Articles Posted in Paternity

How Can an Attorney Help With Family Court Order Modification?

How Can an Attorney Help With Family Court Order Modification?

Life can pose unpredictable challenges for anyone. When changes in your lifestyle occur due to forces beyond your control, some of these changes can have a material impact on any standing family court orders that you must observe. For example, if you have a family court order requiring you to pay child support and you lose your job due to company-wide layoffs, you may not be able to meet your child support obligation by no fault of your own. When these things happen, and you are concerned about your ability to abide by a standing family court order, it’s vital to understand how the modification process can help your situation.

Family law is unique in that it is possible to alter your family court order without a complex, time-consuming appeal process. Instead, modification allows any party beholden to a family court order to request reasonable changes to their family court order through a simplified process. While this may seem straightforward at first, consulting an experienced California family law attorney before filing your petition for modification is a wise choice. Your attorney can help you determine whether you have grounds for a modification, guide you through the process, and may even have suggestions for other alterations you could reasonably request that could make it easier for you to manage your court-ordered obligations in the future.

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What Happens When a Parent Violates a Custody Agreement in California?

What Happens When a Parent Violates a Custody Agreement in California?

When divorced or unmarried parents have a child custody agreement in California, both of them need to abide by the terms of the agreement to the letter. While life is unpredictable, and a parent may have an emergency or other unforeseen issue that interrupts their regular custody or visitation schedule, these one-off events are typically easy to manage between the parents. However, if a parent repeatedly violates the terms of a custody agreement or violates the terms to an extreme degree, the other parent must know how to address the situation and prevent similar issues in the future.

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Is There a Difference Between Alimony and Child Support?

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Individuals face a laundry list of issues and questions when they are going through a divorce, and it can be challenging to find a reasonable answer to simple questions. Couples that were once very much in love may be consumed with bitterness and anger when their marriage fails. Details such as spousal support, alimony, property division, child support, and child custody often drive a wedge even further between them. Most couples find that the most difficult challenges they face when going through divorce are spousal support and alimony. These controversial determinations are among the most common to go to court for a ruling by a judge.

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Under What Circumstances Can a Child Custody Agreement be Modified?

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Going through a divorce can be an exceedingly long, stressful process, even when the separation was relatively amicable. During the proceedings, many decisions must be made, including child custody and child support. Once these have been finalized, it can be tempting to consider the matter fully resolved, but when there are children involved, that is rarely the case. There are a significant number of unexpected circumstances that can crop up after you’ve settled your custody agreement, ranging from changes in your life or your spouse’s life to potential new needs of your child. At the same time, modifying your agreement is not the simplest process.

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Tips for Effective Coparenting Following Divorce in CA

Tips-for-Effective-Coparenting-Following-Divorce-in-CA

Transitioning from married life back to single living can be very difficult, especially if you are a divorced parent. It is necessary to not only take care of yourself and adapt to your new reality but also to ensure your children can adjust in the healthiest ways possible. Unfortunately, it is fairly common for recently divorced parents to notice significant changes in their children’s behavior. Some parents even feel lost when it comes to communicating with their children about their new reality. One of divorced parents’ greatest challenges is often reconciling their personal feelings about the other parent with their shared responsibilities.

If you have recently divorced in San Diego and have a child custody agreement with your ex-spouse, it is natural to experience many difficult emotions during the transition phase. However, it is vital to be reasonable and practical when it comes to dealing with your ex. No matter what type of personal issues lie between you and your ex, you both have a responsibility to do what is best for your children.

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What Happens When a Judge Determines Child Custody?

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Divorce can be one of the most challenging experiences of any person’s life, but the process tends to be especially hard on parents. The breakdown of a marriage is one thing, but the breakdown of a family unit raises an entirely new set of concerns and issues that demand thoughtful consideration.

In California, state law dictates that all family court judges must ensure that any divorce involving children preserves those children’s best interests. Regardless of whether divorcing parents intend to go to court or mediate their divorces, the California family court system must approve their parenting plan and ensure safe care, custody, and support for the couple’s children.
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The Consequences of Withholding Visitation Rights

Visitation-RightsVisitation is an important part of any custody agreement. However, it can be difficult to allow your former partner to spend time with your child after having sustained multiple negative experiences with them in the past. In addition to any perceived hostility from the other parent, many situations might make you tempted to withhold visitation, such as attempts by the parent to manipulate your child, failure to pay child support, or even risk of physical or psychological abuse. If the court has already determined that the other parent has visitation rights, withholding visitation is an act of defiance against a standing court order and could result in severe consequences. In fact, the other parent can even accuse you of kidnapping. That’s why it is critical to follow the appropriate legal procedures for your situation instead of simply attempting to withhold visitation rights on your own. A family law attorney can go over the specifics and help you determine the best course of action to ensure the safety and wellbeing of your child. Continue reading

Co-parenting With Someone of a Different Religion

Co-parenting-With-Someone-of-a-Different-ReligionIn the state of California, the term child custody is used to reference the ability to make decisions that affect the quality of life of your children, such as those relating to health and education. For some parents, religion plays a big role in making those decisions, which can significantly complicate things when your religion differs from that of the children’s other parent. Outside of simply including religious holidays into your custody schedule, other factors that could be impacted include attending religious ceremonies, dressing a certain way, eating a certain diet, and more. There is no set template for how to navigate these sorts of challenges, given that the details of each case vary significantly. However, there are certain elements that will likely be taken into account and strategies you can employ to find a mutually acceptable resolution.
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Child Custody and Support Outside of Wedlock

Child-Custody-and-Support-Outside-of-WedlockNavigating custody and child support cases is a normal part of course proceedings. If you happen to be an unmarried parent who has newly separated from their partner, you might be wondering if any legal provisions are in place to support you and your child. In 2018, the CDC revealed 39.6% of all births in the United States resulted from relationships outside of wedlock, so this is hardly an unusual situation. However, the information and resources available to parents going through custody-related claims in court are generally focused on situations where the parents were previously in a legally recognized union. Continue reading

Co-Parenting Over the Holidays

Co-ParentingRegardless of your custody arrangement or relationship with your child’s other parent, navigating the intricacies of co-parenting over the holidays can be difficult. Holiday planning is particularly challenging this year due to the ongoing pandemic, which has introduced new obstacles and complications to anything involving travel. However, even during a normal year, the holidays inherently require a lot of work and careful communication for separated parents. Continue reading

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