California judges can make so many different types of spousal support orders, it can make a lawyers’ head spin, let alone the actual parties to a divorce. For instance, many people need help understanding the difference between a $0 spousal support order and an order where the Court terminates jurisdiction…
Articles Posted in Divorce
Attorney Fees and Sanctions in Family Law Cases
Attorney fees can be a very important issue in many divorce cases. Most family law litigants in California, and certainly their attorneys, are familiar with Family Code section 2030, which awards attorney fees on a “need and ability” basis. This statute is designed to make sure that each party has…
Forget Save the Whales…Save My Credit
A family law judge out of New Jersey made the following finding in a case involving a post judgment request to sell a residence due to one party’s failure to refinance the residence post-judgment: “This court takes judicial notice, as a matter of indisputable common knowledge, that a positive credit…
Home Sweet Home
Millennials and Gen X-ers may have heard the name Zsa Zsa Gabor, but it is unlikely they know a thing about the Hungarian-born actress. For the purposes of this blog, all you need to know was that Ms. Gabor was married nine times, divorced seven times, and one marriage was…
Divorce After the Holidays
January is decidedly the busiest month for divorce attorneys, even being dubbed in the divorce community as “divorce month”. While there may never going to be a “good” time for a divorce, those with divorce on the mind seem to find January to be the best option. This has been…
In Case of Emergency Break Glass…or better yet, read Family Code Section 3064
I have discussed on this blog many times how the most difficult job a Family Court Judge has is making custody orders. Property and support can be legally or technically difficult, but they will never compare to the emotions of making custody orders. Never is this task more difficult then…
In the Child’s Best Interest
The Oklahoma Supreme Court issued a decision on November 17, 2015 in the case of Ramey v. Sutton in which the biological mother in a same sex relationship wished to cut ties between her partner and child after their break-up which followed almost 10 years of co-parenting. In this case,…
The Furniture Fire Sale
I remember the first time I purchased a new couch. It cost me around $800 (which at the time was all the money in the world – I was studying for the bar) and was the first “new” and “adult” purchase my Wife and I made. I also remember when…
Sanctions! Penalties for Bad Behavior
More so than in other areas of the law, attorney fees can be a critical part of a divorce case. In most civil cases, a party is awarded attorney fees only after they have prevailed in their case and only where attorney fees are specifically provided for by statute or…
The Fate of Frozen Embryos at Divorce
As times change and technology evolves, new issues are ever-present in divorce law. And, although at the center of almost every divorce lie deep emotions, the courts in making their decisions look at the laws and don’t take emotions into account. When Dr. Mimi C. Lee found out that she…