Nancy J. Bickford

By

Funk music innovator, George Clinton, and his wife of 23 years, Stephanie Clinton, are now amidst a battle over spousal support. TMZ reports that Stephanie is now seeking Clinton pay up and is requesting the court to order both temporary and permanent spousal support. Clinton is reportedly not too pleased about this request because he had previously claimed that the couple had been separated for many years and they didn’t have any shared bank accounts or real estate. However, Stephanie is requesting that the court make Clinton disclose all of his finances, including taxes, bank accounts, etc. Stephanie wants to know exactly how much spousal support she is entitled to after their 23 years of marriage. The question remains, to what extent does Clinton really have to disclose?

As divorce attorneys know, declarations of disclosure are essentially the backbone of a divorce case. In California, Preliminary declarations of disclosure are mandatory. Final Declarations of disclosure, on the other hand, may be waived by both parties. With regards to disclosure, California Family Code Section 2100(c) requires complete disclosure of all assets and all debts that the parties may have any interest in. The disclosure must occur early in the divorce or legal separation process, and must occur together with a disclosure of all income and expenses.

Read more about fiduciary duty and divorce in California

Types of Disclosure:

Such disclosure requires preparation of the following documents by divorce attorneys:

  1. Schedule of Assets and Debts;
  2. Income and Expense Declaration;
  3. Statement of material facts regarding valuation of all community property assets;
  4. Statement of material facts regarding obligations that the community is liable for; and
  5. Disclosure of any investment opportunity, business opportunity or other income-producing opportunity.

While these forms may seem fairly simple and straightforward, it is very important that divorce attorneys advise their clients to be extremely open and comply with the full disclosure requirement. This means that that ALL liabilities and ALL assets must be accurately disclosed. This often requires the client to spend a lot of time thumbing through old files of financial statements to find the most recent balances and accurate information. It is also vital that divorce attorneys remind their clients that the disclosure requirement applies to assets and liabilities that the client may have in the future, such as potential business opportunities that the client is aware of. Even though the client may think that an asset or debt is a separate property item, it must still be disclosed in accordance with California Family Code Section 2100.

Learn more about property and divorce

Failure to Disclose = Sanctions?!

Failure to comply with disclosure requirements can result in significant sanctions, so clients should think twice about leaving out an asset or two. For instance, in In re Marriage of Feldman (2007), 153 Cal. App.4th 1470, the Husband failed to disclose numerous transactions and the formation of new companies, which were all quite significant. Wife found out about these assets by other means and filed for sanctions pursuant to California Family Code Sections 1101(g), 2107(c) and 271(a). The court held that husband could be sanctioned, and as a result Wife was granted $250,000 in sanctions! The court reasoned that Husband had an obligation to fully disclose all material facts and information regarding all assets in which the community has or may have had an interest.

So, despite his reluctance, it looks like Clinton is going to have to fork over some financial paperwork so that a fair determination can be made regarding how much spousal support Stephanie is entitled to. If he fails to do so, looks like some pretty hefty sanctions may be in his future.
Continue reading

By

Former MLB and NFL legend, Deion Sanders, is use to battling to the top. But this time, his three children were on the line. As we have previously blogged, Sanders filed for divorce in 2011. Luckily for Sanders, he came out on top again when a Texas judge recently awarded him full custody of his 9 year old daughter. Sanders had also previously been awarded full custody of his two sons, 11 and 13, but had only been given joint custody of his daughter with estranged wife, Pilar. This leaves us to wonder, what exactly does Sanders’ “full custody” award entail? As divorce attorneys know, in California, two types of custody exist: “legal” and “physical”. Each type of child custody may be awarded solely to one parent or shared jointly between divorcing parents.

Legal Custody:

Legal custody refers to a parent’s right to make decisions about the child’s health, welfare and education. If a parent is awarded “sole legal custody” by the court, then he/she is the only one who has the right to make such decisions and may do so without consulting with the other parent. However, when divorcing parents are awarded “joint legal custody,” they both have the right to make decisions about the child’s health, welfare, and education.

Since Sanders has been awarded sole legal custody of all three children, he now has full range to make decisions about where the kids will go to school, whether they should receive medical care and whether they will engage in religious activities, without consulting with Pilar.

