Nevada divorce laws
Child
Support
 The state of Nevada has child support guidelines
(aka divorce laws) that determine the appropriate
child support amount to be paid. These guidelines
will be applied to any case in which the
parents can not agree on a reasonable monthly
obligation. When applying the guidelines,
the court will also consider several other
factors that will help determine whether
or not it is appropriate to deviate form
the amount proposed by the use of the guidelines
worksheet. Make every attempt at agreeing
with your spouse so it doesn't rest with
a judge.
The court will consider the following factors when determining child support:
-
The cost of health insurance (every support order must include provisions for health insurance of the child);
-
The cost of child care;
-
Special educational needs of the child;
-
The age of the child;
-
The responsibility of the parents for the support of others;
-
The value of services contributed by either parent;
-
Any public assistance paid to support the child;
-
Any reasonable expense relating to the mother's pregnancy;
-
The cost of transportation relating to visitation;
-
The amount of time the child spends with each parent;
-
Necessary expenses for the child's benefit; The relative income of each parent.
In order for a court in Nevada to grant
a divorce,
separate
maintenance
or annulment
petition,
Nevada
divorce
laws
require
that
it must
first
provide
for the medical
and other
care,
support,
education
and maintenance
of those
children.
Official Child Support percentages are
established
by Nevada
divorce
statutes.
Should
the court
determine
that
any deviation of standard child support be
necessary, it will consider the following
in making that decision: a.) the
cost
of health
insurance; b.) the cost of
childcare; c.) any
special
educational
needs
of the
child; d.) the age
of the
child; e.) the
responsibility
of the
parents
for the
support
of others; e.) the
value
of services
contributed
by the
parents; f.) any
public
aid paid
to the
child; g.) any
pregnancy
expenses; h.) any
visitation
travel
expenses; i.) the
amount
of time
the child
spends
with
each
parent; j.) the
relative
income
of each
parent;
and k.) any
other
necessary
expenses.
| Divorce Myth: Following divorce, the woman’s standard of living plummets by seventy three percent while that of the man’s improves by forty two percent. Reality: This dramatic inequity, one of the most widely publicized statistics from the social sciences, was later found to be based on a faulty calculation. A reanalysis of the data determined that the woman’s loss was twenty seven percent while the man’s gain was ten percent. Irrespective of the magnitude of the differences, the gender gap is real and seems not to have narrowed much in recent decades. |
Residency
According to Nevada divorce laws, at least
one of the parties to the divorce action
must have resided in Nevada for at least
six weeks prior to the filing of the action,
or the cause of the divorce must have arose
in the county in Nevada where the parties
actually lived at the time of the happening of the
cause. In summary, the divorce action may
be filed in any county where:
-
The cause for divorce arose;
-
Where the defendant resides or may be found; or,
-
Where the plaintiff resides, or; where the parties last cohabited.
Child
Custody
 Under Nevada divorce laws, married parents
are presumed to have joint custody until
otherwise ordered by court. If a court has
not made a determination regarding the custody
of a child and the parents of the child are
married to each other, each parent has joint
legal custody of the child until otherwise
ordered by a court.
If at any time it appears to the court that any minor child of either party has been, or is likely to be, taken or removed from Nevada or concealed somewhere in Nevada, the court will order that the child be produced, and will assign custody to whomever it believes will provide the care and comfort " in the best interest of the child".
In determining custody of a minor child in an action, the sole consideration of the court is the best interest of the child. A parent's gender will not give one an advantage over the other.
The court will award child custody in the
following order of preference: a.) To both
parents jointly or
to either parent, b.) To a person or persons
in whose home the child has been living and
where the child has had a wholesome and stable
environment, c.) To any person blood-related
to the child whom the court finds suitable
and able to provide proper care and guidance
for the child, regardless of whether the
relative resides within this State, d.) To
any other person or persons whom the court finds suitable and able to provide
proper care and guidance for the child.
There is a presumption by the court that joint custody would be in the best interest of a minor child if the parents have agreed to an award of joint custody or so agree in open court at a hearing for the purpose of determining the custody of the minor child or children of the marriage.
The court may award joint legal custody without awarding joint physical custody in a case where the parents have agreed to joint legal custody.
For assistance in making a determination whether an award of joint custody is appropriate, the court may direct that an investigation be conducted.
Grounds
for
Divorce
 As provided for in Nevada divorce statutes,
divorce will be granted in Nevada for any
of the following causes: a.) Insanity
existing for 2 years prior to the filing,
b.) When the husband and wife have lived
separate and apart for 1 year without cohabitation,
c.) Incompatibility.
If the cause of action occurred within the county the couple resided in, the court can issue a judgment of divorce if residency of 6 weeks or more has been established.
| Divorce Myth: When parents don’t get along, children are better off if their parents divorce than if they stay together. Reality: A recent large-scale, long-term study suggests otherwise. While it found that parents’ marital unhappiness and discord have a broad negative impact on virtually every dimension of their children’s well-being, so does the fact of going through a divorce. In examining the negative impacts on children more closely, the study discovered that it was only the children in very high conflict homes who benefited from the conflict removal that divorce may bring. In lower-conflict marriages that end in divorce—and the study found that perhaps as many as two thirds of the divorces were of this type—the situation of the children was made much worse following a divorce. Based on the findings of this study, therefore, except in the minority of high-conflict marriages it is better for the children if their parents stay together and work out their problems than if they divorce. |
Mediation
There are no requirements in Nevada for mediation or counseling.
Alimony
In any action for divorce the court may, if
requested by either party, require either
party to pay alimony necessary to assist
the other party in accomplishing one or more
of the following: a.) To provide temporary
maintenance for the other party; b.) To provide
temporary support for children of the parties;
or c.) To enable the other party to carry
on or defend such suit.
The court may make any order affecting property of the parties, or either of them, which it may deem necessary or desirable to accomplish the purposes of this section. Such orders shall be made by the court only after taking into consideration the financial situation of each of the parties.
The court may award alimony to the wife or to the husband, in a specified principal sum or as specified periodic payments, as appears just and equitable.
Nevada divorce statutes allow that a change
of 20 percent or more in the gross monthly
income of a spouse who is ordered to pay
alimony would be deemed to constitute changed
circumstances requiring a review for modification
of the payments of alimony.
Waiting
Period
There is no waiting period other than the six weeks required for residency.
| Divorce Myth: Because they are more cautious in entering marital relationships and also have a strong determination to avoid the possibility of divorce, children who grow up in a home broken by divorce tend to have as much success in their own marriages as those from intact homes. Reality: Marriages of the children of divorce actually have a much higher rate of divorce than the marriages of children from intact families. A major reason for this, according to a recent study, is that children learn about marital commitment or permanence by observing their parents. In the children of divorce, the sense of commitment to a lifelong marriage has been undermined. |
Grandparents
Rights
 If child’s parents are separated or divorced or if one parent is deceased or has relinquished his parental rights or had them terminated, the grandparents and great-grandparents may get visitation if in the best interest of the child. The statute lists specific factors which are to be considered in determining the best interest of the child.
Dividing
Assets
 Nevada is a community property state in which the courts will divide all property of the marriage equally, unless the court finds a compelling reason to not do so. Equally does not necessarily mean “evenly” to both parties however.
In granting a divorce, the court may award alimony
to either spouse a.) May award alimony to
the wife or to the husband, in a specified
principal sum or as specified periodic payments,
as appears just and equitable; and b.) Will make an equal disposition of the community property of the parties,
except that the court may make an unequal disposition of the community
property in such proportions as it deems just if the court finds a compelling
reason to do so.
|
