Author: Scott

Considerations in Gray Divorce

Post author By Scott
Post date October 24, 2016

According to the National Center for Family and Marriage Research at Bowling Green State University in Ohio gray divorces are not as uncommon as you might think.

Gray Divorce

Gray divorce is the “nickname” given to couples that divorce after long marriages and later on in life. The “gray” is a nod to the fact that many of those people involved in gray divorces are also graying. And according to the National Center for Family and Marriage Research at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, in 2010, one in four divorces filed occurred among people age 50. That’s actually a pretty significant amount. So what are the common reasons behind these late divorces?

Reasons for Gray Divorce

Here are some common reasons that people seek divorces after long lasting marriages:

They Grow Apart

According to Stan Tatkin, author of Wired for Love, the process that leads to gray divorce isn’t a sudden event or trigger, but rather it happens over time. “It’s like an unbreakable plate you drop repeatedly,” he says. “The relationship develops microcracks inside the structure you can’t see. Then it finally reaches a critical mass and shatters.”

Boredom

Boredom can play a factor. Steve Siebold, a psychological performance and mental toughness coach and author of 177 Mental Toughness Secrets of The World Class, says, “Being around the same person 24/7, depending on the relationship, can lead to boredom.”

Complacency

After so many years of being together, it’s not uncommon for couples to get complacent. “You work hard, play hard and take care of business, but you’ve stopped being the attentive, attractive spouse. You’ve allowed yourself to become complacent,” says Siebold.

Money Issues

Everyone approaches and handles money differently. One spouse may be a big spender while the other spouse is a saver, Siebold says. “The kids’ activities, expenses and college funds eat the family’s discretionary cash and you’re deep in debt,” he notes.

Typical Considerations for Gray Divorce

Chances are that couples seeking divorces later on in life will have specific aspects of their marriages that need to be determined. The main ones will most likely be division of marital property and spousal support.We discuss these extensively below.

Dividing Marital Property

Over the course of a long marriage, couples tend to accumulate various assets and property. There are various concerns you will need to deal with when it comes to dividing the marital property. This can be especially true for couples divorcing after a long marriage.

What State do you Live in?

State laws govern how the marital property will be divided. You will need to check with an attorney to see if you live in an equitable distribution state or a community property state.

What Counts as Property?

Property is anything that can be bought or sold, or anything that has a financial value. This includes: houses, cars, furniture, clothing, bank accounts, businesses, etc. Within that, there are two forms of property when it comes to a marriage: community property and separate property. Community property is anything earned or acquired during the course of the marriage. Separate property belongs to one spouse. States make their own determinations on what counts as separate property. A family law attorney would be able to help you determine what is “separate property” based on your state’s laws.

Other Considerations

There are four other steps that need to be considered when diving marital property:

Identify the assets owned by you and your spouse
Categorize all assets as marital or non-marital property
A value will need to be assigned to the assets
Devise a plan for the division of assets that is in accordance with state laws

In addition to marital property division, couples going through a gray divorce will also most likely need to address the issue of spousal support.

Spousal Support

Alimony, often called “spousal support” is when one spouse pays the other in order to help that spouse maintain the same financial standing as was experienced during the marriage. In many gray divorces, one spouse will have stayed at home to take care of children while the other spouse was in the work-force. This often results in one spouse not having the skills required to be in the work-force. In these instances, a court will require the higher earning spouse to assist the lower in maintaining that standard of lifestyle that was achieved during the marriage.

Awarding Spousal Support

In California a judge can award temporary (“pendente lite”) support either during the divorce proceedings, or when the divorce is declared final. Typically these payments are made from one spouse to the other in a specified amount for a predetermined period of time. But support can also be paid in a single lump-sum payment. In collaborative process divorce agreements, spouses often come to agreement on the terms and conditions of support payments. As long as this agreement meets legal requirements, a court will uphold an agreement. This is the case even if the agreement provides for a complete waiver of support to the lower-earning spouse.

