Child Support

November 29, 2011

The Impact of New Mate or Partner Income on Attorney Fees

As a San Diego Divorce Attorney, when a client remarries, he or she often wonders if their new spouse’s income will impact child support and spousal support. Recently, a client in the midst of a divorce in which status was previously granted (meaning the parties were no longer married) but the issues of spousal support and attorney fees were not yet resolved, who was about to remarry, asked about the impact of new spouse income on the issue of spousal and child support.

Previously, I blogged about the impact of new mate income on child support and spousal support orders. To summarize:

1) For child support, except in “extraordinary cases,” new spouse or non-marital partner income is generally not considered when calculating guideline child support, although the court may inquire into a new spouse’s income for the purpose of seeing how it would impact the remarried party’s tax filing status and tax bracket when calculating guideline child support.

November 1, 2011

CAN I FIND OUT HOW MUCH MY EX SPOUSE CURRENTLY EARNS?

By Bickford Blado & Botros

As a San Diego Family Law Attorney, I often receive calls from former clients asking if they can find out their former spouses current income without incurring a lot of attorney fees or filing an expensive, time-consuming motion. Here are two examples of those calls:

• One former client suspected her Ex-Husband was earning significantly more than he was a year ago when their divorce was finalized because he recently bought a new car and moved into a bigger house. He refused to tell her his current income. If true, the amount of child support she receives could increase.

• Another former client knew that his Ex-Wife received a promotion, but did not know if a raise came with the promotion. She refused to tell him if she received a raise. If she received a raise along with her promotion, then his child support obligation would decrease, or depending on how much of a raise she received, he might be eligible to receive child support from her.Fortunately for both clients, the Family Code provides for a way to obtain a current Income and Expense Declaration by permitting a party to engage in inexpensive post-Judgment discovery prior to filing a Motion for Modification of Child, Family or Spousal Support. More specifically, at any time after the entry of a Judgment of Dissolution or Legal Separation that provides for the payment of child or family support, either party, no more than once per year, may request the other party to produce a completed current Income and Expense Declaration with copies of that party’s pay stubs and prior year state and federal income tax returns attached.

A request for a current Income and Expense Declaration with a copy of the prior year tax return and pay stubs is the only limited discovery allowed if a Motion for Modification or Termination of the Support Order is not pending. That means if a party wants to engage in other methods of discovery, such as Interrogatories (which are questions asked of the other party) or a Request for Documents, then he or she would first need to file a Motion for Modification or Termination of the Support Order.

By allowing a party to obtain an Income and Expense Declaration from their former spouse, the requesting party can determine whether filing a Motion for Modification is appropriate. If it turns out that there is no change of income, then the filing of a Motion for Modification could be expensive, especially if there is no (or minimal) change to the amount of support paid or received.

Sometimes, a former spouse will ignore the request for a current Income and Expense Declaration. If this occurs, the Family Code provides that if there is no response within 35 days, or if the Income and Expense Declaration is incomplete as to any wage information, or if pay stubs and income tax returns are not attached, then the requesting party may serve a Request for Income and Benefit Information directly on the employer of the other party. The non-responding party may also be sanctioned by the court for his or her failure to comply with the initial request.

Please contact us if you wish to obtain a current Income and Expense Declaration from your former spouse, or if you have received a Request for Production of An Income and Expense Declaration After Judgment from your former spouse.
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September 30, 2011

Alimony, Child Support, Property Division, a Financial Trifecta in San Diego Divorces

By Bickford Blado & Botros

Massachusetts has passed a landmark law regarding alimony payments, The Wall Street Journal reports. The new law aims to end lifetime payments, particularly in retirement or once a former spouse finds a new partner.

Divorcing couples should know and understand the distinct differences between child support and alimony or spousal support in San Diego. Spousal support is generally treated as taxable income for the receiver and as a tax deduction for the payer. Child support is tax free for the recipient but not deductible for the payer.Child support may be more collectible than spousal support — i.e. the court system may be more likely to enforce the court’s orders. And, of course, as we reported this summer on our San Diego Divorce Attorneys Blog, cohabitation or remarriage generally does not impact child support payments in San Diego or elsewhere in California. That is not necessarily true of alimony or spousal support.

