About Preparing A Divorce Motion For Child Support

I have a new client that needs to file a motion for child support.   I help people prepare motions for child support and other orders such as Spousal Support all the time.  Aside from helping people complete the divorce process, this is probably the 2nd biggest thing I do.  In fact, in many cases we are filing for divorce and filing a motion for support at the same time.

When I am working with clients to prepare a motion, I usually tell them to write me a story about what the circumstances are.  If you are just filing for support, this can be as simple as stating the facts.

When it comes to child support, the amount of money you will pay or be paid depends upon how much time you have with the children and how much money each of the parties make.  There are child support calculators you can use to estimate what this figure may be.

I am currently working on a Post Judgment Child Support Motion (Request For Order).  Post Judgment simply means you have already been divorced and are asking for a modification of the orders in the Judgment.

In these Post Judgment child support motions, the issue generally is that the spouse with visitation has not complied with the amount of time share indicated in the divorce judgment.  So while the spouse paying child support is based on their income and the amount of time they spend with the children, what happens when they stop visiting as much as they said they would in the divorce judgment?

This is the reason for the current Child Support motion.  The father was supposed to have a certain amount of visitation time with the children.  But for several years, the father has not visited even half as much as he is supposed to per the divorce judgment.

What happens is that the children’s mom has the children much more than the judgement indicates.  Not that she is complaining about having more time, but it becomes unfair that the father gets to pay child support on a timeshare of say 50% when his actual visitation is only 20%.

If all things remain equal, meaning that the father’s and mother’s income remain the same, if we modify the amount of timeshare to 20% then the amount of support the father should have to pay should go up.  I say should because it is always up to a judge to decide.  But normally they use whats called “Guideline” support.

When you are trying to modify a previous order, just understand that there has to be some “Change in Circumstances” from the last time the order was made.  For instance, in the case described above, the change in circumstances could be that the father visits only 20% of the time now instead of the 50% he is supposed to.

If you need help filing a motion for child support or any other type of motion, I can help.  We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specializes in the divorce process.  We provide a 100% online divorce solutions headquartered in Santa Clarita, California and can help you anywhere in Los Angeles County.

Are  you looking for the best way to get through your divorce?  It is a good idea to do your homework to see what the best way to divorce might be.

You do have a few options.  You can hire a divorce lawyer, do your divorce yourself, or use a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specializes in divorce.

There is a 80% chance that you will either do your own divorce or use our services to prepare your divorce forms.  This statistic is based on the Courts reporting that only 20% of divorcing couples actually use an attorney to get divorced.  Of those 20% that use an attorney, many of those could have completed the divorce by using a divorce paralegal service like ours and saved thousands of dollars.

Of course, we are here to toot our own horn and tell you we are the best divorce service in Santa Clarita.  We feel this way for a couple of reasons.  First of all, we are the only divorce paralegal service that is licensed and bonded by the County of Los Angeles to prepare divorce documents.  Second, is that we only specialize in divorce and have years of experience doing it.

In fact, we have even worked in the divorce courts and self help centers in Los Angeles.  Additionally, we have worked for some of Santa Clarita’s largest family law firms.

So while our opinion is a little jaded on who offers the best divorce service in Santa Clarita, we encourage you to give us a call to see if using our divorce paralegal service in Santa Clarita is a good option for you.  We will be the first to tell you if we think you divorce case is better suited for an attorney.  But as we said at the beginning of this article, there is only a small chance you will have to spend thousands of dollars using a divorce attorney.

 

No Assets – No Debt Divorce In Santa Clarita

Going through the divorce process is a lot of paperwork.  If you take emotion out of the picture, the divorce process comes down to simply dividing up your assets and debts.

Yes, there are other issues when you have children, etc., but the a huge chunk of the divorce process deals with financial issues.

To file for divorce, you complete a Summons and Petition.  That notifies the court and the other party that you intend to divorce.  After that, all the paperwork deals with assets and debts.

The next step after filing for divorce is to prepare your Declaration of Disclosure.  This is where you will list all your assets and debts on the Schedule of Assets and Debts and you will list your income and expenses on the Income and Expense Declaration.  This process is called disclosure and represents the bulk of the divorce forms you will fill out when going through divorce.

So in essence, divorce is about money.  It’s about who is getting what and who is going to pay for what.  Does it take a divorce lawyer to complete this paperwork?  We think not.

Even if you have no assest and no debts, you still have to complete the financial disclosures during the divorce.

But what if you have been separated for a long period of time?  Do you still have to disclose all your financial information?  In short, Yes! I have had clients who have been separated for as long as 10 years and are just getting around to filing for divorce.  For all intesive purposes, they have been living separate lives.  Now, they are being asked to disclose all their assets and debts and income information to someone they have not communicated with for over 10 years.  Odd as it may be that you have to show all your finaces at this point, the fact of the matter is you still have to.

We specialize in providing an affordable divorce service in Los Angeles County.