Read more about the divorce process in San Diego

Physical Custody:

Physical custody, on the other hand, refers to where the child lives after divorce. The parent who has physical custody is the one who has the right to have the child physically with them and in their home. Physical custody, like legal custody, can be awarded solely to one parent or shared jointly. When a divorce lawyer makes an argument for “Sole physical custody,” this means that the child will reside with only one parent. That parent is typically referred to by attorneys and the court as the “custodial” or “residential” parent. Divorce lawyers and judges refer to the other parent as the “non-custodial” or “non-residential” parent. It is important to note that the court can still order visitation time for the non-custodial parent.


Learn more about the family law attorneys at the firm

“Joint physical custody” means that a child’s time is divided equally, or close to equally, between both parents. Family lawyers in San Diego will draft such custody orders so that each parent has separate but significant periods of physical custody. Typically, parents share joint legal custody of their children. Divorce attorneys will argue for sole legal custody if one parent is deemed unfit, the parents are completely unable to make decisions together, or it would be in the child’s best interest to have sole legal custody with one parent. For Sanders, winning the child custody battle with Pilar now means that all three kids will be living with dad!
Continue reading

By

A New York appeals court is making waves throughout the family law community as a result of its recent controversial ruling. Before Elizabeth Cioffi-Petrakis and Peter Petrakis got married, they entered into a premarital agreement, commonly known as a “prenup”. At trial, the court ruled that the premarital agreement was void. On appeal, the trial court’s decision was upheld. Many attorneys throughout the U.S. believe that this case may have enormous implications on every premarital agreement case in the future. Divorce attorneys are surprised that the premarital agreement was held void and by the court’s rationale.The basis for voiding the premarital agreement in the divorce proceeding was “fraud in the inducement.” Just four days before her wedding to Mr. Petrakis, Ms. Cioffi was presented with a prenup and an ultimatum. Although Ms. Cioffi’s parents had already spent $40,000 on the wedding, Mr. Petrakis told Ms. Cioffi that he would not marry her unless she signed the agreement. Moreover, Mr. Petrakis orally promised to tear up the agreement and put her name on title to their home as soon as the couple had children. In reliance on Mr. Petrakis’ oral assurances, Ms. Cioffi signed the prenup. Once the couple had children, Ms. Cioffi pushed Mr. Petrakis to follow through with their oral agreement and he refused.

Read more entries about premarital agreements

At the time Ms. Cioffi signed the prenup she was represented by an attorney and all other typical enforceability requirements were undisputedly met. The written agreement also contained a provision specifically stating that both parties were precluded from relying on all prior or contemporaneous oral agreements. Notwithstanding that provision, both courts ruled that the premarital agreement void by applying the contract principal of fraud.

In Del Mar and across California, if both parties are represented by counsel from the onset of negotiations, there is no required waiting period that must pass before the parties can sign an enforceable premarital agreement. However, if only one party is represented by counsel, the unrepresented party must consider the agreement for a minimum of seven days before signing it. As long as these and the additional statutory requirements are met, many family law attorneys feel that premarital agreements are extremely difficult to set aside.

Learn more about Del Mar divorce lawyer Nancy Bickford

In a 1938 California case, the court determined fraud is an appropriate basis for setting aside a post-marital agreement. It would seem that New York was not too far off the mark when it applied the generally accepted contract defense of fraud to family law. More and more, divorce lawyers are seeing the stricter standards applied to civil litigation at large are being applied in family courts.
Continue reading

By

In the past few years internet dating and the concept of online love connections has exploded. It has become increasingly more socially acceptable to find a mate online than when the concept first arose with the invention of the internet. Recently a new trend has emerged: internet marriages.

The idea that a marriage can occur without the physical presence of one spouse is not so new and trendy. A proxy marriage is a legal ceremony which occurs when one (or both) spouses are not physically present. If both spouses are not present, the wedding is called a “double proxy wedding”. Usually a “stand in” will be present in the absent spouse’s place. Generally, proxy marriages are not legally recognized throughout the United States except in limited circumstances such as for military personnel. In Del Mar, the courts recognize proxy marriage as valid in certain circumstances. California is in the minority of states in this respect.

Read more about divorce procedure in Del Mar, CA

While proxy marriages were traditionally entered into mainly by active duty military, they are now being used between people who met online and may have never seen each other in person. Weddings are literally being conducted over the internet through services such as Skype and Google Hangout. The purpose of requiring both parties to be present and to conduct a ceremony in the presence of a witness is to ensure the voluntariness of the marriage. The main concerns of the states which do not allow proxy marriages include: facilitation of fraud by those attempting to gain U.S. citizenship and the possibility that they will be used by human traffickers to bring women into the U.S. Although individuals are generally interviewed when they apply for citizenship and questioned about the details of their wedding, the Times reports that officials working for Homeland Security and the State Department do not specifically ask if the wedding occurred by proxy.

