In today’s two-income families and successful women “breadwinners,” a Forbes magazine series on spousal support (alimony) concluded that of the 400,000 people in the United States receiving post-divorce spousal maintenance, only 3 percent were men. While men are making strides in “winning” in the custody battles, the common practice still seems to be that in…
Ex parte motions, or “emergency” motions, are common in divorce and custody cases. Ex parte relief is requested when it is impractical or impossible to wait the minimum statutory period for the court to hear a “regular” motion. For example, a new client came in last week, wanting to stop her husband from taking their…
A support order is a judgment and they are installment payment plans. Each installment is subject to a legal interest rate (California is 10%). I have had many clients inquire about how many missed payments are required to commence enforcement. There is no rule that a series of payments are required. As soon as one…
Once you are convicted at a bench trial (no jury) or a jury trial, you have the right to appeal that conviction. A Notice of Appeal must be filed with the court 30-60 days following the judgment. This timeframe and all the timeframes that govern the appeals process require strict compliance. A final judgment is…
An annulment is very different from divorces. In a divorce, there are no questions about the marriage. You simply want to end it and move forward with your life. In an annulment, the marriage itself is questioned—whether it is valid and enforceable. In California, there are 2 types of annulments: (1) void marriage (not legally…
A client who resides in Arizona called me pertaining to a child support case being enforced by Arizona Department of Child Support and the case was established (paternity and child support) in India. Note, there is no present treaty with India. He had hired an Arizona attorney but needed me to oversee his local attorney. …
In a divorce, a charge against a spouse’s share of community property made to reimburse the community for the value of his/her exclusive use of the property after separation (a spouse remains in the family residence) (Watts case). The other credits are reimbursement claims against the community property for the payment of a community debt…
I have had clients call me in the United States due a child support order established in either a different country of a different states. Just last week, I had an individual residing in Arizona and was frantic about finding an attorney who knew how to “handle” state child support cases. His case in particular…
Many of us are aware that employers have a legal duty to exercise due diligence in the hiring process. That duty may be violated if an employer hires someone they knew or should have known in the exercise of reasonable care was dangerous or unfit for the job. Employers are well aware that they could…
Filing false or forged official documents is a crime and probably the most common form of this is the filing of false real estate deeds or deeds of trust. Other examples would be filing a forged notarized deed transferring ownership of an elderly parent’s house to you and filing it with the county recorder’s office,…
“Arrears” means past due support. Arrears are created when a child support order is made and there have periods of time in which payments were paid partially or not at all. If you owe arrears, you may be able to reduce the arrears (and interests) significantly. Arrears owed to the local child support agency for…
Are you a suspect? If you are under investigation of a crime, it is crucial that you hire an attorney right away. It is at this point that an honest, straightforward, no-nonsense consultation with your criminal defense attorney is critical so filing a criminal case against you may be prevented. If you are a suspect…
In California, Penal Code (PC) 1203.3 allows a judge to terminate probation ahead of schedule. A motion will need to be filed and served on the government in order for the prosecution to have an opportunity to oppose or submit to the court’s ruling. Before an early termination of probation, the judge will want to…
Animal Abuse is a very disturbing part of our society. Statistics show how this kind of violence is detrimental to the well being of society as a whole. Psychologists have long linked those who abuse animals with deeper more sinister crimes. Kids who start abusing defenseless animals usually progress into more aggressive crimes. The FBI…
A new client just called me about being arrested for a DUI from a checkpoint. Yes, as we know the holidays mean festivities and parties more likely than not include alcoholic beverages. So again, checkpoints are legal but the police are required to insure that state and federal laws are followed before they institute a…
I am in the middle of a case that will likely be going to trial since one of the contested issues is when will spousal support terminate—opposing party wants it continue “until remarriage, death of either parties, or until further order of the court.” Unlike with child support orders (where the court retains jurisdiction to…
Tomorrow I start a trial for a client who was convicted of a misdemeanor crime and whose professional license is subject to be revoked. I have another client who retained me for her trial next year dealing also with the revocation of her license. I have written many times about how licensing boards (medical, legal,…
There are several ways a prenuptial agreement can be attacked and found invalid. A premarital agreement is unenforceable if a party against whom enforcement is sought proves either of the following: (1) consent was involuntary; (2) the agreement was unconscionable. The court will strongly scrutinize the facts on a case-by-case basis factors that the judge…
When alimony or spousal support is an issue when jurisdiction terminates, if at all should be discussed. In California, a marriage of 10 years is usually defined as a marriage of long duration. As such, it is important to discuss not only how much spousal support should be but for how long. Unlike with child…
Atty. Castaneda won a dismissal for her client on all 10 counts of family law contempt charges on July 9, 2015. On September 22, 2015, the Court of Appeal, (2nd District) affirmed the trial court’s order dismissing all the charges. The appellate court in a 2 line decision stated: “The court has read and considered…