Spousal support can be awarded on a temporary or permanent basis. Temporary spousal support usually covers the period of time between separation and when a divorce ends. Permanent alimony is typically awarded based on the length of the marriage. A short-term marriage in California, one lasting less than 10 years, may result in an alimony award lasting up to half the length of the marriage. In long-term marriages, judges are given great discretion and payments may be awarded indefinitely.

Together with the initial property awarded to each spouse, the trifecta will go a long way toward determining your future quality of life.

As the Wall Street Journal reported, the recession has brought the contentious issue of long-term alimony to a boiling point. Statistics show unemployment has hit males the hardest. And, as the Baby Boomer generation hits the gates to retirement, many former husbands are looking to reduce or eliminate payments. The Tennessee Supreme Court recently ruled lifetime alimony was inappropriate if a woman was in good health, had a stable job and had received considerable assets during a division of property. And Florida recently set a higher bar for permanent spousal support awards.

The new law in Massachusetts takes effect next March. Those paying lifetime alimony can apply for modifications beginning in 2013. For women counting on these payments in retirement, a reversal could be financially devastating. The New York Times reports the Massachusetts law calls for alimony for up to half the length of a marriage lasting less than five years. For long-term marriages — those lasting 15 to 20 years — payments could last for up to 80 percent of the length of the marriage.

Your attorney needs to work toward a divorce agreement that adequately provides in all three areas: property division, spousal support and child support. The pros and cons of each award must be weighed with the client’s financial future in mind.
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September 15, 2011

Support Stipulations

By Bickford Blado & Botros

The Associate Press is reporting that Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt will keep paying $225,000 in temporary spousal support to his ex-wife, Jamie McCourt, over the next couple of months, but that money once used toward the mortgages of six luxurious homes will come from a $1.1 million escrow account funded by the sale of one of their other homes that was located near the Playboy Mansion.

When child and spousal support are at issue in a San Diego divorce, the issues can be resolved two way; either by agreement of the parties, or the court will make an order after having a hearing on the issue.

When parties reach a support agreement outside of a court hearing, either on their own or through their attorneys, the agreement is called a “Stipulation.” To become effective, the terms of the Stipulation must be written down and filed with the court.

June 30, 2011

The Impact of Cohabitation and Remarriage on Child and Spousal Support

By Bickford Blado & Botros

After a divorce, one party may decide to cohabit or remarry. As a San Diego divorce attorney, when this occurs, clients (or former clients) ask questions about the impact of cohabitation or remarriage on child support and spousal support.

What is Cohabitation?

Everyone know what remarriage means, but what about cohabitation? Does staying overnight qualify as cohabitation?

June 24, 2011

Schwarzenegger is paying for private school tuition; might a court order you to too?

By Bickford Blado & Botros

As the details of our former Governor’s extramarital indiscretions continue to emerge, it is somewhat surprising that neither party has filed for divorce. But while the parties have yet to file for divorce, it appears they are already addressing an issue that arises in most divorce cases involving children: child support.

Radar Online reports that Schwarzenegger is already paying child support to Maria Shriver. In fact, according to the online source, it’s been reported that Schwarzenegger is paying “a significant amount of child support” and that he is “also paying for his sons, Patrick and Christopher’s private school bills.”

While in this case it appears that Schwarzenegger is voluntarily paying for the parties’ son’s private school tuition, will a court ever order a party to do so absent their agreement? The short answer is yes, under certain circumstances.

June 9, 2011

Schwarzenegger Case Illustrates Issues of Marital Property, Child Custody, Alimony in San Diego Divorces

By Bickford Blado & Botros

FOX News and other media outlets continue to report that the divorce of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver could be among the most expensive celebrity splits on record.

Some estimates say Shriver could get more than the $100 million Tiger Wood’s ex-wife Elin Nordegren received.Division of marital property in a San Diego divorce, or a divorce elsewhere in California, is supposed to be equal under the state’s no-fault divorce law. In practice, one party to a divorce can end up with significantly more than half the assets for a number of reasons.

What constitutes community property is one potential area of contention. Property owned before marriage and inheritance to one spouse are both examples of separate property. Valuating community property is another area where a San Diego divorce lawyer will focus attention. For instance, is the marital home valued at current market value? After the economic downturn, a couple’s primary residence is often a liability — with more owed on an upside down mortgage than the property could bring at sale.

