Mandated Mediation in Custody and Visitation Cases

    In most cases, the parents are required to go to a mandated mediation session where a mediator
will conduct an assessment of the situation overall-- in most cases the parents have not reached an agreement on visitation.  If they did reach an agreement, the mediator might add additional provisions.

   In addition, especially in cases which are problematic, the parents are told to use "Talking Parents" which is a website that allows the conversations between the parents to actually be SEEN by the judge.....there is no cost in most cases to use this service. Parents are given instructions when they sign up for the mediation appointment.

   Most parents go into mediation blind, meaning, they have no idea of what is going to happen, so they tend to just try and argue about various issues.  This is not the best approach obviously because the mediator's job is to create a workable solution that is somewhat fair given the specific circumstances.  Many parents are very unhappy with results of mediation, this is very common.

If you have read this far, then you may be interested to know that attorney herein actually helps clients prepare for mediation. Each case is different, and attorney wants to make sure the client knows what not to do, and what is either productive conduct, positive, or helpful. Many clients have no idea that what they may do is actually harmful to their case.  This should be avoided obviously, if one is trying to get another to see their "side."  This type of situation always comes up, because if you are going to mediation obviously there is some disagreement. Attorney has been doing these types of cases for more than 20+ years and can likely even predict which parent has a better chance of getting what they want for the kids.

If you are going to mediation and have a situation which is difficult, you will definitely need help preparing for mediation. Attorney has much experience in this area,  so call today to find out if we can help you on your case!

TRUE: DV Convictions Can Possibly Take Abuser's Pension!!

CALIFORNIA FAMILY CODE

NO SPOUSAL SUPPORT TO ABUSIVE SPOUSE

Family Code Section 4325

(a) In any proceeding for dissolution of marriage where there is a criminal conviction for a domestic violence misdemeanor or a criminal conviction for a misdemeanor that results in a term of probation pursuant to Section 1203.097 of the Penal Code perpetrated by one spouse against the other spouse entered by the court within five years prior to the filing of the dissolution proceeding or during the course of the dissolution proceeding, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that the following shall apply:

(1) An award of spousal support to the convicted spouse from the injured spouse is prohibited.

(2) If economic circumstances warrant, the court shall order the attorney's fees and costs incurred by the parties to be paid from the community assets. The injured spouse shall not be required to pay any attorney's fees of the convicted spouse out of the injured spouse's separate property.

(3) At the request of the injured spouse, the date of separation, as defined in Section 70, shall be the date of the incident giving rise to the conviction, or earlier, if the court finds circumstances that justify an earlier date.

(b) The court may consider documented evidence of a convicted spouse's history as a victim of domestic violence, as defined in Section 6211, perpetrated by the other spouse, or any other factors the court deems just and equitable, as conditions for rebutting this presumption.

(c) The rebuttable presumption created in this section may be rebutted by a preponderance of the evidence.

(d) The court may determine, based on the facts of a particular case, that the injured spouse is entitled to up to 100 percent of the community property interest in his or her retirement and pension benefits. In determining whether and how to apportion the community property interest in the retirement and pension benefits of the injured spouse, the court shall consider all of the following factors:

(1) The misdemeanor domestic violence conviction, as well as documented evidence of other instances of domestic violence, as defined in Section 6211, between the parties or perpetrated by either party against either party's child, including, but not limited to, consideration of emotional distress resulting from domestic violence. The court shall also consider documented evidence of a convicted spouse's history as a victim of domestic violence, as defined in Section 6211, perpetrated by the other spouse.

(2) The duration of the marriage and when, based on documented evidence, incidents of domestic violence, as defined in Section 6211, occurred.

(3) The extent to which the convicted spouse's present or future earning capacity is impaired by periods of unemployment that were incurred during the marriage to permit the convicted spouse to devote time to domestic duties.

(4) The extent to which the convicted spouse contributed to the attainment of an education, training, a career position, or a license by the injured spouse.

(5) The balance of the hardships to each party.

(6) Any other factors the court determines are just and equitable.

(e) As used in this section, the following definitions apply:

(1) "Domestic violence misdemeanor" means a misdemeanor offense for an act of abuse, as described in paragraphs (1) to (3), inclusive, of subdivision (a) of Section 6203, perpetrated by one spouse against the other spouse.

(2) "Injured spouse" means the spouse who has been the subject of the domestic violence misdemeanor for which the other spouse was convicted.

(f) The changes made to this section by the bill that added this subdivision shall only apply to convictions that occur on or after January 1, 2019.

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Potential Huge Issues for Domestic Violence Cases in Regard to PENSIONS

IF there is any abuser who is violent--and yet maintains a good job--- he or she is most at risk, especially if a conviction for domestic violence happens. THIS IS VERY HUGE for anyone who already is on the edge of being convicted of domestic violence.

Attorney does work on both family law and criminal cases.  If you are in the bad position of

being accused of Domestic Violence, and you have a good job, you better not be convicted of the domestic violence.  For legal help on domestic violence, call attorney ASAP!