 

Do I Need Therapy During Divorce | Santa Clarita

I’m not an advocate for therapy, in fact I don’t understand it.  Maybe it’s because I am a guy and guy’s don’t like to share.  I really don’t know.  But if you feel you might need a little therapy during your divorce you might want to check out what the folks over at Divorce Detox are doing.

I am not making any recommendations, I just happened across their blog and found it interesting and thought I would share a few of their links.

According to their website they have a Divorce Detox workshop that includes a workkbook, group texting, access to consults in between session and the Divorce Detox Survivial Kit.

I was interested in the divorce detox survival kit.  It says it is a must for anyone going through the divorce process who wants valuable, expert advice and tangible support to survive and thrive from divorce.

You get daily support, expert advice, resources, inspiration, as well as access to a nurturing community plus monthly group coaching calls.

It may be worth your time to peruse their site if you are considering getting some therapy during your divorce.

The majority of my clients most likely are not in need of therapy during their divorce as they are mostly amicable, uncontested divorces in Santa Clarita and Los Angeles area.  This does not mean that there is not some emotional grief, just that they are working towards getting through the divorce without involving attorneys.

Experts say that going through an uncontested divorce can have the least amount of emotional impact on divorcing spouses.  This makes sense as contested divorces means going through trials in court which only make things worse.

We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specializes in the divorce process.  We are located in Santa Clarita, California and serve all the courts in Los Angeles County.

Please give us a call to discuss your particular circumstances and learn

 

Why Khloe Kardashian Filed For Divorce

While Khloe Kardashian has not yet filed for divorce, it is rumored that the divorce between Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom is coming to an end.

There have been tons of tabloid talk about the possibilities of them getting divorced.   Some are saying that the reasons they are possibly getting divorced is because Khloe cannot conceive children.  Beleive what you want, I don’t invest much time in the tabloids, but found this article posted by The Hollywood Gossip Blog something worth commenting on.

High profile divorce cases are all over.  I don’t understand the facination with following the gossip, but am interested in how the divorce cases progresses.

These types of divorce cases are one’s where a divorce attorney is necessary.  You won’t find me saying that much, because I am such an advocate for uncontested, amicable divorces.  But where there are significant assets involved, you certainly need an attorney involved.   And yes, it is going to be expensive any way you cut it.  But these folks have the money to burn, so they might as well hire the best in the business.

Usually, I write about why you should not hire a divorce attorney and instead just consult with attorneys.  This is because I don’t work with celebrities getting divorced.  My clients are intead looking for a way to keep the costs down.

Many have called divorce lawyers and found out how expensive it is just to complete an uncontested divorce.  They are relieved to have found a flat fee divorce service that is able to help them complete all the divorce paperwork for a fraction of the cost of using a divorce lawyer.

When considering a divorce in Los Angeles, make sure you use a reputable licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specializes in the divorce process.

Going From Attorney Represented To Self Represented During Divorce

I have been getting a lot of calls lately from folks who are represented by an attorney and who have become frustrated with the lack of progress of their case and the amount of money they have spent to get nowhere.

It is true that attorney representation during your divorce is expensive.  What I preach over and over again is that only 20% of divorce cases ever need or use an attorney for their divorce.  80% of the divorces that are completed, neither side has used an attorney.  I did not make this up, this has been reported numerous times by attorneys and the courts own research.

But the question becomes, “How do you go from attorney represented to self represented during divorce?”

What I tell folks is that it is sort of a dangerous place to be where only one spouse is represented and the other is representing themselves.  What would be ideal is that both parties decide to represent themselves and go back to the kitchen table and attempt to work out their issues among themselves.

But where one spouse wants to frustrate the process or where one attorney appears to be pushing buttons to ensure that you never come to an agreement, it becomes a difficult process.

You are between a rock and a hard place.  Represent yourself to save money and risk being taken advantage of by your spouse’s attorney or keep your attorney and keep paying outrageous attorney fees.

When I worked at a law firm, I saw couples spend tens of thousands of dollars and accomplish nothing  more than further going down the rabbit hole and make no progress.  The only thing that knocked any sense into them is when they would get their bill from our law firm.

They would call to let us know they can no longer afford us and are going to try to work it out directly with their spouse.

Why didn’t they do this from the beginning?

We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specializes in the divorce process.  Please give us a call to learn more about our affordable divorce service.

We are located in Santa Clarita, California and serve all the Courts in Los Angeles County.

Santa Clarita Spousal Support Calculator

We try to make as much information available to our clients so they can make informed decisions during the divorce process.  Many times we are asked how spousal support works and how much they might have to pay or might receive.

Spousal support is generally determined by use of a Dissomaster report that attorneys and the courts use to determine this .  On a basic level, the amount of support you will have to pay or are going to receive is based on the income of the parties.

But how do you determined these amounts without going to court and without having to pay an attorney to prepare a Dissomaster?