With Schwarzenegger and Shriver, there are more complications — and more assets — than in many marriages — even celebrity marriages. And, with allegations about Arnold’s infidelity continuing to surface, he may find an unsympathetic judge on the bench. And, with four children and the majority of the earning power, several media outlets have reported child support and alimony could easily top $100,000 a month.

Typical couples should understand the tax implications of alimony and child support as there may be opportunities to move money in one direction or the other. Alimony is treated as taxable income for the receiver and as a tax deduction for the payer. Child support is tax free for the recipient but not deductible for the payer. One caveat to keep in mind: Courts are much better about helping you collect back child support than they are about assisting with the collections of back spousal support.

In the case of Schwarzenegger and Shriver, their marriage will be seen as long-term under California law, which means she may collect alimony for an indefinite period of time. A short-term marriage is defined as one lasting under 10 years, which is in part why it’s not uncommon to see celebrity couples split near the 10-year mark.

Other factors worth considering in this split is Arnold’s future income from motion pictures — particularly sequels to movies made during the marriage. The New York Post reported last year that Diandra Douglas — the ex-wife of Michael Douglas — moved to collect on his payday for the making of “Wall Street 2,” claiming her divorce agreement entitled her to a portion of the proceeds.

For most couples, similar concerns often involve retirement accounts or the earning power of an advanced degree — such as a medical degree or law degree — earned during the marriage.
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March 9, 2011

Children of Divorce Pay More for College

By Bickford Blado & Botros

Time.com recently posted an article titled: 5 New Reasons to Get (or Stay) Married this Year. What was their number one reason? Children of divorce pay more for college.

The article cites an analysis of student financial aid statistics which concludes, generally, that parents who are divorced contribute less to college expenses than parents who are married. And, even if a parent divorces and then remarries increasing their household income, they still contribute a smaller percentage of that income to college expenses. The article states that, according to the study, a college student with divorced parents pays an average of 58% of all college expenses, whereas a college student whose parents are still married pays only an average of 23% of all college expenses. For a college student whose parents divorce, and then remarry, the student pays an average of 47% of all college expenses.

As a San Diego family law attorney who handles child support cases, I have been asked whether a court can order a parent to pay for a child’s college expenses. In my experience, absent an agreement between the parents, a judge will not order a parent to pay for a child’s college expenses.

March 3, 2011

Will You or Your Spouse be Required to Maintain Health Insurance for Your Child?

By Bickford Blado & Botros

As a San Diego family law attorney, many of my clients come to me with the goal of obtaining an order for child support. Many times, my clients do not know that generally, when a court makes an order for child support, the court must also make an order for health insurance for the supported child. Specifically, the court must order that either or both parents maintain health insurance for the supported child if that insurance is available at no cost or at a reasonable cost to the parent.

Because many of my clients do not have the benefit of health insurance at no cost, one question I am asked in child support cases is what will the judge think is a resonable cost for health insurance?

There used to be a rebuttable presumption that any employment-related group health insurance or other group health insurance was reasonable in cost. However, beginning January 1, 2011, this has changed. Now, there is a rebuttable presumption that any health insurance cost which does not exceed 5% of the parent’s gross income is reasonable. In determining whether the health insurance cost exceeds 5% of the parent’s gross income, we look at the difference in cost between self coverage and family coverage, and it is that amount that cannot exceed 5%.

March 1, 2011

Military Allowances are Includable in a Party’s Gross Income for Purposes of Calculating Support

By Bickford Blado & Botros

San Diego has a long and proud military history. San Diego, which started as a Spanish military outpost and continued to be a military town throughout the years, is currently home to numerous U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard facilities.

Whether you are in the military or married to a military service member the California Court of Appeals recently made a decision that will impact how support is calculated in divorces where one or both parties are in the military.

In the case of In re Marriage of Stanton, Mr. Stanton, a member of the US Navy, filed a request to modify support. At the time of the hearing, his base pay was $4,474.80/mo, Basic Allowance Housing (“BAH”) was $2,199/mo, Basic Allowance Subsistence (“BAS”) was $323.87/mo and special duty pay was $300/mo. The trial court included his military allowances as non-taxable income when calculating support stating, “If it looks like income, it is income no matter how it’s paid to you. And this court has always considered BAH and BAS to be income.”