Family Law Blog
5 Tips for Splitting Custody During School Vacations and Holidays
Vacations and holidays should be a time of happiness and joy when everyone can spend time enjoying their friends and family. That is precisely why they can often be the most difficult times for those who have experienced divorce; particularly those whose divorce included a battle for custody. Parents ‘don’t always agree on holiday plans…
How to Avoid Ending Up in California Court Arguing About Child Custody
In some California divorce cases, the court decides child custody. To avoid releasing the power to determine child custody to the California court, parents simply have to agree. We say simply, but in many cases, there is nothing simple about coming to terms on the custody of the children. How Can Divorcing Parents Resolve Child…
What Happens to the Community Property When My California Domestic Partnership Ends?
In California, a domestic partnership is when two adults choose to share in each other’s life through a committed, intimate relationship based on “mutual caring.” This legal definition can apply to same-sex couples or opposite-sex couples (if at least one person in the opposite sex couple is over 62 years old). Domestic partners are required…
Elder Divorce: How a Reverse Mortgage Works During Divorce
In many divorce cases, the first question asked is what will happen to the family home and who will live there. This concern is even more prevalent in cases of elder divorce. When splitting up assets, one of the most challenging decisions is what a couple should do about their house. Many younger divorcing couples…
Can a Prenuptial Agreement Dictate Child Support Payments?
Modern couples planning their marriage often find that prenuptial agreements are useful tools. They are especially helpful when one or both individuals entering marriage have significant assets to protect. One common mistake couples make when entering prenuptial agreements in California is including terms the court is likely to reject – like pre-determined child support payment…
What To Do When Divorce Mediation Fails
The divorce process is, at its most basic, a negotiation or a series of exercises in compromise. One of the first strategies of compromise that a couple can try is divorce mediation. Mediation is one method divorcing couples can use to settle a divorce without the stress and worry associated with a trial or a…
California Divorce Mediation Checklist: What Documents Do You Need?
Couples who turn to divorce mediation to minimize the costs and emotional upset of divorce can increase their chances of success by being prepared with the proper documents. Divorce mediation requires that both parties provide all financial information for review – this info alone can be extensive when a couple has numerous assets and debts…
Divorce Court: Keeping Emotions Out of the Court Room
Divorce is stressful enough, but in some cases, it becomes necessary to go to court to litigate over custody or division of property or other issues that are often emotionally charged. If you are headed for California divorce court, stay calm both for your own peace of mind and to benefit your case. 3 Ways…
California Spousal Support: The Ten Year Rule is a Myth
Many California couples considering divorce fear what they call the “ten-year rule.” A common misunderstanding is that when a couple married longer than ten years seeks a divorce, there is a rule in place that requires alimony on an indefinite basis, but there is no such rule. The reference is to Family Code Section 4336(a)…