Call Now: 949-724-1111
Schedule A Consultation

FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Family Law Matters

Our FAQ section offers detailed information about a full range of important questions that affect divorce cases. The responses address key subjects including business valuation, child custody, spousal support, modification of orders and more. Click on the dropdown menu for a full list of topics, then choose the specific questions applicable to your situation.

Questions related to:

It is generally necessary to value the assets of a business. For example, if the business owns real estate, machinery, computers, intellectual property or other tangible or intangible property, experts may be needed to value these assets in that, typically, the valuation expert is not qualified to value the capital assets of the business. Depending on which valuation method is being used, the valuation may also need to address operating vs. non-operating assets. Which are assets that are not needed for the continued performance of the business.

Our Orange County divorce lawyers believe that it is in a client’s best interests to be represented by a divorce lawyer whose practice is located in the county where the child custody case is filed. In other words, we do not believe it is in a client’s best interest for an Orange County divorce lawyer to accept a child custody case filed in Los Angeles, or vice versa. There is significant value in having a lawyer who is familiar with the local court’s practices, philosophies, and rules. Logically speaking, would a parent in a child custody dispute rather be represented by a lawyer who spends 100% of his time in the Orange County courts, or in several different counties?

A divorce lawyer must also be an experienced and proficient litigator. It is essential for the divorce lawyer to be intimately familiar with the rules of evidence, burdens of proof, and privileges that relate to child custody litigation, in order to avoid potentially disastrous results in trial. A child custody trial is a trial, not a conversation with a judge. If a divorce lawyer is not competent in the area of evidence, they may be unable to present crucial facts to the divorce court. If the court sustains an evidentiary objection, that means the answer to the question will not be heard by the court. A skilled divorce lawyer may be able to prevent the other party from testifying on the most important parts of the case. In other words, a divorce court may not ever hear the story that needs to be told. The divorce court will not have the opportunity to make an informed decision regarding child custody if it does not hear all of the facts.

Even a parent with sole legal and physical child custody does not have the absolute power to relocate a child’s residence. (Brown and Yana).

A strategic divorce attorney sees decision making in a divorce transaction as a series of business decisions. When a skilled CEO evaluates a problem or issue, what steps do they follow? What resources does the CEO allocate to the project? What tactics do they utilize in executing the plan to solve the problem or address the issue? A divorce lawyer is the project manager or the CEO of a divorce.A divorce lawyer is similar to a CEO in a number of ways. Both must make decisions related to priorities, strategies and the allocation of resources. They each must pick their battles with the ultimate goal of achieving the highest return at the lowest cost. A CEO must decide which consultants to hire and at what cost. A divorce attorney must decide whether to hire and how much to spend on a forensic accountant, a vocational expert, a compensation expert, etc.

A CEO must decide whether to make an acquisition, hire a new advertising agency or expand into a new geographic area. A divorce lawyer must decide whether to depose third party witnesses, whether to serve discovery, what discover to serve and when to serve it, whether to make the first offer and when to make it, whether to file a request with the court to seek a support order or other relief, whether and when to ask for a trial date, and so on.

Competently handling child custody disputes requires an Orange County divorce lawyer with a number of different and distinct lawyering skills. Handling child custody matters is very different than handling a business valuation issue. To be effective in child custody matters, a divorce lawyer must be a skilled trial lawyer and be knowledgeable about the nuances of child custody law. A divorce lawyer must be intimately familiar with the statutes and case law related to child custody and move away matters. It is critical that a divorce lawyer stay current on the statutes and cases, as they change frequently and often without notice. Changes may be minor, but any change can impact the outcome of a child custody case dramatically. An Orange County divorce lawyer must also be conversant with the many issues that relate to Evidence Code Section 730/Family Code Section 3111 child custody evaluations, and the psychological testing that is utilized in the evaluation process.

A family law court may impute income to the custodial parent, so long as the imputation is consistent with a child’s best interests. (IRMO Ficke). In other words, a family law court may not impute income to a mother who is the primary custodial parent, if it believes that doing so would force her to work, and working would not be in a child’s best interests relative to supervision and parenting.

If a child custody order has previously designed one parent as the primary custodial parent, the moving parent does not need to prove that the move is necessary. (IRMO Burgess) A parent opposing the move must show that the move would be detrimental to the child. (IRMO LaMusga). If detriment is proven by the non-moving parent, then a divorce court must evaluate all of the relevant factors to determine whether relocation or a change of child custody to the non-moving parent is in the child’s best interests.

The reduction in employment income alone may not constitute a change in circumstances sufficient enough to warrant a reduction in support, if the parent has other income producing assets or if other changes have occurred like, for instance, a significant time share change. A child support order is based on income from all sources.

Spousal support may be modifiable if the payor’s income has increased and the recipient spouse demonstrated that their needs were not met with the initial permanent spousal support order (IRMO Hopwood and IRMO Hoffmeister).

