California Family Law Blog

Salinas Divorce Attorney Discusses Spousal Support and Domestic Violence

Most men who earn more than their wives are aware that in the event of a divorce they may owe some level of spousal support, formerly called alimony, to their wives. They may not know the amount or the duration but they are aware of the risk. During a recent consultation with a client I went over the details of how spousal support is calculated and ran the support numbers for him. We discussed the factors that go into calculating spousal support and the likelihood of how long the amount would be owed. It was not until the very end of the conversation that he brought up the fact that his wife had been convicted of domestic violence against him.

This case illustrates the classic example that a man who is a high earner, as in this case, is somewhat resigned to the idea of paying spousal support and does not necessarily considered his wife’s domestic violence as an important issue to bring up immediately. Women who are the victims of domestic violence will be much more likely to bring it up immediately, most likely because they want a restraining order. Men may feel like they can protect themselves so they do not feel they need a restraining order.

What my consultation was not aware of is how spousal support and domestic violence are connected under the law. If a spouse has been convicted of domestic violence against the other spouse within the last five years then under California law there is a presumption that the injured spouse should not have to pay spousal support to their abuser. Therefore my consultation would have a good case to make to the court that even though he would normally owe spousal support that he should not have to under these circumstances because of his wife’s criminal conviction of domestic violence against him.

If you have any questions about spousal support or domestic violence or any other family law issue then please contact Sagaria Law at 1-800-941-673 or vistit us a www.sagarialaw.com to schedule a free consultation at the office location nearest you. We have offices in Salinas, Monterey, San Jose, Fremont and Redwood City.

San Jose Divorce Attorney Discusses Bigamy

Everyone’s heard of bigamy, its being married to two people simultaneously. But what people don’t know is that a bigamous marriage is a marriage which is void from the start, i.e. never a valid marriage. What does this mean? It means there’s no need for a divorce, because instead the second marriage will be nullified.

Recently, I encountered a case where a young man married a young woman. After they split up, his suspicions were aroused by some of her behavior and he discovered she had been and likely still was married to someone else. Knowingly marrying someone while married to someone else is bigamy.

California Family Law provides that the bigamous marriage is void, unless the former husband or wife (i) is absent, and not known to the person to believing for the period of five successive years immediately preceding the subsequent marriage, or (ii) is generally reputed or believed by the person to be dead at the time the subsequent marriage was contracted. In the case above, there was no evidence to suggest the husband was dead or even absent.

Interestingly, a recent case out of the Palm Springs area indicates that a woman was married to a man, and got divorced in Mexico. She subsequently married another man, and they are now in the process of splitting up. Turns out that Mexican law requires at least one party to be a legal resident of the state when obtaining a divorce in Mexico, or else it is invalid. The woman’s divorce in Mexico was not valid there and not valid here in California, so she was still legally married to her first husband at the time she married her second husband.

We don’t encounter too many cases of bigamy, but we do handle all other types of divorces, annulments, custody and paternity proceedings. So if you or someone you know are considering one of the above actions, or maybe you are already involved in one, our experienced, thoughtful and talented attorneys at Sagraia Law can assist you. We offer a free consultation, either in person or over the phone, at any of our five locations: San Jose, Fremont, Monterey, San Mateo and Salinas. We accept cases from all over the Greater Bay Area, and we have a variety of attorneys to meet your needs. Call today to schedule your free consultation!

San Jose Divorce Attorney Discusses Child Support

August is Child Support Awareness Month!

California law requires both parents to support their children. Child support is calculated using a formula that considers the incomes of both parties, as well as the timeshare. Typically, this formula results in a number which becomes the child support amount. Sometimes, courts will adjust the number either up or down to reflect additional expenses, or for some other reason.

California has what is called a Statewide Uniform Guideline Calculation for child support. This formula is rebuttably presumed to be the correct amount of child support. This calculation takes three factors into account: (1) the parents’ respective net monthly disposable incomes, (2) the number of children for whom support is being determined, and (3) the parents’ respective periods of primary physical responsibility for the children.

Where the payor parent’s net monthly disposable income is less than $1000, there is a rebuttable presumption that the obligor is entitled to a low-income adjustment. The court can reduce the amount to a fraction of the original amount.

Other adjustments to child support can be done because the parties can agree that either less or more than the guideline calculation is the appropriate amount of child support. Also, where one parent has an extraordinarily high income the guideline amount may be incorrect. Other circumstances the court can consider include the cost of housing as a percentage of income where the parties have a substantially equal timeshare, or the children have special medical or other needs that require more child support than the amount calculated under the guideline formula.

Child support may also reflect some mandatory add-ons, including work related child care expenses and uninsured medical expenses. Discretionary add-ons include travel expenses for visitation and costs related to the educational or other special needs of the children.

Child support is a numbers game, bottom line. But it can be a confusing situation for you, especially if you don’t have any experience with the court system. Our team of experienced and talented family law attorneys handle all aspects of child support cases, as well as all other family law cases. We have four Bay Area locations, including Redwood City, San Jose, Monterey and Fremont. We offer a free consultation, either in person or over the phone. Call today to schedule your free consultation with an experienced San Jose Divorce Attorney.

Monterey Divorce Attorney Discusses Divorce

A recent article on CNN.com was entitled “Happily Divorced Ever After” which unfortunately for most divorcing couples sounds too good to be true. While most divorces certainly can be very acrimonious to say the least it is certainly possible to have an amicable divorce and certainly something to strive for if children are involved. If you can manage to be civil with your estranged spouse then you stand a much better chance of finishing your divorce more quickly and certainly cheaper than you would if you were at each other’s throats.

As the article states it is important to strive to remain friendly with your estranged spouse for the sake of your children. Of course in many cases this is easier said that done if you both have very different views on parenting and your children’s needs. If you can make this work your children will benefit from seeing their parents successfully co-parenting and presenting a unified front to the children on all issues. As outlined in the article it is important to put the children’s needs first. If your estranged spouse is a good parent then keep the fact that they made a lousy spouse a separate issue and do not let it affect the children.

Going through a divorce is certainly never easy but there are ways to minimize the damage and look forward to happily divorced ever after. If you have questions regarding your divorce case we can assist you on all the pertinent issues from child custody and visitation to child and spousal support and property division. Please contact Sagaria Law to schedule a free consultation at one of the offices nearest you. We have offices in Monterey, Salinas, San Jose, Fremont and Redwood City 1-800-941-6730 or www.sagarialaw.com.