Spousal Support
Spousal Support Process
Spousal support (also known as alimony) is a court-ordered payment from one spouse or domestic partner to help cover the other’s monthly expenses. The Court will analyze factors identified under Fam. Code §4320 (section 4320 factors) in determining the amount of spousal support. Under Fam. Code §4320 in ordering spousal support under this part, the court shall consider all of the following circumstances:
- The extent to which the earning capacity of each party is sufficient to maintain the standard of living established during the marriage, taking into account all of the following:
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- The marketable skills of the supported party; the job market for those skills; the time and expenses required for the supported party to acquire the appropriate education or training to develop those skills; and the possible need for retraining or education to acquire other, more marketable skills or employment.
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- The extent to which the supported party's present or future earning capacity is impaired by periods of unemployment that were incurred during the marriage to permit the supported party to devote time to domestic duties..
- The extent to which the supported party contributed to the attainment of an education, training, career position, or a license by the supporting party.
- The ability of the supporting party to pay spousal support, taking into account the supporting party's earning capacity, earned and unearned income, assets, and standard of living.
- The needs of each party based on the standard of living established during the marriage.
- The obligations and assets, including the separate property, of each party.
- The duration of the marriage.
- The ability of the supported party to engage in gainful employment without unduly interfering with the interests of dependent children in the custody of the party.
- The age and health of the parties.
- All documented evidence of any history 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:
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- A plea of nolo contendere.
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- Emotional distress resulting from domestic violence perpetrated against the supported party by the supporting party.
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- Any history of violence against the supporting party by the supported party.
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- Issuance of a protective order after a hearing pursuant to Section 6340.
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- A finding by a court during the pendency of a divorce, separation, or child custody proceeding, or other proceeding under Division 10 (commencing with Section 6200), that the spouse has committed domestic violence.
- The immediate and specific tax consequences to each party.
- The balance of the hardships to each party.
- The goal that the supported party shall be self-supporting within a reasonable period of time. Except in the case of a marriage of long duration as described in Section 4336, a “reasonable period of time” for purposes of this section generally shall be one-half the length of the marriage. However, nothing in this section is intended to limit the court's discretion to order support for a greater or lesser length of time, based on any of the other factors listed in this section, Section 4336, and the circumstances of the parties.
- The criminal conviction of an abusive spouse shall be considered in making a reduction or elimination of a spousal support award in accordance with Section 4324.5 or 4325.
- Any other factors the court determines are just and equitable. Where there is a dispute as to the amount of spousal support requested by one party the Court will set a hearing where it will look at the evidence and testimony from the parties addressing these factors in order to determine spousal support. It is important to have experienced counsel to engage in aggressive discovery as to the other party’s assets and income. It is common for parties in divorce proceedings to transfer, hide or otherwise conceal assets. Taking the deposition of the other party as well as requesting documentation of assets and income through formal discovery and subpoena is key to bolstering (or successfully opposing) a claim for spousal support.
Child Support
Child support is the amount of money that a court tells a parent to pay every month. This money is to help pay for the children’s living expenses. This is ordered where the non-custodial parent (the parent the child does not live with) makes payments to the custodial parent.
The standard child support payable to the custodial parent absent unusual circumstances is referred to as “guideline support” which is addressed in Fam. Code §4053: In implementing the statewide uniform guideline, the courts shall adhere to the following principles:
- A parent's first and principal obligation is to support the parent's minor children according to the parent's circumstances and station in life.
- Both parents are mutually responsible for the support of their children.
- The guideline takes into account each parent's actual income and level of responsibility for the children.
- Each parent should pay for the support of the children according to the parent’s ability.
- The guideline seeks to place the interests of children as the state's top priority.
- Children should share in the standard of living of both parents. Child support may therefore appropriately improve the standard of living of the custodial household to improve the lives of the children.
- Child support orders in cases in which both parents have high levels of responsibility for the children should reflect the increased costs of raising the children in two homes and should minimize significant disparities in the children's living standards in the two homes.
- The financial needs of the children should be met through private financial resources as much as possible.
- It is presumed that a parent having primary physical responsibility for the children contributes a significant portion of available resources for the support of the children.
- The guideline seeks to encourage fair and efficient settlements of conflicts between parents and seeks to minimize the need for litigation.
- The guideline is intended to be presumptively correct in all cases, and only under special circumstances should child support orders fall below the child support mandated by the guideline formula.
- Child support orders shall ensure that children actually receive fair, timely, and sufficient support reflecting the state's high standard of living and high costs of raising children compared to other states.
For an estimation as to child support obligations please refer to California Child Support Services Guideline estimator here https://childsupport.ca.gov/guideline-calculator/.