Duration of Spousal Support

In California, the duration of spousal support agreements are often tied to the length of the marriage. A general rule of thumb is that for a marriage of less than 10 years, a court will not order support payments be made for longer than half the length of the marriage. But if a marriage has lasted 10 years or longer, a court typically will not set a definite termination date for support. Both spouses are able to request modifications to the spousal support agreement indefinitely, unless a termination date has specifically been agreed, or if the court expressly terminates the support at a later hearing.

Awarding Permanent Support

Sometimes support is labeled “permanent” support, but the actual awarding of permanent support lasting for the remainder of a lifetime is increasingly rare, even for marriages that last over 10 years. Family law courts in California tend to require a spouse seeking support to make an effort to become self-supporting. A spouse that makes claims that they are unable to work, or unable to become fully employed, is required to support the claim with evidence. Often times this means having a vocational evaluation. And for long term support orders, the support often gradually reduces over time by a nominal amount. Permanent support is usually only awarded to spouses that are unable to become self-supporting due to age or disability.

Calculation of Spousal Support

California law rules that the purpose of awarding temporary spousal support is for preserving the financial status quo, or “standard of living during the marriage” to the greatest extent possible. After a court evaluates and considers the needs of the spouse requesting the support, as well as the ability of the other spouses ability to pay, it can order the temporary spousal support in any amount. Typically, a court will use a common formula for calculating temporary support. One example of this formula is the Santa Clara County formula. This formula comes up with a figure through subtracting 50% of the lower-earner’s net income from 40% of the higher earner’s, and then makes adjustments for tax consequences and child support payments. The California Department of Child Support provides a support calculator for parents of dependent children looking to get a rough estimate of what temporary spousal support payments might look like along with child support payments. A family law attorney will also be able to provide you with a rough idea of what your payments will look like.

Standard of Living

Spousal support’s main purpose is to assist a supported spouse in maintaining a standard of living that was close to that which was attained during the marriage. But the goal is for the spouse receiving the payments to eventually become self-supporting to the greatest extent possible. A court will take the following into account:

marketable skills of the supported spouse,
job market for those skills,
any time or expense the supported spouse will need to acquire education or training for employment or enhanced employability, and
the extent to which periods of unemployment (due to domestic duties) during the marriage have impaired the supported spouse’s present or future earning capacity.

The court will also consider any other factors, including:

extent to which the supported spouse contributed to the other spouse’s attainment of education, training, professional licensing or career advancement (this can also mean the extent to which the supported spouse provided and maintained home life while the other spouse was advancing his or her career)
ability of the supporting spouse to pay support. A court will take into account earning capacity, earned and unearned income, assets, and standard of living,
needs of each party based on what the marital standard of living was,
each spouse’s obligations and assets, including separate property,
duration of the marriage,
ability of a spouse who is also a custodial parent to engage in employment without interfering with the interests of dependent children,
each spouse’s age and health,
documented history of domestic violence by either spouse*,
immediate and specific tax consequences to each spouse (often times tax agreements are figured out during the awarding of spousal support and child support agreements),
balance of the hardships to each spouse, and
the goal that the supported spouse will be self-supporting within a reasonable period of time. This follows a general rule of thumb presumed to be one-half the length of a marriage (unless the marriage was longer than 10 years).

*California courts do not ordinarily consider conduct when making spousal support determinations. But often times, a court will not award support to a spouse that has a proven history of violence toward the other spouse.

Working with a Family Law Attorney

As with anything regarding your gray divorce, including spousal support and marital property division, you should consult a family law attorney. A lawyer from the expert law firm of Divorce Law LA will be able to guide you through the divorce process. The Divorce & Family Law Offices of Divorce Law LA will provide you with the highest level of expertise and professionalism from our skilled attorneys. Our Divorce and Family Law Practice spans a wide spectrum of areas that include: divorce, high net-worth divorce, marital property division, child custody and visitation, and child support.

