Wednesday, 20 June 2012

Essex County Executive hosted LGBTQ Pride Month Celebration - NJ.com

Essex County Executive hosted LGBTQ Pride Month Celebration - NJ.com

Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. hosted the Essex County LGBTQ Pride Month Celebration on Tuesday, June 19. During the ceremony, DiVincenzo presented Pride of Essex County Awards James Credle, Diversity Consultant and Retired Dean at Rutgers University; Donovan Scott Linder, Outgoing President of RU Pride; Rev. Ann Ralosky, Senior Minister of First Congregational Church in Montclair; and the John J. Gibbons Fellowship in Public Interest & Constitutional Law for its commitment to tackle important public interest issues.

“We are proud to celebrate Essex County Pride Month and raise awareness about the LGBTQ community in Essex and how this segment of the population has contributed to the development of our County. Our year-long cultural heritage series recognizes the diversity of our residents and it is fitting that we include the LGBTQ community,” DiVincenzo said. “Mr. Credle, Mr. Linder, Rev. Ralosky and the Gibbons Fellowship have worked hard to provide support, promote understanding and protect human rights. They are exceptional people who have not always followed the popular path but have always done what is right,” he noted.

James Credle, a Newark resident, spent 38 years at Rutgers University in Newark before retiring in 2005 as Assistant Dean of Students. After serving in the Vietnam Conflict, he used the GI Bill to attend Rutgers, where he also attended law school and served as Director of the Office of Veterans Affairs. He helped establish and served as a board member with numerous organizations and services advocating for Vietnam and Vietnam Era Veterans. Credle also was a Gay/Human Rights activist/leader serving as the Co-Chair for Men of All Colors Together/New York; Co-Chair of its national organization, the National Association of Black and White Men Together; member of the “Gays for Jessie Jackson,” co-founder of Project “FIRE,” an HIV/AIDS education and prevention program in Newark, and co-founder of the Newark Pride Alliance. During his tenure at Rutgers, he was awarded the Human Dignity Award, the university highest award for service to a diverse community. He now works as a Food/Diversity Consultant.

“We understand very clearly the issue of marriage equality, however the challenge is much greater and much broader than that,” said Credle. “Here in America, LGBTIQ people are as poor and jobless as the rest of America, so we need to let them lean on us. There are people in our County that need our help and assistance. We need all of you to be persons they can lean on,” he added.

Donovan Scott Linder, an Edgewater Park resident, is the outgoing President of RU Pride. He graduated from Rutgers University in Newark with Bachelor’s Degrees in psychology and sociology. He plans to pursue a Master’s Degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology at the University of New Haven in Connecticut. While serving as President of RU Pride for the last three years, the organization was recognized by the university as Student Organization of the Year in 2009-2010 and received an Educational Program Award. Linder has received the Dean James Credle Award, Emerging Leader Award, Campus Leader Alumni Scholarship, Angel Claudio Award, Psi Chi, the National Honors Society in Psychology and the Rutgers University 2012 Human Dignity Award, one of the University’s highest honors. He was also a Peer Advisor Student Coordinator in the Dean’s Office, NYC AIDS Walk team leader, Co-Chair of the Chancellor’s Office LGBT Task Force, a member of NJPAC LGBT advisory board, an Ambassador for Out for Undergraduate Business Conference and Managing Editor for the Observer Rutgers Newark newspaper.

“I am humbled to be receiving such a high honor. I received the Human Dignity Award, which is one of Rutgers University’s highest honors, but this really touches me on a greater level and I want to thank the County Executive and the Essex County LGBTQ Advisory Board. This award is only a testament to the young people in this County who are continuing the work that so many of our predecessors left for us to do. Throughout my tenure at Rutgers-Newark, I was a very busy person, but I must say none of these opportunities would have been possible without support from God, my family and friends and, most of all, my LGBTQ community,” said Linder. “These are the times when each of us has to put aside our differences and come together united with civil rights, marriage equality and things of that nature. I know it’s not always easy at times, but we have to look at the bigger picture and we owe it to our society to make it better each day. Progress is in the making, and I see a society where equality and justice for every citizen is mandated across the board,” he added.