Learn more about the divorce attorneys at the firm

Although many stats disallow proxy marriages, generally every state recognizes marriages legally conducted abroad. This means that if two parties legally marry in a foreign jurisdiction in accordance with that jurisdiction’s laws, their marriage is generally recognized in any state. The recognition of marriages legally conducted abroad is being used as a loophole to circumvent the restrictions on proxy marriages. As divorce lawyers are aware, if a proxy marriage occurs pursuant to the marriage laws of a foreign country and that country recognizes the legality of proxy marriages, the proxy marriage will be legally recognized in any state.
Continue reading

By

A premarital agreement, more commonly known as a “prenup,” is a contract entered into by soon-to-be spouses prior to marriage. Celebrities commonly enter premarital agreements in order to protect any wealth they may acquire during marriage. Where one spouse has the potential to make millions of dollars per year, as is often the case in Del Mar, he or she is incentivized to enter into a contract with his or her spouse clarifying that any money earned during marriage will remain his or her separate property upon divorce. In contrast, under California’s default community property laws, each spouse is entitled to one-half of all earnings by his or her spouse during marriage. One of the most highly debated issues in celebrity premarital agreement negotiations and litigation is an infidelity clause.

Learn more about quasi-community property

As divorce attorneys know, all premarital agreements are different, and thus all infidelity clauses are different. However, an infidelity clause generally imposes a financial penalty on one or both spouses if he or she commits emotional or sexual infidelity. Financial penalties may include mandatory cash payouts, increased spousal support, or an unequal division of the marital estate. In order to protect themselves in case of divorce, celebrities couples such as Charlie Sheen & Denise Richards, Sandra Bullock & Jesse James, and Catherine-Zeta Jones & Michael Douglas are rumored to have had infidelity clauses in their premarital agreements. Recently, Elin Nordegren was rumored to have demanded a substantial infidelity clause in a premarital agreement as a condition of reconciling with Tiger Woods.

Ironically, despite the buzz about celebrity infidelity clauses in premarital agreements, infidelity clauses are void in Del Mar and across California. In Diosdado v. Diosdado, the California divorce court found in 2002 that a penalty for infidelity is in direct violation of public policy underlying “no-fault” divorce and thus is unenforceable. Thus far, Diosdado has been continually upheld by all published cases to follow it. The policy behind California’s “no-fault” divorce is that a party should not be punished financially for any misconduct during marriage. In contrast, certain circumstances allow some states’ divorce courts to look at fault in dissolving marriage, determining support, and dividing property. It would seem to follow that these states would uphold an infidelity clause in a premarital agreement, should divorce become an issue.

Read more about jurisdiction and divorce in California

Considering that thousands of celebrities call cities in California home, it is interesting that so many celebrities are discussing unenforceable infidelity clauses. One explanation may be that only celebrities residing and divorcing outside of California are negotiating infidelity clauses. Gossip magazines also debate whether or not an expensive price tag actually deters celebrities from straying outside of their marriages.
Continue reading

By

Former Philadelphia 76er Allen Iverson’s divorce has been finalized. The resolution came after the second divorce filing by Iverson’s wife, the first having been filed 15 months prior and then withdrawn according to TMZ.

Standing a mere 6 feet (relatively speaking, of course) Iverson was the number one draft pick of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers in 1996. He went on to be named NBA Rookie of the Year for the 1996-1997 basketball season. He continued his career with eleven NBA All-Star nods, and won the All-Star MVP award in 2001. Iverson is father to five children.

According to LA Times.com, in the divorce decree the judge awarded Iverson’s wife legal and physical custody of the parties’ five children. In doing so, the court did not have kind words to say about Iverson. According to the article, the court stated about Iverson: “he does not know how to manage the children; has little interest in learning to manage the children and has actually, at times, been a hindrance to their spiritual and emotional growth and development.”

