Courts in California will almost inevitably order one parent to pay child support when a divorcing or separating couple has children in common. In many cases, following a divorce or separation, a court will also order one party to pay spousal support or alimony to the other party.
Furthermore, as some Los Angeles residents may know, California law allows courts to order so-called palimony payments when they are faced with a situation in which two people have been together for a long time but are legally not married.
The good news, or bad news depending on how one looks at it, is that a court can re-visit both child support and alimony orders from time to time in order to account for changed circumstances. The key question usually involves whether one or both parties have undergone a change in life circumstances that make the current support orders no longer fair.
By way of example only, if one loses his or her job or faces a serious and long-term medical problem, he or she may have a good argument for a support modification.
If there is no agreement between the spouses, getting a modification will likely involve having to return to court to make one's argument in front of a judge. This can be an intimidating experience even for the most well-informed and well-prepared person, so getting the help of an experienced family law professional with knowledge of the local courts, like the legal professionals at our office, can be important.
Likewise, even when a couple agrees to a modification, we can prepare and review their formal agreement to make sure one's rights are protected and responsibilities are well-understood. Our help can in this way save a lot of legal headaches down the road.