Rev. Ann Ralosky, a Montclair resident, is the Senior Minister of First Congregational Church in Montclair, an Open and Affirming congregation of the United Church of Christ. The congregation voted to become ONA in 2005 and its membership is almost 40 percent LGBTQ singles, couples and families. The congregation is also the home of the Garden State Equality headquarters and has partnered with that organization to raise awareness and support for Marriage Equality. Prior to serving at FCC, Rev. Ralosky was the Protestant Chaplain at Montclair State University, was a strong supporter of the LGBT Center and created many opportunities for conversation and faith development for students, faculty and staff around the issue of faith, spirituality and sexual identity. In her role as ordained clergy, Rev. Ralosky has testified before the State Legislature in Trenton in support of Marriage Equality. She received her Bachelor’s Degree from Fordham University in 1985 and her Masters of Divinity from Drew University in 2007 where she graduated summa cum laude.

“My part of the journey is being the Pastor of First Congregational Church. They are an extraordinary group of people. It is a blessing to be a part of that community and to allow that community to be a voice for equality, liberation and grace within Montclair and beyond. It is a privilege to receive this honor, and I hope that it will allow the light to shine a little brighter on our corner of Montclair, that it can be a beacon for equality in this County,” said Rolasky.

The John J. Gibbons Fellowship in Public Interest & Constitutional Law is sponsored by the Newark law firm of Gibbons, P.C. under the guidance of John J. Gibbons, former Chief Judge of the Third Circuit, and Lawrence S. Lustberg, Director of the Gibbons Fellowship Program. The Gibbons Fellows, together with the law firm, undertake public interest and constitutional law projects and litigation. The Fellowship Program has become widely known in New Jersey and nationally as a voice for the poor and underrepresented. In the New Jersey courts, the Fellowship has acted as one of several lead counsel challenging racial profiling on the New Jersey Turnpike; has long been an advocate for poor, inner city students in the landmark Abbott v. Burke school finance litigation; and has represented battered and low-income women in cases concerning domestic violence, criminal prosecution of pregnant women for injuries to their unborn fetuses, and denial of welfare to children in families already receiving welfare.

“We have fought for marriage equality and other issues in New Jersey, which I know will be a reality in this State sooner rather than later, and we will continue to fight until the end,” said Lawrence Lustberg, Executive Director of the Foundation. “We would do what we do without recognition, but we are extraordinary grateful for the recognition you give us today. On behalf of the Gibbons law firm and the John J. Gibbons Fellowship, we accept this award and thank the County Executive and the Essex County LGBTQ Advisory Board,” he added.

The Essex County LGBTQ Pride Month Celebration is the part of a yearlong cultural series created by County Executive DiVincenzo to highlight Essex County’s diversity. Other cultural heritage celebrations include African American History Month, Irish Heritage Month, Women’s History Month, Italian Heritage Month, Jewish Heritage, Portuguese Heritage and Latino Heritage. Created in December 2010, the Essex County Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Advisory Board is one of several volunteer advisory boards that discusses issues affecting the community and provides recommendations to the Essex County Executive.


Source: www.nj.com

Serial ‘birthday boy’ dupes 11 fiancĂ©es - Times of India
MUMBAI: The Nagpada police arrested a 40-year-old married man for duping 11 girls on the pretext of marrying them.

Zubair Mughal, a BSc graduate, was arrested on Monday for stealing a credit card and cash from the residence of his latest 'fiancee'; he will soon be booked for cheating 10 other girls as well. The accused, who had signed up with a matrimonial website, would meet girls and ask them for expensive 'birthday' gifts. Mughal was produced before a court on Tuesday and remanded to police custody.

Assistant police inspector Jaideep Gaikwad told TOI, "Mughal called himself 'Rehan' on the website. The profile stated that he had earlier worked in the UAE as a sales executive and currently ran a business in south Mumbai. He got a good response and met this girl at Nerul." Five girls are from Navi Mumbai and six from the city.

"Mughal went to the girl's home. After a while, she went to another room to offer namaz. By the time she returned , he had disappeared. The girl's maid told her that Rehan had left in a hurry saying he, too, had to offer namaz," said Gaikwad. It was only two hours later when the girl received a bank message on her mobile phone saying Rs 200 had been spent on her credit card towards a petrol bill that she realized something was amiss. She checked her purse and found that her credit card had been stolen along with Rs 5,000 cash. Rehan's cellphone was switched off. They filed a police complaint.

"We found Mughal's mother's number in his call records and tracked his address, which happened to be in Nerul itself. Our team caught him at Dongri where he'd gone to meet his in-laws," said Gaikwad.

