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What Does Child Support in California Cover?

Child support is always a very touchy subject for all parties involved. The parent paying the child support wants to make sure that the money is going to the child. The parent receiving the child support wants enough money to pay for all the child’s needs. Both parties can probably agree that raising a child can be expensive.

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Child Support Covers the Basics

Child support basically covers the child’s bare necessities—nothing more. The reason why the amount of child support differs from situation to situation is because of many factors like a parent’s ability to pay and income. The financial needs of the child also comes into play. Financial needs mean the amount of money needed to maintain a child’s standard of living. This doesn’t not include the cost of living for the parent who is receiving the child support. The following is a breakdown of what California’s child support covers:

Necessities

The necessities include food, shelter and clothing. Food refers to school lunches and other groceries. Shelter costs may be used to pay for rent or mortgage where the child resides. The money can also pay for the utility bills where the child lives.

Education

Child support cover any educational expenses related to the child’s schooling. This can range from tuition, tutors, school uniforms, application fees and books.

Medical Care

Both parents are required to have health insurance for their child. There are times when insurance doesn’t cover all the medical bills. Typically, medical costs that aren’t covered by insurance is split between the parents. A parent can use the child support he or she receives to cover any outstanding medical bills.

Entertainment

Child support covers basic entertainment. These are age-appropriate entertainment like plays, movies and toys. A parent can use the support to pay for the Internet and cable since the child is using the services.

Extracurricular Activities

The courts do factor in any extracurricular activities a child may participate in such as summer camp, sports and music lessons. The extracurricular activities are considered any regular activities that happen outside of school hours.

Childcare

Childcare includes cots like afterschool programs, daycare, babysitters and nannies.

Transportation

Many parents paying support may not like the fact that child support covers transportation. However, a parent is allowed to pay for basic transportation costs. These costs include car insurance, car maintenance and gas. The costs must be used in relation to the child’s needs. For instance, if the parent receiving the support pays for gas to go on a vacation. If the child is not going, then it is not an allowable cost.

College

This is a gray area. Many parents have a separate agreement regarding how much a parent must contribute to a child’s college education. However, the parent receiving the support can pay for college-related expenses.

What the Paying Parent Should Know

It is a myth that California child support covers only food, shelter and clothing. The support is meant to cover a range of expenses including extracurricular activities and entertainment. California family court doesn’t require parents to prove the child support covers the above costs. It is assumed that the parent receiving the support is paying for the child’s necessary, basic needs. The only time it may require the parent to show where the money is going is when his or her child’s needs are being met.

Child support is fluid. This means a parent can go to court to a modification based on certain circumstances. Individuals interested in a child support modification typically seek the help of a family law lawyer.

When is it too Late to Annul a Marriage in California?

when-is-it-too-late-to-annul-a-marriageFiling for an annulment rather than a divorce can be a complicated process. An annulment has the expressed goal of deeming the marriage invalid, and thus, wiping it from the record as if it never existed. A divorce, on the other hand, is when two parties agree to end a marriage through the process of divorce. While divorces can happen at anytime, and there is no limitations on when one can file for divorce, in the state of California, annulments do have deadlines. How long you can be married and still annul a marriage in California depends entirely on the reasons that are being used for an annulment.

Minors Who Marry 

If one or both of the parties in the marriage are under the age of 18, they can file for an annulment with this as a reason. If the minor is still under 18 at the time of the annulment request a parent or legal guardian can file the request. After the individual turns 18 he or she has 4 years from their 18th birthday to file for an annulment. From the age of 22 onward, a divorce petition must be filed, instead.

Bigamy 

Bigamy is the act of getting married while another, legal marriage still exists. In the case of bigamy, the second marriage is considered null and void, but the process of annulment must still be carried out. For an annulment on the grounds of bigamy both parties must be alive at the time of the proceedings. There is no time limit on when one can file for an annulment due to bigamy. The current spouse, or the pre-existing spouse can file.

Fraud 

Fraud is the most commonly used reason for an annulment request. Fraud, in this case, can be defined as one partner deceiving the other into the marriage. Fraud can be considered one partner telling the other that they’d like to have children when they do not. Fraud can also be defined as the withholding of important information that would have caused the marriage to never happen. The party who has been the victim of fraud must file for the annulment, and it must be within four years of discovering the fraud. Fraud, in certain circumstances, can be difficult to prove.

Force 

Force, in terms of an annulment, is the act of forcing one party to commit and consent to the marriage. This can happen when one party feels obligated to another, or when a minor enters into a partnership with an older individual. When force is being used as the reason for divorce, the one forced into the marriage must be the individual to file. An annulment because of force, must be filed within four years of entering into the marriage.

Physical Incapacitation 

An annulment of a marriage may be granted on the grounds of physical incapacity. That means, one party is no longer able to live up to their marital duties, or never was. For example, impotence can be considered a physical incapacity, however, the party asking for the divorce must prove that she was unaware of the physical disability at the time of the marriage. One can file for an annulment on these grounds as long as the marriage is no more than 4 years old.

Unsound Mind 

Under this reason, one party must prove that the other party is of unsound mind, or a conservator must prove that the individual was not of sound mind to consent to the marriage. This type of annulment can take place at any time during the marriage, as long as both parties are still living.

What is Premarital Legal Counseling?

