California

Marriage & Family Law Home

In the state of California, a divorced spouse, or an individual going through divorce, may file for spousal support, otherwise known as alimony. ....... Click here to get more info on Alimony

If the court orders a phasein of child support payments, and the court finds evidence that the obligor violated the phasein payment schedule or intentionally lowered their income for paying child support, the court can order the immediate payment of the full formula amount of child support and the difference in the amount of support that would have been due without the phasein schedule and the amount of support due with the phasein, in addition to any other penalties provided for by law.

Whenever the court grants a request for a phasein payment schedule, they will declare the following in writing:

• The specific reasons why



• how the immediate imposition of the full monthly amount would create hardship for the obligor



• how this extraordinary hardship on the obligor would outweigh the hardship caused to the supported children through the temporary phasein of the full amount of support

In any proceeding where there is an issue for the support of a child or a child for whom support is authorized, the court can order either or both parents to pay a ....... Click here to get more info on Child Support

The court may order any person who is seeking custody of, or visitation with, a child who is the subject of the proceeding to undergo testing for the illegal use of controlled substances and the use of alcohol if there is a judicial determination based upon evidence that there is the habitual, frequent, or continual illegal use of controlled substances or the habitual or continual abuse of alcohol by the parent, legal custodian, person seeking guardianship, or person seeking visitation in a guardianship.



The court may issue an order determining the temporary custody and visitation of a child on the conditions the court determines to the established a parent and child relationship.



Upon the motion of one or both parents, or the legal guardian or custodian, or upon the court's own motion, an order granting physical or legal custody of, or unsupervised visitation with, a child may be modified or terminated if either of the following circumstances has occurred since the order was entered, unless the court finds that there is no significant risk to the child and states its reasons in writing or on the record:



The person who has been granted physical or legal custody of, or unsupervised visitation with the child is required, as a result of a felony conviction in which the victim was a minor, to be registered as a sex offender under Section 290 of the Penal Code.



In determining the best interests of the child and in order to limit the child's exposure to potential domestic violence and to ensure the safety of all family members, if the party who has obtained the restraining order has establi ....... Click here to get more info on Custody

California has a few unique aspects to their laws as they were one of the first to recognize same sex marriages or "Domestic Partnerships. ....... Click here to get more info on Divorce

In California, a biological parent of a minor child may request visitation rights as part of a pending divorce, parentage or custody case. ....... Click here to get more info on Visitation

In California, marital property, or property acquired during the marriage, is distributed equally (50-50) to each party unless the court finds such a division to be inequitable or parties agree to a different formula under which to divide property. ....... Click here to get more info on Property Division