The Second District Court of Appeal recently held that a mother seeking a modification of child custody and child support, after she defaulted and did not file a response to the divorce action and judgment was entered against her, had standing to seek the modification. This is in contrast to prior cases which ruled the default precluded standing to the defaulted party.

IRMO Valerie and Louis G, the court affirmed that within the meaning of family code section 6203 (domestic violence statute), a person who responds reasonably to an aggressor does not commit abuse.

Generally, characterization of a term insurance policy (i.e. life insurance, homeowners insurance, etc.) depends on the source of funding of the premium for the final term of the policy

Ordinarily, to the extent martial expenses reflect marital lifestyle, the focus should be on actual expenditures during the marriage- NOT ON THE APPLICANT SPOUSE’S “ESTIMATED” EXPENSES BASED ON THE “WISHES AND DESIRES” FOR A PARTICULAR LIFESTYLE.

If the spouse is using separate property to pay the community debt, i.e. wages earned after separation, then the payer spouse may be entitled to reimbursement from the community for paying the community debt. Beware, a spouse who resided in the community home exclusively may have to reimburse the community for the rental value of the home during the period of exclusive use.

If the court deems it appropriate, the court will issue a warning to the supported spouse that they must makes efforts to find work and support themselves, as the court intends to terminate or modify spousal support at a future date.

When determining the amount of spousal support (alimony), one spouse will receive, the court will attempt to determine what the martial standard of living was during the marriage.

People sometimes complain that technology is preventing us from talking to each other face-to-face. But there are moments when communicating at a distance is a good thing—like when a married couple is going through a bitter divorce and kids are involved.

Who gets to the claim the tax dependency exemption in California during a divorce case? The parent with whom the child resided with for the longest period of time during the taxable year gets the exemption.