Know your Attorney.

If you have NO preconceived notion of whom to hire to defend you in a personal injury or family law case wouldn’t it be nice to already KNOW your attorney.  In Spokane the choices are many and varied.  If you get improper representation in your P.I. or divorce case your world could be changed forever.  Know your Spokane attorney BEFORE you hire him!

Look at some of the reviews that have been bestowed on Craig Mason.  “Craig took a case that others said I would get crushed in…not only did we NOT get crushed…we won”.   Eight different Spokane area law firms passed on one of Craig’s clients, but HE took the medical malpractice case and triumphed over a battery of lawyers.  Yet another said “Craig got my children back under very hostile circumstances”.

These reviews are real and the results are “in the books”.  You need to know that the person and firm going into battle for you is a winner!  Trust Spokane personal injury and family law attorney Craig Mason to get you everything that you are entitled to.  Call him today to arrange for a consultation at his Spokane office at (509) 443-3681.

Relocation after Divorce.

Even if you have had a custody arrangement that has worked for years, it is possible that the parent with primary placement has a job opportunity, or a re-marriage opportunity, that is just too good to pass up.  If you are going to move with the child, you must provide a Notice of Relocation to the other parent, and if you learn that the other parent is going to move, and you oppose the move, you must file an Objection to Relocation. 

Washington courts presume that they will allow the parent with the child the majority of the time (“primary placement”) to move with the child, unless the relocation can be “rebutted” by showing harm to the child from the move. Any objection must “rebut” the presumption that the parent can move on the basis of statutory factors that address the harm to the child from removing the child from an established environment and from established relationships.

Such a life-altering step for you and your minor child needs careful thought and superb representation.  There are many and varied statutory factors that the court must consider before making such a ruling. 

For many years, Craig Mason has been representing parents in litigating the factors to allow, or to prevent, a relocation of the children. Go into court with veteran Spokane child relocation attorney Craig Mason.  Call him today at (509) 443-3681.

SPOKANE PIG OUT - Labor Day Weekend 2016

SPOKANE PIG OUT

(Follow the link above for more information) 

37th Annual Pig Out in the Park 

Riverfront Park, Spokane, WA 

August 31 thru September 5, 2016 

Open Daily 11 am to 10 pm 

Free Admission!

Fighting a Restraining Order.

It may come out of the blue.  Suddenly you are served with a Civil Restraining Order under the dissolution of marriage in the State of Washington, or you are served with a Domestic Violence Restraining Order.  The opposing party can get an “ex parte” order (without advance notice to you) that is valid for up to two weeks until the hearing on the merits.

If the allegations against you are “hot” enough, the court will “play it safe” and issue the order giving the other party the home and the children until the hearing.

Obviously, these orders exist in the law to appropriately keep the peace or to prevent domestic violence.  However, an unethical attorney or pro se party will start a divorce with “hot” false allegations so that they can grab the children and the home, and put you off balance heading into the initial hearing in the case that sets temporary orders between the beginning of the divorce and its termination by trial or settlement.

When you need tireless, aggressive representation, rely on the decades of experience of Spokane Attorney Craig Mason.  Attorney Mason is an experienced and successful Spokane area restraining order defense attorney.  Should this devastating event of being handed an ex parte restraining order happen to you, call Craig Mason to set up a consultation right away at (509) 443-3681.

Protecting the Children During a Divorce.

In a divorce, unfortunately, the parents can quarrel over the children, and sometimes a party who was not involved with the children during the marriage falsely claims to have been the “primary parent” as a tactic in litigation. 

The statutes look to who has performed “parenting functions” during the marriage. To determine the “primary parent,” the court will look to: (a) who maintained consistent, loving and stable relationships with the children, focused on nurturing them; (b) who attended to the daily needs of the children, from feeding and supervising the children, to taking them to the doctor and daycare, to things like helping them brush their teeth each night; (c) who showed concern for the proper education of the child; (d) who helped the children learn to socially interact in age-appropriate ways; (e) who showed consistent concern for the children’s welfare; and (f) who undertook the labor to support the child.

Remember, the only facts before the court are the facts you (and your attorney) bring to the court.  You will want to gather sworn statements from witnesses who have seen you perform these parenting functions.

If it is time for you to seek assistance in marshaling these facts, contact Spokane Attorney, Craig A. Mason, at 509-443-3681, W. 1707 Broadway, Spokane, WA.

Restraining Orders.

Occasionally, a divorce will start with a restraining order.  There are three types of restraining orders that may be deployed:  A simple civil restraining order, an anti-harassment order, or a domestic violence restraining order.

Often, these orders issue without notice (ex parte) and they must set a hearing within 14 days for the allegations to be heard with a response from the restrained party.  The ex parte orders are usually in immediate effect upon this “one-sided” issuance.  Because of their “ex parte” origin, you have a right to “quash” (have the court withdraw) the restraints on two-days notice if you can prepare your defense that quickly.

If you are in danger, come to Mason Law to file a domestic violence restraining order; likewise if you are being harassed.  If you fear the destruction of property or the loss of your normal visitation with the children, then a civil restraint might be appropriate.

If you have been the victim of a “tactical” restraining order, filed to get an initial advantage in the dissolution, also contact Spokane Family Attorney Craig Mason immediately, to prepare your response, and, if the evidence can be gathered quickly enough, to move to quash the unjust order.  Call him today at (509) 443-3681.

Pedestrians and Cell Phones.

Have you ever seen the TV show “The Walking Dead?”  Pedestrians all over the Spokane area can look like zombies as they stagger aimlessly down the general vicinity of the sidewalk, while staring down at their cell phones.  Certainly everybody knows about distracted driving.  A half-million people a year are injured in this country due to texting and talking while driving.  But what about distracted walking?

Here is a statistic that may surprise you.  At any given moment in this country, 60 percent of all walkers are engaged with their cell phones!  This coming 4th of July weekend reminds us that our Founding Fathers are spinning in their graves, seeing this revolution of communication without social interaction, and of people walking without surveying their surroundings.

The phone-staring zombies have been called “digital deadwalkers.”  And not just teens and children are lost in their phones while walking.  People of every age are guilty of “deadwalking.”

An accident, between an auto and a pedestrian using a cell phone, will likely be more complicated than that of a collision between two vehicle drivers.  If this unfortunate event happens to you, please call Spokane auto accident attorney Craig Mason.  Take the time to explain your particular situation at (509) 443-3681, and make an appointment at his Spokane office located at West 1707 Broadway.