Mughal told the interrogators that he would meet girls on the pretext of marrying them. "I met a girl at Marine Drive and forced her to gift me her expensive gold chain for my 'birthday'. I continued with this tactic and would get expensive gold and silver gifts." Mughal recalled meeting a girl in Chembur. Since she did not have any jewellery, he simply lifted her bag and fled.


Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

'Singles spend more time on matrimonial sites than social networking sites' - Times of India

KOLKATA: Singles in search for a match tend to spend more time on matrimonial sites than social networking sites, a survey conducted by a leading India-based matrimonial portal stated on Tuesday.

Two in every three singles were found to be spending more time to find a partner on a dedicated marriage portal than try their luck in social networking sites.

The survey was conducted to gauge the growing popularity of the social networking sites and its impact on the matrimonial sector. The findings of the survey showcase that even though the social networking sites are gaining momentum, when it comes to searching for a partner, matrimonial sites are considered reliable and trustworthy by singles, and hence, they tend to visit these sites more often through the day.

The survey also highlights the importance singles give to social networking sites during partner search. The survey findings reveal that 31% singles agreed to be searching for the profile of their potential partner immediately after they receive expression of interest. While, 27% have denied checking the potential/short-listed partner's profile till they finalizes someone. One in every four singles add each other on social networking sites post their chat on the marriage portal's messenger and the rest 17% do so after their first meeting.

This trend of visiting the potential partner's profile on social networking sites like Facebook is mostly noticed amongst the male respondents (74%) than women respondents (63%). Women respondents have said they mostly feel the social networking sites are meant for friends, and hence, they refrain from adding potential partners to their social network.

But members who initially meet through matrimonial websites tend to check potential partners profile on social networking sites to know common interests, friends and hobbies they might have but do not look for a match through these sites.


Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Dimbleby's pop the question time - Daily Mail

By Richard Kay

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The Dimbleby presence may have been sorely missed during the BBC’s coverage of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, but the family are meanwhile planning a celebration of their own.

Sculptor Nick Dimbleby - younger brother of broadcasters David and Jonathan - tells me his daughter Maisie is to marry Old Etonian actor Will Adamsdale, whom she met on the London Underground.

But while Will, 38, made his film debut in Richard Curtis’s The Boat That Rocked and is appearing in Detroit at the National Theatre, 32-year-old Maisie’s bright start in acting did not blossom into a career.

Plans: Maisie Dimbleby is to marry Old Etonian actor Will Adamsdale

Plans: Maisie Dimbleby is to marry Old Etonian actor Will Adamsdale

After starring in an ITV adaptation of Jane Austen’s Persuasion, she gave up acting to teach in Hackney, East London.

The couple will marry in a Quaker service this summer near Maisie’s parent’s home in Clyst Hydon, Devon.

‘She is the first of our four children to get married so it’s lovely news,’ says proud father Nick. ‘We like Will very much.’

A former Tory MP caught up in the expenses scandal has made it on to the shortlist to become police commissioner for Surrey. Humfrey Malins, 66, who stood down as MP for Woking at the last election after claiming more than 20,000 in taxpayer-funded expenses for a flat in  which his children lived rent-free, is one of three candidates who will be interviewed for the post. He says: ‘I have got some definite ideas about policing . . . and have, I hope, plenty to contribute.’

Shergar star Swinburn and wife split

Just a few months short of his tenth wedding anniversary, jockey-turned-trainer Walter Swinburn has come unsaddled in the matrimonial stakes.
Former hellraiser Swinburn, who rode Shergar to glorious victory in the 1981 Derby, is no longer living with his wife Alison, the mother of his two young daughters, at the marital home in Hertfordshire.

Instead Walter, 50, who was nicknamed the ‘choirboy’ for his deceptively angelic looks, has moved to London and is now renting a pied-a-terre in Mayfair, while Alison remains with the children at their Georgian mansion, Stocks, formerly the home of Playboy chief Victor Lownes and his bunny girl wife Marilyn Cole.

Swinburn, who will be at Royal Ascot this week, tells me: ‘I don’t want to go into the reasons — it’s personal. We chose to live apart and our priority now is our children. The simple truth is we ran out of petrol.’

Fresh start: Jockey-turned-trainer Walter Swinburn has come unsaddled in the matrimonial stakes

Fresh start: Jockey-turned-trainer Walter Swinburn has come unsaddled in the matrimonial stakes

However, racing folk say their marriage was under considerable strain, not least because of his previously close racing connections with Alison’s wealthy father, Peter Harris, the Bourne Leisure tycoon worth around 360 million who also owns racehorses and used to train at Church Farm Stables, near Tring in Herts.