Iverson will have some visitation with his children, provided he complies with certain conditions imposed by the court. Notably, one condition is that he is not allowed to consume any alcohol for the next 18 months, nor consume alcohol within 24 hours of visiting with his children and, logically, during the visits. Reportedly, he is also required to obtain therapy and attend AA for the next year. According to the LA Times article, the divorce decree states that Iverson has “an obvious and serious alcohol problem, which has caused him to do inappropriate things in the presence of the children while impaired”, things such as, the article reports, leaving the children unsupervised.

While Iverson’s divorce is in Atlanta, Georgia, here in San Diego, divorcing parents are similarly faced with issues of alcohol abuse and its implications on custody and visitation issues in the San Diego Superior Court. To address such issues, the California Family Code includes specific provisions.

Prior to making an order for joint physical custody, which means that each of the parents will have significant periods of physical custody, the San Diego family court is required to consider the habitual use of drugs or alcohol by one or both of the parents. Specifically, Family Code §3011 provides: “In making a determination of the best interest of the child in a proceeding…the court shall, among any other factors it finds relevant, consider all of the following: (d) The habitual or continual illegal use of controlled substances or habitual or continual abuse of alcohol by either parent…”

What happens in the case where one parent alleges habitual or continual use of alcohol by the other parent, but the parent facing those allegations denies them? Family Code section 3011 continues: “Before considering these allegations, the court may first require independent corroboration, including, but not limited to written reports from law enforcement agencies, courts, probation departments, social welfare agencies, medical facilities, rehabilitation facilities, or other public agencies or nonprofit organizations providing drug and alcohol abuse services…”

In some cases, there may be a document which can easily corroborate the allegations; in others, it may be a bit more difficult. If it can otherwise be shown by a preponderance of the evidence that there is habitual or continual abuse of alcohol by a parent, a judge may order that parent to undergo testing for the use of alcohol. If such testing is ordered, it must be done by the least intrusive means. Further, the parent against whom the allegations are made (and thus who is ordered to submit to the test) has a right to a hearing to challenge the results. A positive test cannot alone be the determinative factor in a custody and visitation ruling; the court is still required to balance all factors to determine the best interests of the children.
Continue reading

By

www.dailymail.co.uk recently published an article with the headline “Divorce after a child turns seven makes them more likely to perform badly at school.” The article cites a study conducted by the Childhood Wellbeing Research Centre that was published by the Department for Education. The government-funded study found that children whose parents divorced after the child had turned seven are more likely to perform poorly and have behavioral problems. The article opined that the lesser impact on children under the age of seven is likely because divorce may have a lesser effect on younger children as they cannot fully understand the implications.Divorce was one of the 40 factors looked at by the study for its effects on a child’s scholastic achievement and behavior. Among the other factors looked at were number of siblings, number of hours spent in front of the television, the way in which rules are enforced in a household, grandparent involvement and general parenting skills, to name a few. The study projected that the effects on children at the age of seven are likely to continue into the child’s teen years and adulthood. The study highlighted the importance of family separation, conflict and divorce on the development of children.

Of course, divorce is in some cases unavoidable. In those cases where divorce must occur, what can San Diego parents do to minimize the conflict and the effect on their children?

One tool parents can utilize is a well thought out parenting plan. When an issue of custody and visitation is brought before the court in San Diego, the parents are required to participate in custody mediation. They can do so either at Family Court Services, which is a free program run by the San Diego Superior Court, or they can opt for private mediation at their own expense. The stated purpose of this custody mediation is to reduce the conflict which may exist between the parties and to develop a custody and time-sharing agreement which is in the best interests of the children. It is not uncommon, however, that San Diego parents are unable to reach an agreement through mediation. In that case, the mediator issues a report and recommendation which is then considered by the court in making its ruling of the custody and/or visitation issue. Frequently, in these recommendations we as divorce attorneys see language included in the proposed parenting plan that is geared towards reducing conflict between the parents. Some such provisions which immediately come to mind are:

“Neither parent shall make negative statements about the other in the presence of or hearing of the children or question the children about the other parent.”

“The parents shall communicate directly with each other in matters concerning the children and shall not use the children as a messenger between them.”

“The children shall not be exposed to court papers or disputes between the parents, and each parent shall make every possible effort to ensure that other people comply with this order.”

Such language may be included in a parenting plan at the recommendation of the mediator, but can also simply be included by agreement between the parties.

Another tool for parents is the resource Kids Turn. Kids’ Turn is a San Diego non-profit organization dedicated to working with the entire family to achieve an amicable and healthy divorce.

Read more about Kids’ Turn or visit their website.

