Did you know in the state of California, you do not need to be genetically related to a child for a Court to find you to be the child’s parent and issue orders for you to pay financial support of the child? It’s true! And it can occur under the…
Family law courts across the nation adhere to “guidelines” and a statutory formula in determining appropriate child support awards. In actuality, the “guidelines” provide mandatory requirements intended to create uniformity in the calculations of child support that are presumed correct. The guidelines take into account the general principles that (1)…
In the headlines the end of 2019, the Miami Dolphins released Running Back Mark Walton hours after he was arrested for charges of aggravated battery against a pregnant woman. The authorities received a 9-1-1 call in the early hours of November 19, 2019 from Walton’s girlfriend declaring Walton pushed her…
Whether you are getting ready to file for divorce, or already have, you probably have seen or heard the words “community property” and “separate property” many times. These are common family law terms that parties will need to understand throughout their proceeding for dissolution. Pursuant to Family Code section 760,…
What does the “date of separation” mean and why is it so important? When a spouse files for divorce the first issue to tackle is often the parties’ date of separation. One might think that the date of separation is when the petition was filed in the divorce, or when…
For most people, the decision to get divorced is not reached on a whim. More often than not, “Breaking up is like knocking over a Coke machine. You can’t do it in one push. You gotta rock it back and forth a few times, and then it goes over.” (-Jerry…
During marriage, neither spouse is supposed to devalue the community estate by wasting of assets. “Wasting” means spending community money for a non-marital purpose. The classic case has been the spouse who changes his lifestyle, often in the process acquiring a friend to whom the spouse gives money, pays expenses…
Going through a divorce is one of the most stressful events a person may go through during their lifetime. Emotions run high, finances, which may have already been an area filled with worry and stress, may become even more so, mental health suffers, and the process may feel endless. One…
Earlier this year, Amazon tycoon Jeff Bezos announced his divorce from wife MacKenzie after 25 years of marriage and four children together. The couple met and married before Jeff founded Amazon. Jeff, who has a reported net worth of nearly $157 billion is the world’s richest man. The couple, who…
In a previous blog, we talked about different classes of experts (Joint, Hired Gun, Review) employed in family law cases. In this blog, we will talk about the different “types” of experts we use in family law. Forensic Accountant Forensic accounting is a specialty practice area of accounting that is…