YOU DON'T HAVE TO FACE DIVORCE ALONE- TOP DIVORCE ATTORNEY SANTA ANA IS HERE AT EVERY STEP OF THE WAY!
Going through a divorce can be difficult, and understanding the laws around divorce can be daunting and overwhelming. As experienced Santa Ana divorce attorneys, we know that you want the best outcome for yourself and your children. It is our goal to help you navigate the California Family Code and court system.
We have been practicing family law for several years… and we've seen and done it all.
Every family is different, and so is their divorce. Our approach remains the same in every divorce - to protect you, your children, and your assets. We always try to keep your case from going to court and exploding into an all-out battle. Whenever possible, we try to minimize conflict, stress, and cost and resolve your case at the earliest.
However, if that doesn't work, we aren't afraid to fight for your rights in court. We are formidable trial attorneys with an in-depth understanding of the California legal system.
What is Included in a California Divorce?
Family law deals with disputes between a family and domestic relations. It encompasses a wide range of legal issues, ranging from marriage and divorce to child custody orders, child and spousal support services, property division, etc. At Jos Family Law, we understand and can help you navigate such complexities.
Some areas of divorce and family law we specialize in include:
- Child Custody
- Child Support
- Spousal Support
- Asset Division
- Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements
- Domestic Violence
- Paternity
- Parent's Rights
- Modification of Orders
We constantly monitor regulatory changes in California’s family law system and stay abreast with court procedures. The goal of our Santa Ana divorce attorneys is to resolve your family disputes fairly and equitably. We are always available to inform you of your rights and legal options so you can make the best possible decision about your future
Get Seasoned Legal Counsel When Making Life-altering Decisions
Mr. Binoye Jos Can Help You Make the Right Choice!Jos Family Law proudly serves all of Santa Ana's family law requirements. Santa Ana is the central hub of Orange County & has a sizable population. Our team at Jos Family Law gladly provides the service that the city's citizens require. Choose the award-winning best Santa Ana Divorce Attorney.
Divorce may be a difficult issue, but it's important to consider your alternatives and the possibilities that may or may not occur. If you're considering divorce or have already begun the family law process, chances are you have more questions than answers. These issues vary from the need to go to court to the necessity of hiring an attorney, as well as how you will manage financially after the divorce.
It is perfectly natural and acceptable to have more questions than answers, and Jos Family Law is here to help. According to current legislation, California is a no-fault state. This eliminates ancient common laws. This means that no one may be penalized as a result of the divorce. The family code makes it clear that irreconcilable disagreements are sufficient grounds for divorce.
Things You Should Know About Divorce Proceedings
If you're considering filing for divorce or have already been served with divorce papers, it's essential & vital to understand the basics of divorce proceedings. Here are a few vital things you should know about:
- How do I fill out my papers?
- What will happen if I don't get a lawyer?
- Where do I file my answer?
- Do I genuinely need to go to court?
- When is my court date?
- How does the judge(O.C. court) decide who gets custody of our children?
- What if we can't agree on anything?
- Will I lose all my property during a divorce proceeding?
- Does California law protect me from getting cheated in a divorce?
- Who decides how much spousal support I'll receive or pay?
- When am I eligible for alimony in California?
- What else should I know before getting divorced?
If you're wondering how to proceed with a divorce in California, contact Mr. Binoye Jos at Jos Family Law, the best divorce Attorney in Santa Ana. You can get help with your individual situation and questions as you go through your divorce proceedings.
This will help ensure that you receive fair treatment during your divorce and maximize support while being equitable in your settlement agreement. Our skilled and knowledgeable family law attorney can make all the difference between winning or losing in court and will be able to bring forth evidence for an agreed-upon settlement or even an uncontested one if possible.
Requirements for Filing a Divorce in California
To properly file a divorce case in California, you must meet the following requirements:
- You or your ex-spouse must be a resident of California for at least six months
- You must be a resident of the county where you plan to file for divorce for at least three months.
- Your marriage is irrevocably broken with no chance of resolution.
Your marriage is irrevocably broken with no chance of resolution.
Divorce Process in California
The divorce process begins with filing the petition for divorce and ends with an order.
Filing for Divorce
Once you are eligible, you need to file a petition for divorce in Orange County.
Discovery
If your spouse files a response, the court will begin the discovery process, which is essentially an exchange of information between both parties.
Court Appearance
Once the discovery is complete, both parties must appear before the court for a settlement conference. This is a court-provided opportunity to settle your divorce and other family law matters without a trial.
