No. An attorney can represent only one party in family law litigation. Sometimes, the parties decide that only one of them will retain an attorney. The attorney then prepares any paperwork or agreements any only gives advice to the party that has retained the attorney's services. The unrepresented party acts at their own peril.

In divorce cases, courts have the power to order one party to pay the other party's attorneys' fees. The basis for such cost-shifting is a substantial difference in the income or property that each party has. If both parties have similar earning capacity or if both parties receive ample amounts of liquid assets as part of the divorce, the husband and wife are more likely to pay their fees for their own lawyer.

Another reason for having one party pay the other's party's lawyers' fees is bad faith or contempt by the party from whom fees are sought. If one party does something he or she should not do (such as not paying child support or interfering with other party's access to the child), the party who engaged in misconduct is likely to have to pay the attorneys' fees of the other party.

Technically, there is no such thing as a "legal separation" in Pennsylvania. Separation for legal purposes means that one spouse conveys the intent to the other that he or she no longer desires to remain married. That intent may be conveyed in a number of ways including by filing a divorce complaint or by one spouse vacating the marital residence without an intent to return. In some circumstances, parties can be separated while residing in the same household.

Prior to any separation, a party should copy important documents and consult with an attorney. A separation can significantly impact child custody, spousal support, child support and other family law matters.

If you are served with a divorce complaint, you should immediately contact a divorce attorney. If you do not respond to the divorce complaint, a divorce decree may be entered even without your consent and your legal rights including the right to support or division of marital assets and debts may be waived.

In some situations, the spouse that does not consent to the entry of a divorce decree can stall the entry of the decree for up to two years from the date of separation of the parties. However, after the expiration of two years from the date of separation, either spouse can proceed to obtain the divorce decree.

No. Since 1980, Pennsylvania has adopted no-fault grounds for divorce. In most cases, fault based grounds, even if they exist, are not pursued.

Yes. The court may require up to three counseling sessions with a qualified counselor within a three to four month period in the following cases:

• the fault-based ground of indignities is used as grounds for the divorce and counseling is requested by either person;
• the no-fault ground is used and counseling is requested by either person; and
• in certain cases where there are children of the marriage under sixteen years old.

A person seeking child support or spousal support must file a support complaint with the court in order to establish a right to collect support. No legal obligation on the other party exists until the complaint is filed.

The person paying support must comply with the support order even if the custodial parent is not complying with a custody order. If there is a problem with custody, a custody complaint, petition to modify or petition for contempt must be filed to address the custody issues.

In most circumstances, no. The support order must be paid in full, and anything additional that is provided directly for the other spouse or children, such as clothing or gifts, will not be credited against the support order. However, in certain circumstances, payment of the mortgage, rent, utilities or other bills for the spouse or children may be credited against the support obligation

No. You cannot ask to see receipts as part of support proceedings. The law presumes that the support is used to help provide all things the spouse and/or child needs, including a home, food, clothing and social activities.

A person seeking spousal support or child support must file a support complaint with the court in order to establish a right to collect support. No legal obligation on the other party exists until the complaint is filed.

Equitable distribution is the legal term for division of marital assets and marital debts. Marital assets and debts are those assets or debts acquired from the date of marriage to the date of separation.

If you are the victim of spousal abuse, you should immediately contact your local police department and file a police report. The police will be able to provide you with instructions on how to obtain an Emergency Protection from Abuse (PFA) order. You may also wish to consult with a domestic abuse shelter or crisis hotline. Their numbers can be found in the Yellow Pages of your telephone directory.