Divorce often causes financial difficulties, especially for a spouse who sacrificed a career in order to take care of children or the home. Alimony is an important aspect of many divorces, and it is important to understand the types of alimony. There are two main varieties of alimony in California—temporary and permanent. Each is designed to serve a different purpose.
In California, child support amounts are calculated based on a formula. The formula provides a guideline for child support amounts, and is generally used unless there are factors indicating that a different amount should be awarded.
Determining child custody is an obvious part of any divorce case involving minor children. However, what happens when the children are not yet, and may never be, born? On July 13, the San Francisco Superior Court began hearing arguments in a trial with potentially groundbreaking legal implications involving the issue of custody rights over frozen embryos during divorce proceedings.
Both an annulment and a divorce end a marriage. But while a divorce ends a valid, existing marriage, an annulment declares that the marriage was never valid in the first place. If a marriage is annulled, then under the law, it never existed at all.
The issue of same-sex marriage is now resolved nationwide, with the Supreme Court’s June 27 ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges. Same-sex couples can marry in any state, and their marriages must be recognized by all other states. Same-sex marriage has been legal in California since 2013, but the Supreme Court ruling does have an effect on same-sex couples married in California.
When a couple disagrees on issues such as alimony or child custody, divorce can be complex and costly. However, the process can be simplified and cheaper when a couple is in agreement. In California, a simplified divorce, also known as summary dissolution, is available to some couples. It is cheaper, quicker, and less emotionally stressful than a regular contested divorce.
When parents divorce or separate, one of the most important decisions they must make is how to raise their children. In California, divorced or separated parents use a parenting plan, also known as a custody and visitation agreement or time-share plan, which specifies the parents’ rights and duties in co-parenting.
There are many federal and state laws that benefit married couples. Some examples include the right to file joint income tax returns, create a family limited partnership (FLP) under federal tax laws, create a marital life estate trust, receive survivor benefits, receive a share of your deceased spouse’s estate under intestate succession laws and claim the estate tax marital deduction.
No fault divorce means that neither spouse needs to prove that the other spouse did anything wrong in order to get the divorce. In some states, the spouse must prove that the other spouse committed adultery, abandoned the other spouse, or that the spouse was cruel either emotionally or physically. Another fault could be that the other spouse is physically incapable of having sexual intercourse.
Congressman Mike Honda recently used Twitter to show his support for his transgender grandchild. The tweet read, "As the proud grandpa of a transgender grandchild, I hope she can feel safe at school without fear of being bullied." The message has been shared and retweeted thousands of times. The Congressman has injected himself into this issue to encourage acceptance and education about transgender rights.