Three-times Derby-winner Swinburn took over as trainer from his father-in-law, once known as the ‘king of syndicate trainers’, in 2004. But Harris remained a significant figure at the yard, owning the majority of the 80 horses in training.

He wanted to divest himself of his racing empire and has gradually sold all his horses. Walter then decided it was no longer commercially viable for him to continue to run the yard. But he tells me he is not giving up racing, adding: ‘I am still heavily involved in a breeding operation.’

The parting from Alison is sad but amicable. No one else is involved, he says. Meanwhile Swinburn has taken his daughters riding in Hyde Park near his new home, where he booked a ride without disclosing his experience.

‘They put me on the biggest, fattest horse, resembling Nellie the Elephant, and even produced some steps for me to climb on to it,’ he tells me. ‘At one point the girl instructor told me off for holding the reins all wrong, but I swallowed my pride and said nothing. Even when my younger daughter told her, “Daddy won the Derby,” they didn’t catch on.’

Some welcome news for would-be BBC Director-General Helen Boaden. I gather her brother, Michael, a councillor in Carlisle, has just failed in his bid to become Labour’s candidate for the new 70,000-a-year post of Cumbria police commissioner.

With Ms Boaden having been shortlisted, the thinking is that political links, however peripheral, could be unhelpful as the Corporation seeks to avoid accusations of bias in its new D-G, who is expected to be paid in the region of 500,000 per year. It means Boaden, currently a popular head of news at the BBC, can breathe a sigh of relief as she waits to hear if she has made it through to the final round of interviews.

Model Lisa shows off her new man

Seven months after her divorce from Baron Steven Bentinck was finalised, striking model Lisa Hogan is enjoying a fresh chapter in her life.

My picture shows her out on the town for the first time with the new man in her life, Canadian Craig Cohon.

Once much admired by John Cleese, mother-of-three Lisa, 41, began dating Cirque du Soleil investor Cohon, 48, this year.

'Extremely tactile': Lisa and Craig at the party

'Extremely tactile': Lisa and Craig at the party

They joined friends at a photo exhibition party thrown by Mary McCartney at Louise Blouin MacBain’s Notting Hill gallery.

‘They were extremely tactile with each other,’ says another at the party, where guests included Simon Mann, Jasmine Guinness and Lisa Butcher.

Since Lisa met divorced father-of-two Cohon in Moscow — where he is famous for introducing Coca-Cola and McDonald’s — their relationship appears to have  gone from strength to strength.

‘Lisa was excitedly taking Craig around introducing him as her boyfriend to all her friends. She seemed very happy,’ says a pal.

She and Bentinck, nephew of the late Swiss steel tycoon Heini Thyssen, parted acrimoniously seven years ago. ‘It was like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders,’ adds the friend.

She may be the third wife of one of Britain’s richest men, but to Georgina Shipsey, Countess Cadogan is her much loved aunt. Dorothy Cadogan’s husband Charles is the owner of 93 Chelsea acres worth an estimated 3.4 billion.

But, says marketing consultant Georgina: ‘To me she is just my aunt — and a very kindly one too. Unlike her I’ve never found the right man so I’m on my own at 40. My parents passed away and Dorothy has stepped in. She’s like a second mother to me.’

As for marriage, Georgina tells me at a drinks party at Chelsea’s Royal Hospital:  ‘I don’t mind who I marry. He certainly doesn’t have to be an aristocrat — just someone loving and kind.’

PS Royal Ascot is one of the Queen’s happiest weeks of year, where she loves the racing and the company of racing people. On Saturday she will be joined in the carriage procession by Toby Balding. Toby, one of the few men to have trained the winner of the National, Cheltenham Gold Cup and Champion Hurdle, is the brother of former trainer Ian Balding and uncle to the BBC’s Clare. He is thrilled to have been invited and was told HM had personally asked for him. It will be an especially poignant journey for Toby, 75, who suffered a stroke last year.



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He was amazing in Campus, I can't believe they didn't make another series

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Is divorce ruining relationships? - Sydney Morning Herald
Divorce is no longer as imposing as a Mt Everest trek.

Divorce is no longer as imposing as a Mt Everest trek. Photo: MacGillivary Freeman Films

Here’s the thing. I am against marriage as the only legitimate romantic relationship. I support gay marriage; matrimony should be possible within any romance, just not the only romantic possibility. I also don’t think marriage has to be monogamous.