The study published by the Department of Education did qualify its results by stating that “Some children do relatively well despite unpromising circumstances and some do relatively poor despite having a good start.” It’s nonetheless helpful for San Diego parents to be aware of how a divorce might impact their children and to take steps that may be appropriate to mitigate any negative impact there may be.
Continue reading

By

Divorce can have a devastating effect on both parties’ standard of living and finances.
We have previously blogged about the sacrifices divorcing spouses make when they cannot afford to support two separate households at the same standard of living they enjoyed during marriage.
However, in Del Mar, the “gray divorce trend” is resulting in another sacrifice divorcing couples make – retirement.

Read more about division of retirement in divorce

From 1990 to 2010, the number of divorces involving spouses over 50 years old “gray divorcés” doubled. Experts say that one of the causes for the increase in later-in-life divorces is longer life spans. Just like a divorce between spouses in their 20’s and 30’s will affect the current standard of living for both parties, a divorce past 50 will affect retirement lifestyles. If a couple divorces when the spouses are between 20 and 40 years old, there is plenty of time before retirement for both spouses to re-build any divided retirement funds. However, gray divorcés will experience the following financial roadblocks:

First, the accumulated retirement savings between the parties is usually divided in half upon divorce. When parties divorce, all property acquired during marriage is divided equally. Most, if not all, of a couple’s retirement fund is usually acquired during marriage. Thus, each spouse will only end up with one-half of what they planned on retiring on with his or her spouse.

Second, funding two separate retirements can cost between 30% and 50% more than funding one. Post divorce, the parties will take separate vacations, take twice as many trips to visit their children and grandchildren, use two separate cars instead of one, live in two separate houses, etc. In addition, if one former spouse becomes ill, the other will not be there to care for him or her. Therefore, post divorce, a spouse may have to use significant retirement funds to pay for medical care.

Read some frequently asked questions about divorce in Del Mar

Financial planners have a few suggestions to help gray divorcés get through divorce and retirement past 50. They suggest hiring a financial adviser simultaneously with hiring a divorce lawyer. Additionally, they advise against supporting adult children when it is not feasible. Often around the age of 50, a gray divorcé will have a child who is getting married and expecting them to shell out $30,000 for a wedding. These types of purchases are not advisable. Finally, financial advisers suggest reducing spending by living in a smaller home, traveling less and eating out less.
Continue reading

By

Brendan Fraser and Afton Smith married in 1998 and divorced nine years later in 2007. At the time of their divorce, Fraser was ordered to pay Smith approximately $900,000 per year for spousal support and child support for their three children. Now, Fraser claims that he can no longer make the required payments, which, if made on a monthly basis, total $75,000 per month. Fraser has filed a motion in family court seeking a post-judgment modification of child and spousal support.

In San Diego, after a divorce is finalized, family courts generally have the ability to change support orders if facts and circumstances have materially changed since the first orders were made. If the moving party can prove to the court a “material change of circumstances” he or she may be granted a post-judgment modification of support. One of the most common changes of circumstance relied upon by courts is a change in income for one or both parties. If the spouse ordered to pay support has experienced a significant decrease in earnings, the court may lower his or her support obligation.

However, it is important to note that San Diego family courts only have the ability to modify the support order back to the date a motion was filed. If one spouse gets fired and does not file a motion to modify support for a few months, he or she may owe a significant amount of back child and/or spousal support. Regardless of a spouse’s current income, his or her obligation to pay support will not change until a motion is filed with the court. Even in cases where a judge determines that a material change of circumstances exists and that support should be modified going forward, he or she is not required by law to make the order retroactive to the date the motion was filed.

Continue reading

By

For many Del Mar families, real estate is their most valuable asset. Because the prices of the average family home are so high, many families must invest significant funds into real estate just to live in the area.

However, upon divorce, all community property must be divided equally by the court.

If the parties have no other assets as valuable as the family home, it must be sold and the proceeds divided.

Continue reading
Contact Information
Del Mar Technology Center
12348 High Bluff Dr, #220
San Diego, CA 92130
Phone: 858-793-8884
Fax: 858-793-8874

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Please do not include any confidential or sensitive information in a contact form, text message, or voicemail. The contact form sends information by non-encrypted email, which is not secure. Submitting a contact form, sending a text message, making a phone call, or leaving a voicemail does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Copyright © 2025, Bickford Blado & Botros
JUSTIA Law Firm Blog Design