about the personality of the Advocate or Attorney?
Many may discard the Advocate or Attorney’s personality as not important. However, it is essential to note that it may be time to change lawyers if you do not get along well with the Advocate or Attorney because of their personality. A lawyer and their client would develop a professional relationship in family law matters. This is especially so when the lawyer must discuss many personal issues regarding you, your marriage, children, finance, spouse etc. If you cannot get along well with your Attorney or Advocate, you may not divulge important information relevant to your case.
What is our best advice to a client looking for an Advocate or Attorney in a divorce matter?
Considering all the factors mentioned above, before enlisting the services of an Advocate or Attorney, ensure you enlist the right one. Do not look for the most experience or best, or the top one in family law. You may have to change lawyers if you do so and cannot afford legal bills. Therefore consider the above and any other factors that you may consider necessary when deciding on enlisting the services of an Advocate or an Attorney. Best of luck.

Posted on 11 February 2025 by Telelaw

I need to know, when does a parent’s obligation to pay child maintenance end?
Paying child maintenance, or maintaining their child, is the legal obligation of every parent. A parent does not have a choice in this matter. However, the level and standard of contribution are dependent on the means of the parent. In this article, we will look at the aspect of when does child maintenance come to an end. In this regard, we will look at two situations, one where there is a maintenance order in place and the other where there is not. However, before proceeding with those issues, let us first deal with the issue of who should pay child maintenance.

Pay child maintenance according to your means

The law expects a parent to provide child support according to their respective memes. What this entails, is that a parent should only pay what he or she can afford. Therefore, even if a child requires a huge amount of child support, if a parent cannot afford to provide, he or she will not be held responsible. Therefore, the other parent would have to support the child according to his or her means. In applying this principle in practice, it means one parent may have to pay more child support than the other parent.

However, various factors will have to be looked at. The law does not only look at your income but also at your expenses. If a father earns a substantial amount of money per month, we also have to look at his expenses in order to earn such an amount. For example, he needs to travel overseas regularly and purchase expensive electronics. Those overseas expenses and gadgets should be factored in when considering his means.

The Maintenance Order – Divorce or Maintenance Court

Many a time, parents approach the Maintenance Court for assistance in obtaining maintenance from the other parent. This process usually ends with the court making a maintenance order. This is sometimes by agreement and other times through formal processes like hearings or trials. The same is true in the case of a divorce. When the court grants a decree of divorce, it will make a maintenance order should there be minor children involved. Usually, the order will stipulate until when maintenance is payable in terms of the order. In terms of our law, a court should not grant a decree of divorce unless it is satisfied that the minor children’s interest is looked after.

What should the maintenance order state?

It is of vital importance, that when parties agree on a maintenance order, they are as simple and direct as possible. No one wants to argue over a vague maintenance order years down the line when issues arise. Therefore, although you took a day to settle a maintenance matter, you may take weeks to settle a maintenance dispute based on a simple clause. The order should specifically deal with the aspect of how maintenance should be paid, where it should be paid and until when.

The date the maintenance order lapses

If the maintenance orders state that maintenance will come to an end when the children reach the age of eighteen, then, under those circumstances, the court order will fall away when they reach that age. Another age usually stipulated in a maintenance order is the age of twenty-one. Furthermore, it is sometimes stipulated in a maintenance order that maintenance is paid until the children are self-supporting. The latter situation could become problematic as to how is it determined when a child is self-supportive. This we deal with next.

Child becoming self-supportive

Obviously, if the child moves out of the house, gets a job and pay for his or her own expenses, he or she is self-supportive. However, if the child still resides with his or her parents, but is capable of earning a reasonable income, a dispute might arise regarding whether or not the child is self-supportive. Nonetheless, the maintenance order will stand until the conditions stipulated in the order have passed. The parents would, therefore, have a legal obligation to pay the maintenance as stated in the order.

Does a maintenance order fall away when the child turns eighteen?

As stated above, age does not play a role as to until when child maintenance must be paid. The fundamental issue is that of being self-supportive. Therefore, even if the order says you must pay child maintenance until the child is twenty-one years old, but at the age of eighteen the child earns a much greater salary than his or her parents, and is accordingly self-supportive, then under those circumstances maintenance is not due to the child. In such a case, the parties must agree that maintenance should not be paid. If such an agreement is not forthcoming, then the party who is obliged to pay child support should approach the court to have the order set aside.

To whom should maintenance be paid when the child turns eighteen?

Child maintenance is due to the child and not to the other parent. However many a time, a child of eighteen is still attending school and cared for by a parent. Therefore, although the child is an adult, he or she is not in a position to care for him or herself. Maintenance in terms of the court order should still be paid to the parent caring for the child. Once the child is mature enough, or he or she moved out of the home of the caregiver, he or she may then, under those circumstances, receive the maintenance directly from the relevant parent.

Can a child over the age of eighteen claim maintenance from his or her parents?

If there is no maintenance order in place, when a child turns eighteen, he or she will have to apply for maintenance from his or her parents. As the child is an adult, his or her parents cannot approach the Maintenance Court on his or her behalf. In other words, a parent cannot apply for maintenance on behalf of his or her adult child. This could become problematic, should the child, being an adult, still attend school.

Posted on 11 February 2025 by Telelaw