Family Law Section

In this case, the trial court erred in two respects when it signed husband’s QDRO. First, it erroneously used husband’s rank and salary at the time of the parties’ separation to calculate the community interest in his pension instead of his final rank and salary at the time of his retirement, as required by the time rule. This was error because “[u]nder the traditional time rule, the fraction of service during marriage divided by total service must be ‘multiplied by the final plan benefit to determine the community interest.’” and “because the community property interest at issue—the right to retirement benefits—'is a right to draw from a stream of income Read more

I can’t stress enough the importance of being cognizant of your client’s attorney’s fees and costs. As we all know, there is no winning in a divorce. Both parties suffer a loss. What’s worse is knowing you are burning through children’s college funds because the parties are unable (or unwilling) to agree about even the most basic issues. As an attorney, you must be heavily involved in management and communications regarding your client’s attorney’s fees. Staying involved and helping your client make reasonable decisions can help save them thousands of dollars and prevent high unpaid client bills in collections. Below are nine tips for keeping attorney’s fees and costs low in a divorce. Read more

FAMILY LAW (current through 1/20/2023)By:  Andrew Botros, CFLS The precise holdings in a given case are bolded. Destiny C. v. Justin C. 01/19/2023, CA 4/1: D553087 https://www.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/D079123.PDF Family Code section 3044 creates a rebuttable presumption against awarding custody of a child upon “a finding by the court that a party seeking custody of a child has perpetrated domestic violence within the previous five years…” This five-year period runs backwards from the date of the trial court’s custody ruling, not from… Read more

Do you ever wonder if you can propound discovery in a domestic violence action? Are you curious about where to start? The benefit and impact of different discovery devices? Read more

This is a form for the 2023 Family Law Section awards Read more

As to Mother, the Court of Appeal, in dicta, suggested that the trial court could not issue Family Code section 271 sanctions pursuant to its own motion. It noted the absence of such language in Family Code section 271, while also noting that other sanctions statutes explicitly indicate that the trial court could issue sanctions on its own motion. It further noted that in “order to obtain an award under [Family Code section 271], the party requesting an award of attorney’s fees and costs is not required to demonstrate any financial need for the award.” (Emphasis in original.) Read more

Join this program will explore the various psychological, emotional and behavioral dynamics which exist in cases where a child is resistant or refusing contact with a parent. Read more

The voluntary dismissal of a joinder complaint does not divest the trial court of jurisdiction to award sanctions under Family Code section 271. Although most orders entered after dismissal are void and have no effect, an exception to this rule includes motions related to attorney fees and sanctions. Applying this rule in this manner is consistent with section 271, which is designed to punish parties who have unreasonably increased the cost of litigation. Read more

This was a challenge of the denial of a pendente lite fee order under Family Code section 2030. Though the appellant made a pendente lite fee request, the trial court did not rule on the issue of attorney fees until the conclusion of the trial. The appellate court concluded that the trial court violated Family Code section 2030 by not ruling on the appellant’s attorney fee request, as the statute requires a reasonably prompt ruling on such a request. The failure was prejudicial because the self-represented appellant failed to have a grant deed that would have established a transmutation in her favor admitted during the trial. The appellate court further concluded that, if the appellant was represented by counsel Read more

Understanding the various types of illiquid investments that increasingly are part of the divorce process and how best to deal with them in divorce proceedings. Read more