“Will you marry me?” Once that special question is popped, generally it is followed up with that beautiful, but expensive diamond ring placed on her finger. So what happens to the ring when the wedding doesn’t happen?
Generally, once a gift is made in California it cannot be revoked. However, Civil Code § 1590 provides a specific rule for the gift of an engagement ring.
In California divorce cases, the spouse who files the request for the divorce is known as the Petitioner and the spouse responding to the request is, appropriately, the Respondent. Most divorce lawyers will tell you that there is no real benefit to being the Petitioner or the Respondent in most cases (although this divorce lawyer will tell you, all other things being equal, its nicer to be the Petitioner because the Petitioner gets to go first and last at trial).
In many high conflict cases, the Court cannot rely solely on the parties and the witnesses selected by the parties to come to an informed conclusion on child custody and visitation. The Court must rely on other professionals to investigate and evaluate the family’s circumstances. A custody evaluation is generally considered to be a matter of right to a noncustodial parent facing a request to move the children out of California. In California, there are generally three ways the Court can appoint evaluators.
Summer is right around the corner, which means one thing…School is almost out! Thinking of where you and your child want to spend some time soaking up the sun? Before you plan that out of the county or even out of the country vacation, let’s make sure your trip will be smooth sailing by making sure you are complying with all court orders.
First, determine where you are in your case (pre- or post-judgment). Take a look at your most recent order:
Kaley Cuoco became the second-highest paid TV actress (2nd to Sofia Vergara), after signing a $72 million dollar 3-year contract for her role in CBS’s hit show The Big Bang Theory. Yes, that’s $1 million dollars per episode for 72 episodes….and yes, now I’m reconsidering my chosen career path. Ahem, sorry, I guess that’s beside the point.
Texting is the most widely-used and frequently used app on a smartphone, with 97% of Americans using it at least once a day. Not impressed…Over 6 billion text messages are sent in the U.S. each day, making it the most common cell phone activity for more than 80% of adults.
Everyone sends text messages. They are quick, fast, and effective, especially when a full phone call is not necessary. For all of the benefits of texting, there are serious downsides. Texting is more impersonal than a real phone call. It is much easier to deliver bad news or to say something in anger via a text than it is in person or on the phone. Also, you tend to respond quickly and without thinking. This can have serious consequences. Continue reading
“Race to the courthouse” is an informal name used to describe the rule in some jurisdictions that the first conveyance instrument, mortgage, lien or judgment to be filed with the appropriate recorder’s office, will have priority and prevail over documents filed subsequently, irrespective of the date of execution of the documents at issue. In popular culture, being the party to file a lawsuit first is always portrayed as preferable. But like most things on TV, they just don’t hold up in real life; except maybe in Hollywood. (Hollywood is hard to call “real life” in any case.)
Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale’s divorce was recently finalized after a 13-year marriage. They had 3 children together. Gavin subjected Gwen to the stereotypical man cheats on woman with the nanny scenario. And allegedly in this case, man cheated on woman with nanny for 3 years before woman found out and filed for divorce. Even so, each party reportedly walked away from the divorce getting what they wanted.
The competency of a party can have profound effects in family law in California. We will explore that a little in this post.
First of all, whether or not a party is competent can be relevant as to the validity of the marriage contract itself. Pursuant to Family Code section 2210(c), a marriage is voidable if either party to the contract is of unsound mind. In other words, if they are not competent to enter the marital contract, the marriage can later be annulled. Continue reading
Taxes are already complicated enough. Unfortunately, divorce makes it more complicated. Here are three rules of thumb every divorcee should try to remember:
1. Claim community income before the date of separation: In California, all property acquired during the marriage is presumed to be community property, including any property acquired derived from labor. This presumption ends at the date of separation. Any property acquired after the date of separation is presumed to be the separate property of the acquiring spouse.
San Diego Divorce Attorneys Blog