Orange County Divorce Attorney

Steadfast Support for Modern Families

With over 18 years of experience practicing family law, Deborah Skanadore Reisdorph has the experience and insight to guide you through every aspect of your case, including dissolution, custody disputes, child support, spousal support, domestic violence, and division of community property issues.

What is family law?

Family law encompasses legal separations, marriage dissolution, pre- and post-nuptial agreements, Marvin-type (cohabitation) agreements, paternity actions, domestic violence, child custody matters, spousal and child support matters, and all related areas within these categories.

What can I expect to pay/receive as child support?

The State of California has adopted child support guidelines in an attempt to make support awards more uniform. This presumes that the guidelines, which are calculated using computer programs based on complex formulas, produce a child support award that is in the best interest of the child.

Regardless of whether the issue arises as part of a marriage dissolution, separation, or paternity action, all child support orders are handled with the same application of the support guidelines.

Among the factors used to determine an appropriate child support award are:

• Amount of custodial time-sharing between the parents
• Number of children to be supported
• Net incomes of the parents (after narrowly defined deductions for reasonably related taxes, FICA or self employment tax, health insurance, mandatory union dues, mandatory retirement contributions, and children from other relationships)
• Special needs of the child/children (educational, medical, psychological, etc.)

The guidelines have proven to be helpful in cases where the payor and the recipient have a fairly specific idea of the amount of the support order. In cases involving self-employed individuals whose actual incomes are difficult to determine, it can be more difficult to determine the award amount.

The court will consider income from all sources, including interest income, passive/investment income, retirement and disability income, bonus/commission income, and salary or draw. Even without a stream of income, if a payor has substantial separate property capital and no income, the capital can be used to pay child support.

How is child support enforced?

All support orders are now made by wage assignment. This means that the employer of the payor is required to withhold funds from each paycheck to pay the child support directly to the recipient on a monthly basis.

Child support is deemed to be the highest financial priority for all parents. These child support orders can be enforced interstate (through the Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act "URESA") and by the District Attorney with an interception of the payor's tax refunds. Failure to pay can result in criminal prosecution and incarceration. Contempt of court proceedings (a quasi-criminal matter) can result in heavy fines, attorney’s fees, continuing financial obligation, and possible jail time.

Child support orders can only be modified if there is a written agreement or subsequent court order. Verbal agreements with the recipient, unilateral reduction of support payments, or partial payments do not change the obligation to pay court-ordered support.

If the recipient is also receiving public assistance (such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children), the other parent can be charged with a support obligation long after the aid has been paid, and without the other parent's knowledge. In this case, a support obligation could arise without a judge issuing a court order.

How can child support be modified?

The easiest method is to draft a written agreement between the parents that states the new support amount, the commencement date, and the termination date. The parties should sign and date this document, each retaining a signed original. This typically works for cases in which the parties have maintained a working relationship, and one party is experiencing temporary financial hardship (i.e. loss of job, temporary disability, etc.) or circumstances have changed since the current order was made.

If a written agreement is not possible, a motion must be filed in the proper court requesting a modification of support based on a "substantial change in circumstances”. Support is only modifiable back to the date when the paperwork was actually filed with the court. It’s critical to start the process as early as possible, as the support obligation will continue to accrue in the meantime.

How is spousal support determined?

In certain jurisdictions (and to the IRS), spousal support is known as “alimony”. In California, this type of financial interaction is called “spousal support”. You must be married to request/receive spousal support. Many counties in California have adopted a spousal support guideline, much like the child support guidelines discussed above.

There are two types of spousal support, temporary and permanent:

Temporary

This type of support is usually agreed to or ordered at time of separation. The support is generally intended as a "band aid" fix to try and maintain the status quo of the family. Rarely do the parties have sufficient funds to maintain two households at the same standard of living. As a result, many temporary orders are a strain on each party—the recipient has to adjust their standard of living substantially downward, and the payor can’t maintain a standard of living outside the family home. The temporary order will be effective until modified by agreement of the parties or subsequent court order.

Permanent

This type of support is based on numerous factors, as specified in the Family Code:

• Age and health of the parties
• Standard of living of the parties
• Length of the marriage
• Property of each party
• Ability to be competitive in the workforce

In California, the ostensible purpose of spousal support is to rehabilitate a dependent spouse into becoming financially self-sufficient. Although not part of any official document, the "rule of thumb" for the term of spousal support in a marriage of less than ten years is one half the duration of the marriage. The court has tremendous discretion in making its award of spousal support, including the duration for support.