I have located an attorney website that has done a good job of making it easy to estimate spousal support amounts.  The website says that the court uses a standard calculation to determine spousal support payments and that it should be used as an estimate only.  However, they do go on to say that they have tested it and it has produced results consistent with the calculators the court uses.

They have used the exact same mathematical formula so it appear that you will get a fairly accurate number.  Just don’t hold them to it.

What I liked about their spousal support calculator is that is was easy to use and you could get your spousal support figures in about 30 seconds simply by plugging in you and your spouses income and tax filing status.

The calculator is offered through Dishon & Block Divorce Attorneys.  You can access the calculator on the below link.  A new page will open up to the calculator.

Spousal Support Calculator

The title of this post says Santa Clarita Spousal Support Calculator and was mostly used for the purposes of the search engines.  This calculator is good for all of California as the family law courts in California all use the same Dissomaster system.

We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specializes in the divorce process.  If you would like to learn more about our affordable divorce service, please give us a call.  We are located in Santa Clarita, CA and serve all the courts of Los Angeles with our 100% online divorce solution.

Santa Clarita Divorce Help Videos

We have been on a major campaign to bring to market as many divorce self help videos we can.

We cover everything from how to complete the divorce forms, line by line, to answering some of the frequently asked questions about the divorce process.

We do this for 2 reasons.  First, there has been a complete lack of information giving from the legal industry.  There is this fear of giving out too much information.  That does not exist here.  We are the first Santa Clarita divorce service to offer a how to video on all aspects of the California divorce process.

That said, the second reason to share all this wonderful divorce information with you is because it is a good marketing strategy.  Actually give the people the information they are looking for.  What a concept!

In return, we will get additional exposure and good PR.  In the end everyone wins.  Those looking for the information get what they are looking for.  And we get the online exposure, video views, word of mouth and any business that comes are way by having helped with our divorce self help videos.

What we are truly trying to do is peel back the mask of the confusing legal system.  Nothing we are telling you is new.  All this information is out there, you just need to know where to look.  All we have done is produce a video on how to prepare your divorce yourself that is understandable.  And we have done so in a way that you are actually able to find it on the internet.

We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specializes in the divorce process.  We have our offices in Santa Clarita, CA but serve all of Los Angeles County.

Additionally, our divorce service is 10o% virtual, which means you will never have to come to our office and we can help you regardless of your location or the court you filed in.

We hope you enjoy our Santa Clarita Divorce help videos.

 

 

Who Pays Child Support During Santa Clarita Divorce

Who ends up paying child support depends a lot on with whom he children spend most of their time.  Generally, the parent with less custodial time will end up paying support to the parent who has more custodial time or who has been considered the custodial parent and be part of the parenting plan of the divorce.

The idea behind child support is that both parents are responsible for the well being of the children.  And if one parent has the children more often than the other, then there are more expenses that need to be met and the other spouse is required to help out.

There are several factors that go into determining who pays child support and how much.  Usually the two factors are time share and how much each of the spouses make.  It is even possible that the spouse with the majority of time share pay child support to the other if their income is significantly higher.

You can play with these two numbers to attempt to determine how much child support may have to be paid.  Changing the amount of time share from 50/50 to 80/20 can have a significant influence on the amount of child support that may need to be paid.  In addition, the income of the parties will help to determine child support.

In some cases the only variable to the amount of support is the time share.  In contested divorce cases, there is generally a disagreement to the amount of time share between the spouses.

One spouse may argue for more time with the children to influence the amount of child support they receive.  The other spouse may also argue the opposite, understanding that the more time they can get, the less in child support they will have to pay.

Issues over child support can get ugly and is one of the top issues of a contested divorce.

 

Should You Quit Claim Your Home During Divorce

Something that comes up a lot during the divorce process in Santa Clarita is what to do about the home.  Many times my clients will decide who is going to keep the home and who is going to move out.

The question then becomes, “how to you get the other spouse off of title?”  The answer is not as simple as it may seem.

Yes, it is true that you would use an instrument called a “Quitclaim”.  A quitcliam is a legal instrument by which the owner of a piece of real property, called the grantor, transfers his or her ineterest to a recipient, called the grantee.  The owner therefore effectivly “quits” his or her right and claim to the property.

One issue that exists is that when you quitclaim your interest in a property, this does nothing in respect to the loan.  You are still on the hook for the loan if the spouse you quitclaim to defaults, yet have no interest in the property.

I reached out to my good friend and Santa Clarita Real Estate Expert, Connor MacIvor with the Paris911 Remax Team, and asked him his opinion on the matter.

Connor put together the below video to answer the questions about whether quitclaiming during divorce is the right way to handle it.

So what Connor and I agree on is that you are taking a chance if you quitclaim your home to your spouse and remain on the loan.  However, there is little choice in some cases.

Usually, the only way to get the spouse of the loan is to refinance the property.  And unless you can qualify on your own and assuming it is not upside down in today’s real estate market, your only other choice is to sell the property.

Despite this, most move forward with the quitclaim so they can get divorced and move on with their lives.