But I am starting to have doubts about divorce.

And this is a problem because, er, I am starting to think perhaps divorce really is such a bad thing. I’m starting to think divorce really is ruining our relationships. And it’s starting to make me sound like a hypocritical conservative.

Am I?

Well – perhaps not.

Let me explain.

Divorce used to be difficult, socially. Things that are difficult are generally undesirable, even if their consequence is attractive.

Having the bragging rights to an Mount Everest summit story is attractive, but actually reaching the summit is not. Hence the respect we afford the journey, and the awe-bordering-on-suspicion we grant to those who survive. This peculiar sort of judgement comes from lack of experiential relatability, and a shared belief system – common sense, in this case.

But if the summit could be conquered with ease, and if most of our mates had been there and back, it would be different. Reactions to tales regaled would be met with ambivalence and adverse judgement – “that’s interesting, but you’re crazy” – less likely.

So it is with divorce today. Yes, there are still costs attached to it – legal bills, emotional toll, and so on and so forth, which makes it unattractive. But the social cost has changed. More people have been there and done that, so it’s not as peculiarly fascinating anymore. And the belief system common to most people nowadays doesn’t have the ‘burn in hell’ ring it once did.

Thus divorce is less undesirable. Certainly it’s not attractive – I imagine few divorcees wanted to get divorced as they walked down the aisle – but it is accessible. And this accessibility has impacted on the way we view relationships. And when I say we I mean me, though I presume I’m not alone.

Certainly, when I broach the subject with my 20-to-30-something friends who are single-ish, educated, and could hardly recall a positive parental romance between them, I find similar thoughts have seeded. These notions might not be proudly nurtured by those who would self-describe as liberal progressives who value choice and freedom and individualism above all else. But the idea is there all the same.

The idea that perhaps too much choice, freedom and individualism is challenging love lives in the way their opposites did generations ago, before no-fault divorce swept through much needed change. Divorce in the 60s and 70s was a much needed antidote to the social stiffness and personal constraints of the decades previous.

But that was then. Now, the accessibility of divorce – the ease with which we can conceptualise ending relationships, even very, very serious ones – has helped make the reality of marriage a difficult pill to swallow. The reality of long-term, life-time commitment is the new Mt Everest. Those who manage it might be publicly feted, generally envied and privately doubted by those who have not, but want to.

And about here is where my palm hits my face. What am I saying? That we should go back to a time when marriage was for life no matter what? Where giving up on the great dream was social suicide? Have I regressed?

I don’t think so. I simply think the pendulum has swung too far in the opposite direction and needs to be corrected. I think many of us are sleeping in uncomfortable, lonely and sometimes very unhappy beds. We’ve made these beds with sheets of perpetual dissatisfaction on which we lie and wonder, ‘are you really the one, or just the one for now?’

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Source: www.smh.com.au

What Would Monica Geller Say About Courteney Cox's Divorce Strategy? - Forbes
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - JANUARY 17: Actors David A...

Source: daylife.com

For ten years on the sitcom Friends, Courteney Cox starred in the role of Monica Geller, a beautiful and successful 20-something who prided herself on being fastidious, competitive and bossy.

Sadly, though, life does not always imitate art, and these days Ms. Cox appears to be proceeding with her divorce in ways that are distinctly un-Monica-like. Not only does she seem to be neglecting details, but she could be jeopardizing her sizeable, hard-earned fortune as a result. For example, last week I read about these two particularly surprising aspects of the Courteney Cox-David Arquette divorce case:

1. Ms. Cox recently filed legal docs responding to Mr. Arquette’s divorce petition, and –apparently following his lead –she did so without a lawyer.

2. The court docs apparently do not mention a prenup.

Can you imagine how Monica would react if a friend of hers was following the same path? I can’t help but think the conversation would begin with one of Monica’s characteristically blunt assessments.  Are you crazy?” she would blurt out.

Of course, if I had the opportunity to advise Ms. Cox, I would phrase things somewhat differently. “Ms. Cox, I think you should re-consider your strategy,” I would say . . . and then I’d ask, “Are you crazy?”!!

First, let’s review the importance of using a lawyer.

As I have discussed before, there are four broad categories of divorce alternatives: Do-It-Yourself (DIY), Mediation, Collaborative and Litigation. Of these, Litigation is the most common, but keep in mind, “litigated” does not necessarily mean the divorce ends up in court. “Litigation” is a legal term meaning carrying out a lawsuit,’ and even though they’re litigated, the vast majority of all divorce cases (more than 95 percent) reach an out-of-court settlement agreement.