Trial
If you and your ex-spouse cannot reach an agreement, the case will proceed to trial. Both parties will have the opportunity to present facts and evidence to support their respective case.
Order
Based on the evidence and facts, the judge will issue a final decree for divorce.
During the discovery phase, both parties must file a financial disclosure form that details their income, assets, and debts.
Whether you and your ex-spouse choose an out-of-court settlement or go to trial, issues such as child custody, child support, alimony, and property division must be a part of the final agreement or order.
Grounds for Divorce in California
Fraud or Misrepresentation:- You believe your spouse lied about something he or she should not have lied about.
No Marriage Consummation:- Your partner is unable to produce or perform sexually, and you were unaware of this before the marriage.
Incest, Underage Party, or Bigamy:- The spouse is related by blood, making the marriage illegal under the laws, your spouse is married to someone else, or one of the spouses is not of legal marriage age, and there is no parental permission.
Unsound Mind:- You or your spouse could not consent to the marriage because you were unsound (usually under the influence).
Force:- You were coerced into the marriage.
Getting Past Difficult Times: Types Of Divorce in California
Summary Divorce: In this case, the couples have no children, few assets, and little debt. Having this done is usually quite straightforward, quick, and easy—except for the 6 month waiting period.
Default Divorce: This is the one that most couples hope for. By default, the filing party is given a divorce. This is where the opposing side is either not present or chooses to disregard the case and not reply or participate.
Mediated Divorce: This is where you can hire an attorney to act as a mediator between you and your spouse. This can help you save money, and if you and your spouse are submitting documents without the assistance of an attorney, having an unbiased intervention will be beneficial. Remember that even if your mediator is an attorney, they're your mediator, not your attorney.
Collaborative Divorce: In this case, both parties have attorneys, and all four parties meet to negotiate and resolve. This reduces court time, saves money on court expenses, and is frequently faster than a contentious divorce.
Arbitrated Divorce: This procedure is as simple as hiring a judge. This is not a strategy of "buying the judge," but rather of speeding the process of having a trial-ready on hand while keeping the topic more confidential.
Contested Divorce: This is the sort of divorce that we all grow up fearing. These are the divorces that Hollywood dramatizes. In this case, both attorneys fight on behalf of their clients and go to trial. In general, the attorneys are polite & strive to negotiate and settle many minor issues to shorten or eliminate the need for a trial.
Child Custody in California: Determining the Best Interests of the Child
Child custody determination in California is dictated by the best interests of the children. The court will consider several factors to determine the best interests of the child, including:
- Age & Health of the Child
- The Child's Relationship with Each Parent
- Financial Ability of Each Parent
- Each Parent's Ability to Care for the Child
- Any History of Substance Abuse or Domestic Violence by Either Parent
- The Child's Wishes (If Older Than 14 Years of Age & Displaying Emotional Maturity
Custody battles are complex and emotionally charged. Working with a Santa Ana divorce attorney will help you understand the legal issues and options under the law.
Types of Child Custody: Physical & Legal Custody
Types of Child Custody: Physical & Legal Custody
Physical Custody
Physical custody is the determination of what percentage of time the child will spend with each parent. This time-sharing of the child with each parent depends on factors like:
- Where the child goes to school
- The amount of time each parent spends with the child
- Any other factors deemed relevant by the court
Furthermore, physical custody can be divided into two arrangements:
~Joint Custody: Under this arrangement, the child will live with each parent. The court will evaluate the criteria above when determining the timeshare between the parents.
~Sole Custody: The court may also award sole custody to one parent if such an arrangement is in the child's best interests. Grounds may include if one parent lives far away from the other parent and the child has to travel a lot. Alternatively, the court may also award sole custody to one parent if the other has a history of substance abuse or domestic violence.
The parent with physical custody is known as the custodial parent, while the other is known as the non-custodial parent.
Legal Custody
Legal custody is the right to make important decisions about the child's education, healthcare, and religious upbringing.
The parent with legal custody will determine where the child goes to school, the extracurricular activities they would engage in, and whether the child will receive religious instructions. Legal custody may also be divided into sole and joint:
~Joint Legal Custody: This arrangement is when both parents have the right to make important decisions regarding the child's life. The physical location of each parent doesn't matter in legal custody as decisions can be made from afar as well.
~Sole Legal Custody: Sole legal custody is when one parent has the exclusive right and responsibility to make decisions for the child's education, healthcare, and religious upbringing.