Marijuana Related Laws

https://www.canorml.org/california-laws/california-cannabis-laws/

*Note--we are showing the link because this group typically is up to date
on MJ laws which change rapidly.  Always check for your local jurisdiction
laws as they may be far different than other areas.  If you get into criminal trouble
it is suggested that you contact a criminal law attorney who is up to date on
marijuana laws and cases, or a criminal law specialist that focuses regularly on
current MJ laws/cases.

Child Support-- Do you Need to Increase or Decrease It??

California Child Support Guidelines

After the determination of a parent–child relationship, the next step is to calculate the appropriate    amount of child support. The formula used to calculate the appropriate amount of support is known          as the child support guidelines. California law provides guidelines to courts for setting the child        support payment amount. 

Child Support guidelines are based on each parent’s net disposable monthly income and the amount of time the child is cared for by each parent. For the purpose of deciding child support payment amounts,    the court considers income from all sources, whether or not it is reported or taxed under federal law.      The guidelines came into effect as part of an effort to make the calculation less of a judgment call and more of a mathematical equation.  Examples of circumstances that can affect the calculated child support      amount include a child’s educational expenses, special needs expenses, or travel expenses for a distant parent.

The income can be in the form of money, property or services, and includes:

• Wages from a job
• Tips
• Commissions
• Bonuses
• Self-employment earnings
• Unemployment benefits
• Disability and workers' compensation
• Interest
• Dividends
• Rental Income
• Social Security or pensions
• Any payments or credit due or becoming due, regardless of the source, including lottery and prize winnings
• Usually, a new spouse's income is not considered in setting support, however, we have seen judges consider      the effect that such income has on the net disposable income; therefore, it's probably worth a shot to mention    it if you are the receiving party, or where the difference in incomes between the two parents is vastly different.

The court determines net disposable income for each parent by considering certain items from his or her income, including:

• Taxes
• Ordinary union dues
• Ordinary retirement contributions
• Health premiums
• Child or spousal support actually being paid
• Costs of raising children from another relationship

The court uses the net disposable income for each parent

 and the percentage of time each parent spends with kids:

child support calculator

**If you are self employed, or have other children (not of this relationship), or have

tried to start your own business and borrowed money to do so, or if you had to quit your job

for varying reasons, or if you are re-married and the spouse loaned you separate money, or if you inherited money or won money via lotto or gambling; if you are actually married and won a large amount

in the state lotto; if you owe huge taxes and cannot pay them; if you owe real estate taxes and may lose your house; if you have credit card debt that you cannot keep up with and are losing 50% of your

pay before you even get your check; any of these situations , you should call attorney herein FIRST---before you make a big error or mistake.  Attorney has seen nearly all of the mentioned situations and some of them are quite workable if you don't do it wrong.

   

The DCSS calculator for California, is online at no cost; it will not be "exactly" the same as the one in Court, but it will be very close. https://gc.cse.ca.gov/ChildSupport/cse/guidelineCalculator

Losing Your Case in Family Law Court??

You may not be alone.

We are noticing that many of the Domestic violence TRO cases, especially if the kids or custody is involved-- are being completely tossed aside, and thrown into mediation.
Mediation is unpredictable if you get what we believe is a bad mediator, and believe us, there is at least one of those there..........you can file a complaint with the court, not saying it would work, but if enough people do it, there might be some changes.  There is definitely a good mediator there also, and we are not sure exactly how cases are assigned.

Domestic violence can either be overlooked, or handled inappropriately by judges, at least in our
experience. Considering that counsel has practiced in larger jurisdictions such as San Diego, Sacramento, etc. it basically means we know that not all mediators are created equal.

It is true that some domestic violence cases are not actually valid. 

 But there are many that are absolutely valid, and if (for example)

 -- you have EVER obtained a criminal protective order, 

be advised that when an order comes out involving CUSTODY-- 

it is required that the Judge state on the order or 

modification--that there

 IS a current Criminal Protective Order  (CPO)!!  

This is the law in California.

WELL-- guess what?  We have seen a case where the Criminal Protective Order was mentioned at least over 100 (yes-- one hundred times) in the case file, and NONE of the orders EVER mentioned that there even WAS a CPO??  Only when attorney herein became involved, did any judge even seem to notice the CPO at all ---this is a travesty of justice, people !!!!

There are different types of CPOs  that can be issued...CPO--Domestic Violence; PC Section 136.2, PC Section 136.2(i)(1), PC Section 273.5(j), PC Section 646.9(k), see Judicial Council form CR-160 for example...Even if the CPO had expired--- we would mention it anyway for the background of the case.

Domestic violence cases can be very tricky and even dangerous legally. There is always new case law being published on the subject, because it tends to overwhelm the case, AND children are often the losers because of bad rulings. Don't let this happen to you. Get legal help ASAP especially if your truth is being smothered by improper rulings!! See family code section 3044, which the court usually hands out prior to mediation.