Premarital legal counseling is a kind of therapy that’s aimed at ensuring you and your partner have a long and satisfying marriage. During premarital counseling, you and your partner may comewhat-is-premarital-legal-counseling across particular roadblocks that might lead to divorce.

Many churches offer premarital therapy; premarital therapy is usually mediated by a trained marriage and family therapist approved by the American Association for Family and Marriage Therapy.

Prenuptial Agreements and Premarital Counseling 

Sometimes, however, premarital legal counseling could involve looking at the couple’s finances and reasons for pursuing a prenuptial agreement.

Recent surveys from the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers says that over sixty percent of divorce lawyers saw an uptick in prenuptial agreements over the last three years.

In addition, this same group of divorce lawyers said that women are disproportionately the ones filing for a prenuptial agreement. This, obviously, jars with the popular conception of the man in the house being the sole breadwinner and filing a prenuptial agreement to protect his assets.

Issues Tackled in Premarital Counseling 

Premarital counseling’s main goal is to have couples discuss their social, emotional and financial expectations for the upcoming marriage, and work out any problems related to those areas. If the couple can’t agree on the financial role for each party before the marriage, then a prenuptial agreement might be an appropriate topic to bring up in premarital counseling.

Generally speaking a prenuptial agreement is a legal contract that couples enter into before a marriage or civil union. A prenuptial agreement mainly covers issues like spousal support and division of property should a divorce or breakup result from the marriage or civil union. A premarital agreement covers eventualities like who will own what following the death of one spouse or a divorce. With a premarital counselor, you can work through which property is yours alone and which pieces of property you expect to be jointly owned by both spouses.

Although this would technically be outside the purview of premarital counseling, a postmarital agreement could be entered into after the marriage to settle many of the same issues (e.g., division of property) following a possible divorce. In addition, you would want a divorce lawyer rather than a premarital counselor to oversee a separation agreement, which is alternatively called a property settlement agreement.

Legal Issues to Address in Premarital Counseling 

Present and future property as well as personal income are all fair game when it comes to the areas divorce lawyers can help mediate in a prenuptial agreement. The legal right to sell or lease property, mortgages and marriage dissolutions can also be discussed before the marriage with a premarital counselor or with a divorce lawyer, granted a premarital agreement is something that both future spouses want to pursue.

A premarital agreement is effectuated only after the couple officially ties the knot. A premarital agreement can be changed or revoked granted that each party is willing to sign a document disavowing the standing premarital agreement. Also, it’s usually wise to sign a premarital agreement no later than a month before the marriage takes place. If a premarital agreement is rushed and signed 30 days or fewer before the marriage happens, issues like duress or coercion can enter the picture and make the premarital agreement more contestable in court.

Both a premarital counselor and divorce lawyer can help you and your spouse establish long and near-term financial goals and marriage expectations. You can discuss the disposition of property and even alimony with a premarital counselor or experienced divorce lawyer. Prenuptial agreements are very binding in California, especially with respect to shared property and alimony.

Divorce vs Separation

Divorce Vs SeparationThe pain of a marriage ending is one of the most difficult things most people will ever experience. It is a devastating life event that has the potential to ruin not only your relationships but leave you financially destitute. Divorce is one of the leading causes of depression and bankruptcy for good reason. It can quite literally rip your entire life in half and leave you to pick up the pieces.

Given how serious and irrevocable a step divorce is, you may be thinking about separation instead. Before making this decision, you must understand the differences between separation and divorce. The finality of divorce is well known, and at that time your legal relationship with your spouse will be fully dissolved. There may be some circumstances where this is not ideal. Many spouses have joint property or business ventures that would need to be sold and divided as community property, and that may be a financial move that would benefit neither partner.

A separation may be a good alternative to immediate dissolution of marriage if either or both parties have not given up on the chance of reconciliation. Many couples simply need to live apart for a time and outline a living arrangement that works for them both while disputes are resolved. Others may not be ready to sell and divide property. It may not be possible for you to yet envision what your life will be like without your spouse, and you may not know what you are going to do without them. A separation gives the opportunity to grow into mutual independence with less financial shock to the system.

The saying goes that marriages come and go, but divorce is forever. There is some truth to this. Even in the event of a reconciliation after a divorce that culminates in remarriage, this does not undo the divorce so much as enter into a completely distinct legal marriage agreement. It does not undo the financial and family turmoil that the original dissolution caused. If reconciliation is a possibility, even a remote one, a period of separation is something that you must consider.

On the other hand, if you are utterly convinced that divorce is the only option and your spouse feels the same, a separation may do more harm than good. Remaining financially and legally linked may cause further financial and legal damage as two spouses make financial decisions that are the best for them at the expense of their ex, running up debts and squandering assets. Actions such as this are among the leading causes of divorce anyway, and if this is the case a quicker dissolution may be called for.

California law requires a six month waiting period after you have served your spouse with a petition for divorce. This must be added to the time that it will take to prepare the documents, agree on financial agreements and parenting plans, and however long it may take for you to get a court date. With a lengthy separation added to this, the entire legal nightmare could drag on for years. An immediate filing for dissolution, and a commitment to competing negotiations on every point of dispute, can go a long way toward making your divorce go as quickly and smoothly as circumstances allow.

Divorce vs separation, whatever choice you make, remember that decision must take into account what is best for you and your children. Separation and divorce can be equally traumatic for children, but how difficult it has to be is still in your hands. Neither a separation nor a divorce is an easy step to take.