Divorce Law LA

33 S. Catalina Ave. Ste. 202

Pasadena, Ca. 91106

(626) 478-3550

https://bestdivorcelawyer.co

Tags community property, gray divorce, marital property, separate property

Child Custody Child Visitation Divorce Family Law High Net-Worth Divorce Paternity

Brad Pitt Finally Sees Children

Post author By Scott
Post date October 17, 2016

Last week Brad Pitt saw his children for the first time since it was announced that he and estranged wife Angelina Jolie were divorcing. During the visit, a monitor was present, however, not all of the children were.

Brad Pitt Finally Sees Children

Following the announcement of the super couple’s divorce, just two years and one month after their marriage, it was revealed that Jolie would be seeking physical custody with visitation and legal custody rights for Pitt.

Shortly after the announcement, Jolie and Pitt came to a temporary custody agreement which granted Jolie temporary sole custody of the couple’s six kids while Pitt received visitation rights. Additionally, both parents agreed to participate in individual counseling and that Pitt’s initial visit with his children would be with a therapist. At that time nothing had been mandated for supervision or monitoring.

It was also revealed that a therapist would be present for all visits with Pitt until October 20. Pitt also volunteered to complete drug and alcohol testing but it is not legally required.

Brangelina Divorce

Jolie filed for divorce from Pitt on Sept. 19. Shortly after allegations arose of an altercation between Pitt and eldest son, Maddox.

Despite the fact that Jolie currently has temporary sole custody, it’s been reported that she does not wish for that to be a permanent agreement and has hopes that the couple will be able to co-parent in the future.

“He really wants to see the kids and to work out an arrangement that is best for them,” an insider close to Pitt revealed. “[He] wants to work things out privately and amicably.”

Forms of Child Custody

There are different forms of child custody: legal custody, physical custody, sole custody, and joint custody.

Physical Custody

Physical custody means a parent has gained the legal right (typically through a court ruling) to have a child live with him or her. Usually if a parent has physical custody they also have sole custody of the child, which means the other parent has visitation rights.

Sole Custody

There are two forms of sole custody a parent can have: sole legal custody or sole physical custody. Courts seem to be moving away from awarding sole custody to one parent as more information is coming out about the importance of having both parents in a child’s life. In cases where a parent has been deemed unfit due to a history of neglect or abuse, a known dependency on drugs or alcohol, or a new parent that has been deemed unfit, a court will usually award sole physical custody to one parent. It’s advised that unless a parent has demonstrated the above issues, that you do not seek sole custody, due to the importance of having both parents in a child’s life.

While the trend is to award joint custody, in cases where courts do award sole physical custody the parents still usually share joint legal custody (which means both parents are able to make legal decisions regarding the child), unless a parent has been deemed unfit to make those legal decisions.

Legal Custody

Legal custody allows a parent to make decisions regarding various aspects of a child’s life, including education, religion, and medical care or legal issues.

Joint Custody

Joint custody is able to be awarded to the parents if they are divorced, separated, no longer living together, or if they never lived together but still shared a child. The awarding of joint custody to both parents means each parent is able to make decisions regarding the child. Joint custody also comes in various forms, including joint legal custody, joint physical custody, or joint legal and physical custody. Usually, if a couple shares joint physical custody they also share joint legal custody. But if a couple shares joint legal custody they do not always also share joint physical custody.

Preparing for Your Child Custody Case Hearing

One you have filed your petition to be granted sole child custody you will receive a date for either a mediation session or a court hearing. You’ll want to be prepared going into this meeting. Here are some steps to prepare.

Work with Your Family Law Attorney

Your family law attorney will help you prepare for the mediation or court hearing. If you have been working with a family law attorney up to this point, chances are you have already built your case for why the other parent is unfit to raise the child or children you share. If you have not been working with a family law attorney, you will need to gather evidence of this on your own. We’ll discuss this more in depth further below.

Serve the Other Parent

After the petition has been filed, you’ll need to let the other parent know that you have done so and that you are requesting that a change be made to the current custody agreement. You can either work with your family law attorney to have the notification served, or work with a service company or the courthouse to have this done. Once the notification is served, the person who served the papers will need to provide you with proof that the other parent has been made aware. This is called “Proof of Service.” You’ll need to provide this to the court.

