North Carolina is facing a deeply concerning and shocking reality that demands immediate attention: the epidemic of domestic violence that is sweeping across the state. For far too long, survivors of domestic abuse have faced not only the trauma of their circumstances but also a system that is, in many ways, ill-equipped to help them in their time of greatest need. It’s time for change. The Alarming Reality of Domestic Violence in North Carolina Domestic… Read More
As an attorney, my job is to help people navigate complex legal matters and advocate for their rights. But sometimes, the most rewarding part of being a lawyer isn’t representing clients in courtrooms or negotiating deals—it’s using your skills to make a direct, positive impact in your community. Recently, I had the privilege of volunteering at the North Carolina Bar Foundation’s Lawyers on Call program, and the experience reaffirmed why I became an attorney in… Read More
According to the Centers for Disease Control and the National Domestic Violence Hotline, 1 in 3 woman (35.6%) and 1 in 4 men (28.5%) in the US have experienced some form of physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. An average of 24 people per minute are victims of rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner in the United States. This is more than 12 million woman and men over the… Read More
It is easy to get attached to a pet, especially cats and dogs. They bring us comfort, keep us company, and become part of the family. But what happens to those pets when their owners split? Pets are personal property When a relationship goes south, figuring out who gets to keep the pets can become a contentious fight and often pets are used as a bargaining chip in divorces. State laws, including North Carolina, consider… Read More
In Part 1, we discussed the use of AirTags to track your spouse and children and the implications in divorce and custody cases. Now you might be wondering, what can I do to protect myself or my child from being tracked? Manufacturers have taken steps to improve Security. The success of these trackers is based off their proximity to other devices they can ping off, and they can only ping off devices with Bluetooth turned… Read More
AirTags and other Bluetooth trackers, like Life360’s Tile, are coin-sized tracking devices. Using a Bluetooth signal, an AirTag pings off any Apple device using Apple’s Find My network and shows you the location of the AirTag. When out of range of the tracker, Tile’s app will show you the last location it was seen by your device and can ping off other Tile users to locate its current location. The benefit of these trackers is… Read More
Domestic violence and abuse can take the form of many behaviors and could be a one-time incident or a pattern of behaviors. In abusive relationships, an aggressor will use tactics such as bullying, manipulation, embarrassment, isolation, blame shifting, gaslighting, threatening, and injuring to control their victim. The abuser isn’t always a spouse/partner, they can be a person you are dating or even a family member. The most common forms of abuse are physical (hitting, punching,… Read More
Domestic violence has been labeled as an “epidemic” in our country. Statistics show that one in every three women and one in four men in the United States will experience some form of domestic violence at the hands of their intimate partner. Just as domestic violence can affect heterosexual relationships, it can affect LGBTQ+ relationships as well. North Carolina provides two avenues for individuals to seek relief from their abuser: N.C.G.S. § 50B and N.C.G.S…. Read More
Practically every aspect of our world has been drastically altered by the protections (and limitations) enacted to combat the spread of COVID-19. Our court system is no different. On March 13, 2020, Chief Justice Beasley of the Supreme Court of North Carolina issued an emergency order declaring the North Carolina courts “on hold” for a majority of matters. Over the course of the last few months, these directives have been extended in a number of… Read More
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and the statistics are sobering. • 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men aged 18 and older in the United States have been the victims of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. • 37.3% of women and 28.3% of men experienced intimate partner sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking at some point in their lives. • More than 12 million Americans are victims… Read More