If a party can successfully trace then the separate property will be reimbursed to that party. If a party cannot trace, then the separate property will be characterized as community property.

Standard Family Law Restraining Orders are set forth in the Dissolution of Marriage Summons. They apply to the Petitioner upon filing of the Petition of Dissolution and to the responding party, Respondent, upon being served with the Petition. The orders remain in effect until the final judgment is entered, the Petition is dismissed or further order of court.The filing of a Petition for Dissolution or Legal Separation results in the issuance of Standard Restraining Orders.

These restraining orders are designed to maintain the status quo during the pendency of the case.

Standard Restraining Orders are not designed to freeze bank or brokerage accounts. Violation of these orders sets the violator up for a breach of fiduciary duty claim.

Standard Family Law Restraining Orders

We believe that the more specialized a lawyer is, the higher quality his or her lawyering will be. We believe that limiting our practice to family law, and further limiting it to matters filed in Orange County, gives us a significant edge. Read our page about What Makes Minyard Morris Unique as an Orange County Family Law Firm. How can a lawyer who handles cases in multiple counties and who handles cases in several different practice areas provide the same quality of lawyering as a lawyer that exclusively practices in Orange County? Click here to learn Why You Should Hire a Large Family Law Firm. We also recommend you read how to go about Selecting an Orange County Divorce Lawyer.

It is our strong belief that it is in a client’s best interest to be represented in an Orange County divorce by an Orange County divorce lawyer, not by an out-of-county divorce lawyer, even if that lawyer co-counsels a case with an Orange County divorce lawyer. Having two separate firms represent a client is more costly, increases the chances for mix-ups and confusion between the firms, and could cause other significant problems, and may result in double-billing. Read our page about What Makes Minyard Morris Unique as an Orange County Family Law Firm.

We accept no out-of-county cases, and we believe we better serve our clients by focusing on Orange County procedures, nuances, local practice, and the local rules of our Orange County judges. Click here to learn Why You Should Hire a Large Family Law Firm. We also recommend you read how to go about Selecting an Orange County Divorce Lawyer.

There are many situations where parties elect to mediate their Orange County divorce in an effort to avoid spending money on divorce lawyers, a logical objective. In certain situations, this is not only wise, but necessary due to a lack of funds. However, where the parties do have funds available for legal representation, pursuing divorce mediation (without the assistance of a divorce lawyer) may ultimately be a very expensive mistake – “penny wise and pound foolish” as the saying goes.You should also consider the net economic cost of saving money by not paying an Orange County divorce attorney, and ending up with a losing settlement that costs up to three, five or ten times as much as you saved by not paying a lawyer.

The amount of equity that exists on the date the owner-spouse places the other spouse’s name on title to his or her separate real property will generally remain his or her separate property (without any appreciation or interest) unless a specific waiver of Family Code Section 2640 is made. In other words, if, on the date the property is transferred into joint names, the equity equalled $500,000, the party who originally owned the property would receive the first $500,00 of equity in the property upon divorce unless that party executes a Family Code Section 2640 waiver.

Title Changed

The State Bar of California recognizes Family Law as a specialized practice area. Representing clients in divorce matters that involve the valuation of business interests is even more specialized. Handling these matters requires a working knowledge of valuation principles, taxation, compensation issues, accounting principles, general foundational business knowledge, the complex and conflicting divorce valuation statutes, relevant case law and divorce litigation skills.

​The amount of the temporary spousal support is not a factor relevant to the determination of the permanent spousal support order in that they are based on different criteria (IRMO Schulze).

A critical part of every divorce settlement is the negotiation of its terms. Often times, parties going through a divorce believe that the divorce laws will dictate the results of the settlement. The laws provide the general structure of a settlement, but the laws are often very nuanced and the law must be applied correctly to the facts in each case. It is a mistake to believe that the involvement of a divorce mediator minimizes the importance of negotiation. The parties negotiate with each other, face to face, in the mediation process. Often times the divorce mediator will intentionally or inadvertently be negotiating in favor of, or against, one party in order to achieve a settlement. It is important to understand the mediator’s mentality. The mediator wants to achieve a settlement and counts settlements as wins. This is not the same as saying that a mediator wants to achieve a fair settlement. A party not experienced or trained in negotiation will generally be at a significant disadvantage.How can a party negotiate a reasonable or fair divorce settlement if they do not know the divorce laws and nuances? How can a party know which issues to push and which issues to concede? When negotiators are hired in business, politics, sports, or any other field, the person hired is an expert in that particular field. You would not hire a sports agent to negotiate the sale of a business. Likewise, it would not be the wisest course of action to attempt to negotiate a divorce settlement if you lack insight from an experienced Orange County divorce lawyer.

Depending upon the facts of the case and the formula applied by the divorce court, the allocation (reimbursement) of the increase in the value of the business during the marriage may be allocated all to the community, all to the separate property of the spouse who owns the business, or apportioned.

Equitable Apportionment / Reimbursement