Fairfax Family Law Blog

With the start of spring comes blooming flowers, rising temperatures and spring cleaning. Cleaning products, however, can be more dangerous than some would think. The Environmental Protection Agency puts cleaning products among the five most common ways children are exposed to toxic chemicals.

There are 21 New York groups that are urging a prominent New York environmental group to take action in the enforcement of a law that has been on the records for 40 years. The law requires disclosure of the harmful chemicals that are found in cleaning products, but enforcement is weak.

For most parents who are obligated to pay child support, there will likely come a time that the amount of child support they are obligated to pay will need to be revisited. There are many examples of circumstances that may give rise to a child support modification-involuntary reduction in income, emancipation of a child, changes in visitation-to name just a few. It is important to be aware of the law regarding child support modifications and how to ensure that the modifications are enforceable and valid.

Generally, a modification of child support occurs by the agreement of the parties or through a court proceeding. If the new child support amount is obtained through a court proceeding, the resulting order will be a valid and enforceable modification. However, it may surprise you to learn that an agreement between parties to revise child support will not be considered a valid and enforcement modification and will not alter the terms of the original order of support. A party who relies on the validity and enforceability of a written agreement may be exposed to substantial financial ramifications. The current law in Virginia requires that modifications of child support be court-approved before it is a valid and enforceable child support modification (with one exception addressed more fully below). And, because child support payments vest as they become due, a court will not have authority to modify child support retroactively unless a motion to modify child support is pending.

The justice system has many tools to convict criminals, but only one has seen great advances over the past decade and identifies criminals with "incredible accuracy," according to The United States Department of Justice. Although the use of DNA samples is clearly a valuable tool, particularly in exonerating the falsely accused, using it for minor criminal infractions presents questions of privacy violations.

How DNA Samples are Used

Generally, these samples can be used in two ways:

• Compare crime scene evidence with specific suspect
• Enter crime scene evidence into DNA database to find perpetrator

The DNA database was established in the 1980s by the federal government. It provides for national, state and local storage and exchange. Investigation potential is growing with The Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) as states continue to pass laws requiring offenders of certain crimes to provide DNA Samples.

According to a recent study, the biggest danger to a teen driver's life may occur while he or she is giving a friend a lift. The study concluded that a teen driving with a couple of friends in the car can triple a teen's risk for a fatal auto accident.

The study, conducted by the Center for Injury Research and Prevention found from a survey of 198 teen drivers, that only a minority of teens said that they were likely to drive with friends. The drivers that said that they were likely to drive with many friends also described themselves as thrill-seekers and risk takers.

These teens also said that their parents did not regularly keep track of their driving activities or set rules on driving. They were also more likely to be unaware of the dangers of risky driving.