The Family Code, which governs all family law-related issues including child support, is frequently revised and updated. One important code section set to change later this year is Family Code Section 4062, which deals with additional child support, also known as child support “add-ons”. These are expenses for…
Usually, a person who has been ordered to pay spousal support does not run to court seeking a reduction in support after she or he has just received a large raise — the risk being the court could order an increase in support because of the increase in…
A California resident is attempting to place a ballot initiative on the November 2016 ballot that would significantly alter (eliminate?) spousal support in California. The proposed ballot initiative can be found here. Spousal support is governed by Family Code Section 4300 (et. seq.) and case law. In short, “a…
A child support order is just that – an order. Once ordered, it is not optional. However, $14.3 billion in child support remained unpaid in the United States in 2011. Child support in California is determined by a mathematical formula which is set forth at Family Code Section 4055 (the…
The Petition breakdown wraps up today. The Judicial Council updated the Petition and Response as of January 1, 2015. The information contained in the pre- and post-updated forms are (for the most part) the same. However, in seeking to complete the task at hand (a walk-through of…
A recent Doonesbury cartoon should remind all family law parties to watch what they post to their Facebook page. While the comic focuses on potential adultery (not a specific ground for dissolution in California), Facebook and other social media posts can potentially impact support and custody/visitation decisions. For…
On March 5, this blog referenced a New Jersery adult child support case and a California parent’s responsibility (or lack thereof) to pay for a child’s college education. As previously noted, parents are not responsible for their non-minor children unless the child is “incapacitated from earning a living…
In Washington, DC, parents are in court disputing the appropriate amount of child support to be paid for the parties’ two children. It gets press (here at the Washington Post) because of the money involved (millions) and because the father, Peter Orszag, is a former Clinton and Obama administration…
New Jersey parents can sleep a little easier tonight knowing that one of their own won’t have to pay for their over-18-child-who-would-not-listen-yet sued-them-in-court-for-child-support youngster. The full story is here. In California, both parents are responsible for the support of their minor children. Fam. Code § 3900. The duty to…
In Section 2 of the Petition, the Petitioner lists the Date of Marriage and the Date of Separation (“DOS”). These dates are important and can impact spousal support and the division of community property. Most people can agree on the Date of Marriage. But what is the DOS?…