Ever felt like someone was trying to keep you away from something that was rightfully yours? They played you for a fool and thought they would get the last laugh? Well, not in Angel's world. Meet Angel Jacobs, a chick who will get what's hers at all costs, even if it might cost someone else's life. The State of Illinois is trying to label her as a serial killer, but will her previous diagnosis of mental illness save Angel from living the remainder of her life in a six by six jail cell? In Angel's eyes, whether she wins or loses the case, she's still going to come out on top. Become entangled in the web Angel weaves, where it's not always easy to know what's real and what's a product of her twisted mind. It's unlike any other urban tale. Don't be surprised if, just like some of Angel's victims, you get caught up!

Child Support Guidelines, Second Edition is the only comprehensive guidebook for determining child support awards that takes practitioners step-by-step through the interpretation and application of the guidelines and their worksheets in both the normal and exceptional child support case. This unique publication thoroughly covers each state's version of one of the three basic models for determining child support: the percentage of income model, the income shares model, and the Melson formula. Important issues affecting calculations are clearly explained, including: Definition of andquot;incomeandquot; under the guidelines The impact of divided custody, shared custody, split custody, and extended visitation Second household expenses, other dependents, subsequent children, and stepchildren Impact of a private contract on the court's decision to apply the guideline amount Deviation from the guidelines for a high income parent Deviation from the guidelines to pay for medical expenses, private school, and child care expenses Imputed income Modification of prior awards And more.

The child support system is unfair and victimizes those who learn this fact too late. You owe it to yourself and your loved ones to arm yourself with facts, and insure that the process is fair to you. This book can save you thousands of dollars, and the endless headaches that come from making disastrous legal mistakes. It discusses every stage of the child support enforcement process from beginning to end, and is loaded with information that can make a real difference. It also includes a summary of the child support process and law for each of the fifty states. Without the benefit of legal advice, men who may or may not be parents are encouraged and even pressured to sign documents acknowledging paternity of a child, without ever being told that they are waiving valuable legal rights. They are not told that they are waiving their constitutional right to paternity testing forever. They are then ushered through a hurried process with the sole emphasis being documenting their income and creating a legal obligation to pay. They are not even told that the social worker who is typically guiding them through the process is effectively in the child support business. His or her job is to collect as much money for the custodial parent as possible and to do it quickly. The process by which a child support obligation is instituted and enforced has a financial impact on a equivalent to buying a house or a car. Arguably, the impact is far more, since the payments will often go on for a longer time, and failure to make them will possibly result in imprisonment, a result much worse than foreclosure. Yet, every week, thousands of men show up for child support hearings in every state armed with nothing more than a few old pay stubs. A man has an obligation to support his child, but also a right to question whether he is the parent of the child. He also has a right to have his support payment set at an amount that is fair and reasonable, so that he can continue to pay his bills and other obligations, and enjoy life. This book was written based on the experience of twenty five years practicing law, and several more as a university professor. While there is no substitute for legal advice about your unique situation, this book will help you.

After countless decades of observing the emotional and financial devastation resulting from on-going court battles over money and children, we confront a daunting truth- it is still the law in every single state in America that, following parental separation, the amount of time you spend with your children directly determines how much child support you will pay or receive. Moreover, the way for you to end up with more money is to get custody or more time with your children, or to restrict the other parent's time with the children. However, in spite of our current adversarial court system, where one side wins and one side loses, we no longer need to assume that separated parents will be in conflict over child support, or that they need to start court action against each other to determine the child support amount. We now have a SOLUTION to the need to engage in unnecessary battles over custody simply to obtain more child support dollars for their client. Parents now can UNHOOK CUSTODY FROM SUPPORT. It is time to recognize both parents as worthy and important to their children, regardless of their ability (or inability) to earn an income, and regardless of whether they spend more, or less, time with their children. It is time to recognize that divorcing parents need to be encouraged to concentrate on taking care of their children's needs, rather than on fighting costly and time-consuming battles in court. For the sake of the countless children raised each year by separated or divorced parents, this book calls for a dramatic change in the way parents go about sharing the costs of raising them. We are now able to offer to courts, family law attorneys, divorce mediators and, most importantly, families, better tools to avoid these destructive contests.

Nothing can steal peace and joy and undermine the very foundation of someone's life like losing a child. It is devastating on a level that most of us can't imagine. Written after the loss of the author's own child, Surviving the Loss of a Child offers encouragement and hope to those who may think they will never be able to live fully after such tragedy. Bereaved parents, as well as friends, counselors, pastors, and caregivers, will find this book a source of comfort and discover coping mechanisms as they move through their grief. Revised and updated, it has short chapters that are easy to take in, perfect for people going through this difficult time.