Preparing Evidence

Family law courts prefer to award joint custody to both parents. Because of this, you will need to prove that the other parent is unfit and unable to handle custody of your child. This may be proven a number of ways. Here are a few examples:

A history of abuse or neglect. Are there any police reports that have been filed against the other parent? Are there other pieces of evidence? Are there witnesses that can corroborate your story?
Lifestyle. Does the other parent have a job? Is it a steady job that can ensure the other parent is able to financially take care of the child? Where does the other parent live? Is it a safe environment?
Emotional and physical health. Is the other parent physically and mentally able to care for the child?

Once you have prepared all your evidence, either on your own or with the help of a family law attorney, you will be ready for the mediation or court hearing. If during the mediation session you are unable to come to an agreement, then the case will need to go before a judge. Hopefully, either through mediation or the court hearing, you will then be granted with sole child custody.

It should be noted that if a parent strongly disagrees with how the court has decided on the custody case, there is always an option to appeal.

Appealing Child Custody Decisions

Child custody cases are difficult due to the nature of the subject. A family law court will always rule in the best interest of the child. It’s important to note that an appeals court will not review a case just because one party disagrees with what the judge decided. If you feel your child custody agreement was arrived at because the court made a substantive error (either procedural or legal) you are able to appeal the court’s decision. Here’s how to appeal a child custody ruling.

Work with a Family Law Attorney

Working with a family law attorney will help you prove your case. In the case of appealing an already decided agreement, the family law attorney will need to prove that the previous decision was arrived at inaccurately due to a legal error or a procedural error.

Rules of Your Jurisdiction

Every state has different rules that given child custody cases and appeals. A family law attorney will be familiar with the rules of your specific jurisdiction and will be able to help guide you through the process. If you are not working with a family law attorney, you will need to research the rules on your own. These jurisdiction rules govern what your timeline is for filing an appeal to your child custody case, as well as exact guidelines for what should be contained in the petition to appeal. You can find these rules online or at your local courthouse.

Prepare an Appellate Petition

Next, you will need to prepare an appellate petition. This petition outlines why you are appealing the current child custody decision, as well as lists the errors that the lower court made when deciding on your child custody decision. If you are not working with a family law attorney, you might want to have the petition you fill out reviewed by one, just to ensure it has been done correctly. Next, you will file this petition with the court, as well as have a notification of the filing served to your opposing party.

Review of Appellate Petition

The court will then review the appellate petition and decide whether or not to hear your child custody appeal. If the court decides to hear your case, you will need to prepare a brief that explains your reasons for appealing the initial child custody agreement. This brief should include the lower court’s rules, case law, and all the facts that were presented in the initial custody hearing. A judge will review this and offer a final decision.

When parents live in different locations, either different states, countries, or even towns, the issue of child custody can become very difficult. It’s not uncommon for parents to request move away court orders.

Working with A Family Law Attorney

When it comes to child custody decisions, you’ll want to work with a skilled family law attorney. There are a number of things that need to be considered, namely the best interests of the child, but also what type of custody you are hoping to acheive. Working with a skilled attorney can help ensure you get a fair case. For advice on divorce, child custody determinations, setting up a co-parenting agreement, dividing marital property, and spousal support you need the expert law firm of Divorce Law LA. Schedule a consultation today.

Divorce Law LA, Esq.

Divorce Law LA

33 S. Catalina Ave. Ste. 202

Pasadena, Ca. 91106

(626) 478-3550

https://bestdivorcelawyer.co

Tags Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, coparent, coparent relationship

Child Custody Divorce Domestic Violence Family Law High Net-Worth Divorce

Pitt Faces Allegations of Abuse

Post author By Scott
Post date October 3, 2016

It appears that Brad Pitt might have a bit of a custody fight on his hands amid new allegations of child abuse.

