Maryland Custody Law (Continued from page 8)
to the extent “the combined financial resources of the parents set practical limits on the custodial arrangements.” The proposed statute serves family
law practitioners and children well by codifying custody law that is scattered among the appellate decisions of gen- erations. It would foster uniformity and predictability, while still leaving to the trial judge ample discretion to fashion the best resolution for each family.
New Fam. Law Art. § 8-205(a)(2)(iii), I Want the Home for the Kids
While the recent amendment to the
Marital Property Act certainly does not bear directly on custody issues, it changes those negotiations that relate to the family home and has the potential to impact children’s lives. For causes of ac- tion arising after October 1, 2006, Fam. Law Art. § 8-205(a)(2)(iii) allows one party to purchase the other’s interest in
jointly titled real property, subject to the terms of any lien, as follows:
The court may transfer ownership of an interest in . . . real property jointly owned by the parties and used as the principal residence of the parties when they lived together, by:
1. ordering the transfer of ownership of the real property or any inter- est of one of the parties in the real property to the other party if the party to whom the real property is transferred obtains the release of the other party from any lien against the real property;
2. authorizing one party to purchase the interest of the other party in the real property, in accordance with the terms and conditions order by the court; or
3. both. While children of the marriage are not
necessary to invoke the provision of the
new statute, they may help. Certainly, the factors which go into an award of possession and use of the family home – maintaining family stability, keeping children in the same school – may also be considered by a trial court asked to allow the purchase of the home by one parent. With the new statute, counsel should
produce evidence at trial that would include a potential lender attesting to the credit-worthiness of the purchas- ing spouse. The new statute may even allow for more successful claims for pre- divorce contribution. In other words, the husband may be able to purchase the wife’s interest at a reduced price in consideration for his right to contribu- tion for mortgage payments made since separation, since the court may now al- low “one party [to] purchase the interest of the other party in the real property, in accordance with the terms and condi- tions ordered by the court. . . .”5
(Continued on page 12) 5
MD. CODE ANN., FAM. LAW ART., § 8- 205(a)(2)(iii)2.
STRUCTURED SETTLEMENTS
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FAX 410-602-1101 The only consultant you need. 10 Trial Reporter Winter 2008
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