Brighton Family Law Blog

Social media seems to be everywhere these days. In fact, you probably cannot go to a restaurant without seeing someone posting a photograph of an entrée to Instagram or Twitter. While you may be a social media maven, you must think twice about what you post during your divorce proceedings. 

Family law attorneys almost unanimously agree that you should not disparage your soon-to-be ex on social media. You also may not want to post photographs that indicate lavish spending. Still, you may not have to avoid social media altogether. On the contrary, using platforms intelligently may help you through your divorce proceedings. 

You do not stop being a parent once your child becomes an adult, and in some ways the job may be even more emotionally draining. Dealing with the emotional aftermath of an adult child's divorce or death can be particularly difficult. This is especially true when your relationship with your grandchildren is compromised. Although Michigan family law does not automatically give grandparents rights, you might be able to secure visitation if it is in your grandchildren's best interests. 

Grandparent visitation is usually only applicable in a certain number of scenarios. For example, you cannot get visitation because you disagree with your child's parenting methods and want to spend more one-on-one time with a grandchild, but you could potentially assert visitation rights if your adult child is in a pending divorce. Other potential scenarios include: 

• Your grandchild's parent has passed away. 
• Your adult child is separated or divorced. 
• Paternity has been established if your child was never married. 
• Custody of your grandchildren was given to someone other than the parents. 
• You provided a custodial environment sometime in the past year. 

Being accused of embezzling company funds can be a potentially career-ending experience. If you were recently charged with embezzlement, you already know how much is on the line, and it is more than just your career. You could also face potentially severe criminal consequences. Like most other Michigan defendants, you are probably eager to minimize these kinds of impacts through a carefully crafted criminal defense plan.

Popular movies and TV shows often depict embezzlement as a sophisticated operation that regularly moves thousands of dollars out of a business. Real life allegations of embezzlement usually happen on a much smaller scale and may not involve actual money at all. Common allegations can include: 

• Stealing trade secrets 
• Stealing merchandise 
• Writing business checks to yourself 
• Making false expense claims 
• Misappropriating client funds 

Distracted driving is one of the biggest safety concerns in Michigan and across the United States. Despite the fact that most people know it is risky, many drivers continue to engage in this dangerous behavior. Law enforcement and other parties continue to fight for fewer distraction-related personal injury incidents by increasing awareness.

In Michigan alone, 72 people died in accidents related to distracted driving, while approximately 7,000 suffered injuries. Across the United States, distracted driving is the reason for 10 deaths every day. Unfortunately, statistics also indicate that distracted driving is the leading cause of death for teens. It is becoming increasingly important to educate all drivers about the dangers of distraction and what behaviors could distract and lead to accidents.