Divorce can be an emotional journey. Being equipped with all of the information can help ease this burdensome process and ease anxiety during this difficult period.
California is a community property state, so assets and debts earned or accumulated during marriage by either partner are considered jointly owned. Furthermore, this state offers child custody laws and support guidelines.
Community property
California law stipulates that any assets and debts acquired during a marriage are considered community property and should be divided equally in a divorce settlement. This includes income, possessions and retirement benefits. Separate property may still exist and laws distinguish it from community property by setting forth certain stipulations or factors.
These properties may include investments or real estate that is registered to one spouse but used by both of them, such as a house or car. Furthermore, community property also refers to any inheritances or gifts received by either partner as well as anything excluded by a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement.
Though these rules provide guidance, it can still be tricky to distinguish which assets belong to each spouse, and which should be treated as separate property. This is particularly true when the date of separation plays an integral part in deciding whether separate and community assets have become intertwined over time.
Child custody
Divorce can be a complex process, especially if children are involved. Understanding the laws that regulate this area will allow you to better understand your rights and responsibilities regarding child custody arrangements. There are two components to child custody arrangements – physical (where your children will live) and legal – which determine who makes decisions about your children’s lives.
Custody decisions in California are determined based on what’s best for the child, rather than favoring either parent over another. Although neither may take preference over another, California law encourages both parties to participate actively in a child’s life and development and prioritizes joint physical and legal custody where possible.
If a parenting plan can’t be reached between both parties, court hearings or trials may be scheduled in order for a judge to make decisions on unresolved matters such as custody and property division. A knowledgeable California divorce attorney can be invaluable when dealing with these matters and explaining how child support and alimony works within California law.
Spousal support
Spousal support, also called alimony or maintenance payments, are court-ordered payments made from one spouse to the other to cover expenses and is often known as such in divorce, legal separation and domestic violence restraining order cases. A judge can issue this order during divorce proceedings, legal separation agreements or domestic violence restraining order proceedings.
A judge can also issue temporary spousal support orders, typically lasting until either the end of the case or until the requesting spouse can find employment elsewhere. Its calculations typically involve subtracting one income’s monthly net monthly income from another income’s.
Judges in California offer mediation or arbitration sessions in an attempt to resolve conflicts outside of court; should these fail, hearings or trials will follow. As California is a no-fault divorce state, spouses don’t need to prove anything was done wrong by their partners; however, judges still take fault into consideration during divorce rulings; for instance if one partner commits adultery it could impact how much spousal support will be awarded.
Legal separation
Legal separation may offer couples another means to end their marriage, as well as many of its advantages over divorce. Benefits may include court orders regarding child custody and support arrangements, property division issues and any financial concerns that come up during separation proceedings. Furthermore, this form of dissolution could allow spouses to maintain some benefits of being married such as accessing insurance or employment benefits that come with being in a relationship.
Beginning the process for dissolving their marriage requires one spouse – known as the petitioner – filing a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage with the superior court in their county, meeting residency requirements and providing basic information about their union. They then serve it to their other partner known as Respondent; who then have 30 days in which to file their response.
Ideally, spouses who can agree on all details of their case can submit a settlement agreement to the court; otherwise, the judge will determine key issues such as support payments (spousal/child support/custody arrangements/property division etc), custody arrangements and property division in an open court trial.