In California, a marriage of 10 years or more is presumed to be a “long-term” union, and in these cases the court frequently retains jurisdiction over spousal support for an open-ended period, even if no support is actually ordered to be paid.

What’s the best way to resolve custody issues?

There are two types of custody in California:

Legal Custody

This custody defines the responsibility of a parent for the health, education, welfare, and religious training of a child. This is usually jointly held between the parents, giving both equal input into the non-emergency life decisions affecting the child.

Physical Custody

This is commonly referred to as "time sharing", as a custodial parent only needs to be designated when there’s a public assistance case. At such times, the county needs to determine who the custodial parent is for the purpose of paying AFDC or some other type of public assistance.

Under California statutes, frequent and continuing contact with both parents is presumed to be in the child's best interest. Younger children generally need more frequent visits of shorter duration with the "non-custodial" parent. Older children can sustain longer periods of absence from their parents without disruption to their stability, and begin spending longer but less frequent visits with the other parent.

The goal of any custody case is a stable arrangement in which both parents can meet the best interests of the child. In the event that the parties cannot resolve time-sharing issues, they can consult with a mediator who is trained to assist them in setting a schedule. Once the matter is submitted to the court, the parties will be required to meet with a mediator from Family Court Services, or a mutually selected private mediator, to attempt a resolution. If the family court services mediator cannot assist the parties in resolving the issues, then the mediator will issue a written report to the judge. Typically, the judge will follow these recommendations in making court orders regarding the child's needs.

Prenuptial Agreements

With the national divorce rate at 50% and "blended families" becoming increasingly common, it is not surprising that prenuptial agreements are a major family law issue.

When parents remarry, they may have concerns about protecting their property for themselves or for their children. In California, for all agreements made after 1986, a statute lists the specific criteria required for a legally enforceable prenuptial agreement.

In a prenuptial agreement, the parties attempt to accurately disclose their assets and liabilities and then determine how they wish to segregate or allocate those assets and pay their debts. The parties also specify how they wish to characterize any income earned during the marriage. In some cases, there are family businesses that were already operational when the couple met. In this event, it would be appropriate to discuss and determine how they wish to identify the income from the business and any appreciation to its value after the marriage takes place.

The keys to an effective and useful prenuptial agreement are:

• Full and accurate disclosure of the value of assets and the extent of liabilities
• The disposition of these assets, debts, and income in the event of separation, dissolution, or death
• Characterization and disposition of income earned during the marriage
• Clear delineation of rights and responsibilities to each party
• Following the terms of the agreement after marriage

Property Division

There are two types of property: real property, which comprises land or anything built on land; and personal property, which is everything else. Personal property includes but is not limited to:

• Bank accounts, brokerage accounts, etc.
• Furniture, furnishings, appliances
• Cars, boats, vehicles, trailers
• Businesses, business interests
• Accounts receivable, notes receivable
• Stocks, bonds, secured notes
• Art, jewelry, coin collections
• Retirement accounts and retirement benefits
• Equipment, machinery, livestock

This is not intended to be an exhaustive list; it merely provides an idea of the scope of property issues that need to be addressed in family law cases.

In California, property is identified and allocated according to the manner and point in time at which it was acquired. California is a community property state, meaning that any property acquired with the skill, energy, or time of either party, while married and living together, is considered to be community property. Whether it is real property or personal property, it must be divided equally by the court; the property can be divided equitably by the parties (which does not necessarily mean equally).

Property brought into the marriage and kept separate, or property that is acquired during the marriage—by gift or inheritance—and kept separate, is considered to be separate property. Under some circumstances, property that was brought into the marriage, or acquired separately during marriage, and which was converted into joint ownership, can be characterized as partially separate property and partially community property.

When parties litigate, they frequently surrender control over the disposition of these assets. While the court will attempt to preserve the community, property often needs to be sold if more creative options are not available. This results in:

• Fire sale prices
• Further reduction in equity by costs of sale (commissions, loan origination fees, etc.)
• Potential tax consequences (gain on sale, etc.)

It is in the best interests of both parties to settle property issues amicably. This way, they are free to resolve issues (such as the timing of the sale, the manner in which property can be held jointly pending sale, etc.) much quicker than the court could. They also avoid tax consequences, maximize returns, and limit disruption to children. So in effect, the community retains more of the monetary value that the parties developed during their relationship.

If you have questions about Family Law issues, please contact us.