Pitt Faces Allegations of Abuse

Last week it appears Angelina Jolie’s camp launched a story about Brad Pitt allegedly getting into a physical altercation with oldest son, Maddox, during a flight from France to the U.S. Website TMZ announced last week that Pitt had allegedly got “verbally abusive” and “physical” with Maddox during an incident last week.

While Pitt has not addressed the allegations, a source has confirmed that Pitt was inebriated at the time of the incident and that he Angelina Jolie were involved in an argument. Additionally, there was a “parent-child argument which was not handled in the right way and escalated more than it should have.”

According to another source, “Brad made contact with Maddox in the shoulder area, and there was absolutely no physical injury to him.” The source went on to explain, “He is emphatic that it did not reach the level of physical abuse, that no one was physically harmed. He put his hands on him, yes, because the confrontation was spiraling out of control.”

Pitt has six kids with Jolie. Maddox is their eldest and is the only child Jolie had adopted on her own before the couple were together.

Irreconcilable Differences

Jolie cited irreconcilable differences in her divorce filing a few weeks ago. The couple has been together for 12 years, but only married for two. Jolie is seeking sole physical custody of all six kids and has requested that Pitt be given legal custody and visitation rights.

It is unclear how these allegations will affect the decisions regarding child custody. It appears the FBI is evaluating if an investigation into the allegations needs to happen. If an investigation does follow, its findings will most likely play a huge role in the determination of child custody rights awarded to Pitt.

Domestic Violence Allegations

Domestic Violence can be defined as a “violent confrontation that occurs between family members or between people who live together or are in a dating relationship. Domestic violence follows a broad spectrum of participants but always involves abuse in one form or another, whether it be physical, psychological or emotional. Whether you are referring to a domestic violence dispute between husband and wife, boyfriend and girlfriend, father and son, father and daughter, mother and son, mother and daughter or some other familial combination, domestic violence carries with it longstanding emotional and psychological scars that extend far beyond the physical.

In a large majority of domestic violence cases the woman is most often the victim, however not in all. Weapons are sometimes employed, property is damaged and alcohol and drug use are often at the source. In the state of California, domestic violence is not taken lightly and you should seek legal assistance if you or someone you love has been the victim of a domestic violence situation. A skilled Pasadena domestic violence attorney at the Southern California Divorce Law LA are here to educate and support you through this process.

Domestic Violence Misdemeanor Conviction

In terms of Family Law, a misdemeanor conviction for domestic violence carries mandatory jail time and can result in the unfortunate loss of custody of your children or visitation privileges. Other negative impacts may be a loss of employment, incarceration, excessive fines and legal fees and possible deportation if not a US citizen.

Regardless of whether you are a man or a woman, in the state of California, a domestic violence misdemeanor conviction suggests that your ability to safely care for your children as their primary custodian is questionable. You will be presumed unfit for their ongoing care and responsibility. Losing your children over a domestic violence dispute is a tragic repercussion that impacts all parties involved, most notably your child.

If you have been convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor, according to federal law you cannot legally carry a firearm and if you are a law enforcement officer or military personnel, a domestic violence conviction often signals the end of your career.

What Constitutes Domestic Violence

Regardless of whether a dispute occurs between spouses, domestic partners, boyfriend and girlfriend, parents and children, same sex couples, blood relatives (siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, etc.) or housemates – all domestic violence disputes between the above combination of individuals carries the domestic violence charge. Domestic violence misdemeanors remain permanently on your record and can be used against you in future crimes for 7 years following initial conviction. Offenses compound, and aligning yourself with a skilled Pasadena Domestic Violence Attorney is essential to fully understand your rights and to seek a reduced sentence and favorable outcome.

Domestic Violence and Child Custody

If you believe your co-parent is unfit to take on parenting responsibilities, you will most likely want to work with a family law attorney that will be able to handle a request for sole child custody. Your lawyer will help you prepare a petition to be granted sole cusotdy and once you have filed your petition to be granted sole child custody you will receive a date for either a mediation session or a court hearing. You’ll want to be prepared going into this meeting. Here are some steps to prepare.