Rizio and Nelson California Law Blog

Emancipation of a Minor Child

Our teenage years can be the most difficult and emotional times of our lives. At some point, most of us wish that we didn’t have to live with our parents, or we feel like we hate them. We feel reckless and rebellious, and we just want to move out and be on our own so that we don’t have to follow their rules any more. This is all completely normal, but most of the time, these are not valid...

Legal Guardianship

There are many reasons for becoming a legal guardian of a child. Perhaps the child was neglected, or the parents have been arrested or hospitalized for a long term stay. Whatever the reason, a social worker has advised the courts of the problem, and a judge has decided that it is no longer safe or appropriate for the child to live with the parents. Often, the new legal guardian is a relative of...

Paternity

In legal terms, paternity is establishing who is the father of a child. In the case of married couples, it is assumed that the husband is the father. In the case of unmarried couples, it is required to establish paternity by filing a Declaration of Paternity form. The name of the father can be added to the child’s birth certificate only if: – The Declaration of Paternity is signed in...

Spousal Support

When a couple is legally separated or divorced, it is expected that the person with the primary income must financially support their former spouse. This is also called alimony. Historically, alimony arose from the idea that even though the husband and wife were no longer physically married, that is, no longer living together, the husband still had an obligation to support his wife because divorce...

Child Support

Child support can be obtained in the case of divorce, legal separation, or annulment. Also, it can be ordered when parentage is established or when a restraining order is requested, due to domestic violence. The courts expect parents to uphold their obligation of providing their child with necessities such as living expenses – food, clothing, shelter – and medical care expenses. The parent that...

Child Custody Laws

One of the things that makes divorce so very difficult is when there are children who will be affected by it for the rest of their lives. Deciding who has custody of the children is up to the judge if the parents cannot agree or are unable to make the decision. If the parents are able to agree on scheduled visitations and who has custody, then the judge will abide by their decision, but not until...

Process of Divorce

The process of Divorce or Dissolution of Marriage California’s “no fault divorce” policy basically means that a person can be granted a divorce by the state if one of the spouses finds that the marriage has broken down due to “irreconcilable differences”. Only one spouse has to initiate the process, even if the other spouse does not agree. There is a residency requirement. One of the...

Community Property

California is a state that applies “community property”, sometimes called “marital property”, laws. This means that any property acquired during the marriage belongs to both spouses. It does not matter if one spouse worked and one did not. The state divides the property equally between both parties if the marriage ends in divorce because it is assumed that they both contribute to the marriage...