The court may award sole legal custody when the parents cannot make decisions regarding the child's best interests together, or when one parent has an alleged history of drug use or abuse.
Child Support: Ensuring the Financial Stability of Your Children's Future
California law dictates the moral and legal duty of each parent to support their minor children. The amount of child support is calculated using a statewide formula that considers each parent's income, the number of children, and the amount of time each parent spends with the child post-divorce. Many other factors may also be considered, such as the family's standard of living, the needs of the child, and the income of custodial parents. Let's take a closer look into the factors:
Gross Income
California Family Code defines gross income as income from any source, except income that is legally exempt from child support calculations. The annual gross income is calculated by evaluating mandatory and discretionary items.
Mandatory items include salaries, commissions, royalties, wages, bonuses, dividends, pensions, rent, interests, worker's compensation benefits, unemployment insurance benefits, disability insurance benefits, social security benefits, and even spousal support.
Discretionary items are items that a judge may add to the child support determination, including expense accounts, car allowances, company credit cards, unused vacation & sick leaves, stock options, daycare, etc.
Net Monthly Disposable Income
An integral part of the formula for child support in California is the net monthly disposable income of each parent. Deductions are subtracted from the gross annual income and divided by 12 to ascertain the net disposable income.
Exemptions
Certain sources of income are exempt from gross income for the purposes of calculating child support. These include student loan proceeds, insurance proceeds, and income derived from child support that are actually received from a public assistance program.
New Spouse Income
The income of either parent's new spouse or domestic partner is usually exempt from that parent's net and gross income, except in extraordinary situations where such an exemption would cause severe hardship to the child's financial status.
Other Factors
Beyond the income-earning capacity of the parents, additional factors are also considered by the courts to calculate child support. These include the percentage of time that each parent spends with the child, childcare costs incurred by either parent, and tax deductions claimed by either parent.
What Does Child Support Cover?
Raising a child in California isn't cheap. The custodial parent must make ends meet to cover the basic living expenses of the child, which go way beyond food and clothing. In California, child support covers the following expenses:
- Medical Bills
- Education Expenses
- Travel & Transportation Expenses
- Extracurricular Activities
- College Tuition & Expenses
- Entertainment
The child support attorneys at Jos Family Law will help you identify all items that would be covered under child support in your case.
What is a Child Support Add-on?
Apart from the aforementioned expenses, the court may also order additional child support. These add-ons are divided into mandatory and discretionary add-ons.
Mandatory Add-ons:
- Child-care Costs:
These are expenses necessary to care for the minor child due to a parent's employment, education, or training in pursuit of employment skills.
- Uninsured Health Costs:
Healthcare expenses necessary for a minor child that are not covered by the healthcare provider are also a mandatory add-on. The court may order a partial reimbursement of these add-ons by the other parent.
- Discretionary Add-ons:
Along with the mandatory add-ons mentioned above, the court may also assign additional categories which are known as discretionary child support add-ons. The court has discretion as to whether such add-ons should be a part of child support or not. These may include:
Education costs and special needs of minor children Travel expenses for visitation with the non-custodial parent
Spousal Support: Determining Who Pays Alimony & How Much?
Spousal support, or alimony, is the amount paid by the higher-earning spouse to the lower-earning spouse after divorce. Alimony can be awarded on many factors, including the duration of the marriage, each spouse's income & earning capacity, and each spouse's individual financial needs.
Like child support, the court will assess other factors that may impact the amount and length of spousal support. The duration of alimony for couples married for less than ten years will usually be half of the length of marriage. A couple married for a longer period than that will be awarded depending on the individual facts and circumstances of the case.
The court will consider the following factors:
- Each spouse's income & earning capacity
- Age and health of each spouse
- Duration of marriage
- Assets & liabilities of each spouse
- Job skill, education, and occupation of each parent
- Any financial contribution or sacrifice made by either spouse during the marriage
- The couple's standard of living during the marriage
Our Santa Ana Divorce attorneys will explain your rights and duties and answer questions related to paying or receiving alimony. We can also help you obtain post-judgment modifications due to changed circumstances.
Who Pays Spousal Support?
Family code §4320 governs spousal maintenance. One deciding aspect is whether or not the individual who is required to pay can afford to pay. The length of the marriage is essential; was it less than 10 years, making it short, or more than 10 years, making it long?
There are other factors at play as well, like:
- What are both parties' financial requirements?
- What is the earning capability of the individual who will be supported? (Can this individual acquire a job and maintain the same way of life?)
- Can the supporting party work without interfering with the care of the children?