Why are lawsuits a part of divorce? Because no matter how “friendly” you’d like your divorce to be, it is extremely difficult and emotionally-trying to reach agreements on child custody, alimony payments and the division of assets and liabilities.  Legal matters, livelihoods and personal futures hang in the balance, and it makes perfect sense to hire trusted divorce professionals to help you effectively navigate the sea of forms, legal filings and complicated rules of evidence.

Even if the divorce is fairly amicable, the laws are complex, and there are numerous financial and tax implications associated with dividing retirement plans, real estate, intellectual property, stock options, etc. Without the right professional advice it can be very easy to make irreversible mistakes. What’s more, children and dealing with custody and other parenting issues can further complicate the situation, as well.

Remember: Enlisting the expertise of a lawyer does not mean your divorce must be contentious. In fact, just the opposite is true. Most divorce attorneys (or at least the ones I would recommend) will always strive to come to a reasonable settlement with the other party and ensure that your divorce settlement agreement accurately incorporates the agreed upon points.

Now, let’s discuss the benefits of a prenup.

A prenup (short for “prenuptial agreement”) is a contract signed by both parties before their wedding. By using a prenup, both the husband-to-be and the wife-to-be decide in advance: 1) what property will be considered separate property, 2) what property will be considered marital property, 3) how any marital property should be divided, 4) particulars about estate planning and inheritances and even 5) how much alimony will be paid and for how long if there’s a break-up down the road. In short, the prenup details what the couple’s property rights and expectations would be upon divorce and if done correctly, it can be an excellent way to supersede your state’s marital laws. However, in order for a prenup to be effective, each party must be represented by its own separate attorney, and the agreement:

  • must be in writing.
  • must provide full disclosure (no hiding of assets and/or liabilities).
  • must be executed voluntarily and without coercion.
  • must be executed by both parties, preferably in front of witnesses.
  • cannot be unconscionable, meaning that it cannot be completely lopsided giving one party so much more than the other.
  • should be in a recordable format.

And, just to reiterate, the prenup must be executed before the wedding!

Since it appears Ms. Cox did not have a prenup in place, the money she earned during her twelve-and-a-half year marriage will now be considered marital property –and because California is a Community Property state it will be split 50-50. (And in case you’re wondering, she’s reportedly worth $75 million, while Mr. Arquette is worth $18 million.)

Maybe years ago, Ms. Cox considered the idea of a prenup awkward and unromantic. If that was the case, she could have pursued other options that would not have required her fiancĂ©’s approval. For instance, she could have established a Domestic or Foreign Asset Protection Trust.

What about a postnuptial agreement?

Even if there were no pre-marital protections in place, Ms.Cox could have pursued a postnup. Similar to a prenup, a postnup is a contract between husband and wife, but it is entered into and signed after the wedding.

Could Ms. Cox have protected her assets with a postnup? It’s impossible for me to say. But, I do know this: When celebrities divorce, one of the biggest points of contention is typically intellectual property rights.  These rights cover property such as patents, trademarks, copyrights and royalties and other contractual rights, and depending on the individual circumstances, they can be worth thousands, if not millions, of dollars.

What’s more, any intellectual property rights obtained during a marriage may be considered marital property –and that means they may be divided during divorce. Although the specific rules vary from state to state, the general rule of thumb governing intellectual and other property is this: Value that’s created during the marriage must be divided.

Again, it’s impossible to know with certainty how a postnup would have impacted the division of assets, in general, or how it could have impacted the division of intellectual property rights to, say, the sitcom Friends, in particular. But even so, if you’re a married woman involved in a similar business endeavor, my advice is simple: I believe having a postnup in place is usually better than having nothing at all.

All women –whether they’re single, engaged, happily married, contemplating divorce, or in the middle of divorce proceedings –can learn something by observing how celebrities handle their break-ups. In this particular case, I feel that Courteney Cox is being reckless and short-sighted. . . and I honestly think Monica Geller would feel the same way.

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All articles/blog posts are for informational purposes only, and do not constitute legal advice. If you require legal advice, retain a lawyer licensed in your jurisdiction. The opinions expressed are solely those of the author, who is not an attorney.

For further information, please go to our website at: http://www.BedrockDivorce.com or email Jeff at: Landers@BedrockDivorce.com


Source: www.forbes.com

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