- Both partners' ages and health.
- Each party's duties and assets, including separate property.
- The immediate and precise tax implications for each party.
- Contribution made by the supported party to support the other's career during the marriage.
- Documented proof of any history of domestic violence.
- The balance of each party's sufferings.
- Any additional circumstances that the court deems reasonable and equitable.
The objective is that the supported partner be self-sufficient within a realistic time frame, such as half the length of the marriage - unless the marriage is long (over 10 years). In most cases, spousal support is tax-deductible for the supporting party and taxable as income for the receiver. It is essential & vital to consult with an attorney about the reasons you feel you are entitled to spousal support or that you are unable to pay it.
Asset Division: Equitable Division of Marital Assets & Debts
In California, community property is equally divided between both spouses after divorce. Community property refers to all assets and debts acquired by each spouse during the marriage. However, there are certain properties that are exempt from such a division. Assets and debts that are subject to division in a California divorce include:
- Family-owned Business or Practice
- Investment Accounts
- Real Estate, Vacation Homes, etc
- Retirement Accounts
- Pension Plans
- Cars, Boats, and Other Vehicles
- Art, Collectibles, & Other Valuables
- Various Other Items
Our Santa Ana divorce attorneys will review your case and finances to achieve the best possible outcome. We will protect your separate property while ensuring you get a fair and equitable portion of the marital property.
How is Property Divided in California?
Once the court identifies community & separate property, it will proceed with dividing all marital property between spouses. In California, community property is divided equally among spouses, but not identically. This means that while the division would be fair, it may not be a 50/50 split. The court will consider the following factors when dividing community property in California:
- Duration of Marriage: The courts may award a near-equal division of property in long marriages. This is on the presumption that both spouses had ample time to contribute towards the accumulation of assets. In shorter marriages, the division may be unequal if one spouse makes financial contributions.
- Financial Situation of Each Spouse: If one spouse earns significantly higher income than the other, the court may award them a greater share of the assets and order them to provide spousal support to minimize disparity.
- Age & Health of Each Spouse: The health and age of each spouse may also affect division, especially if one spouse is significantly older or in bad health.
- Contribution Made by Each Spouse During Marriage: The court will also look beyond financial contributions during asset division, such as raising and caring for the children, supporting the other spouse's career, and more.
- Debts: Not just assets, the court will also divide all debts acquired during the marriage equally among the spouses. The exception here would be any debt acquired by a spouse for personal reasons, which would solely be assigned to that party. All shared debts will be divided equally.
Property division laws in California exist because both parties have the right to acquire assets after divorce. Depending on the assets involved and the circumstances of the marriage, the court will create a division plan that is fair to both spouses. To ensure your financial interests are aptly represented, hire a Santa Ana divorce attorney who has experience in complex assets division cases.
At Jos Family Law, we have high-asset divorce attorneys who can create a property division plan that preserves your personal assets and helps you obtain your rightful share of assets.
What is Community Property in California?
California is one of the nine states with community property laws. In layman's words, community property indicates that after marriage, the property, assets, and cash acquired during the marriage are shared. So, if a divorce is filed and no agreement is reached, the property is normally divided 50/50.
The first crucial step in creating a firm basis for your marital property resolution is determining what sort of property you have. The parties are actually free to agree to all or any ideas for dividing the assets, but there are a few laws and cases that provide guidance on how to divide assets fairly.
It is quite beneficial if you address all financial matters with your spouse while you are still on speaking terms. This applies to everything from bank accounts to loans, pensions, retirements, and real estate. Explain to them why you desire this, whether casually or openly.
Understanding this will inform your attorney of what needs to be safeguarded from being wasted, destroyed, sold, or disposed of. Furthermore, having recently duplicated papers helps to avoid any extra attorney expenses for both parties in demanding these records, a process called discovery. When a request is submitted and answered, these costs are invoiced to both parties.
Automatic Temporary Restraining Orders: Preventing your Spouse from Moving Assets After Divorce
A major concern in a divorce is when the responsive spouse learns of the divorce, he or she may begin moving assets. Fortunately, your attorney will be able to assist you with how to manage such a situation. We could have you file for dissolution as soon as possible by serving the summons and petition so that your spouse is bound by the conditions of the automatic temporary restraining orders (ATROs).
These restraining orders are prominently displayed in the summons. These orders serve as a notification to either party to prevent them from disposing of the property. As the summons and petition are submitted concurrently, it is critical to keep the attorney informed of everything going on and if your circumstances necessitate an accelerated filing.
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