Family Law Information

Family Law in San Diego, California is a term which encompasses many areas of the law: divorce; legal separation; annulment; paternity; custody; visitation; spousal support; child support; domestic violence; business interests; death of a spouse; community property; quasi community property; separate property; domestic partners; employment benefits; retirements; enforcement of orders; jurisdiction and marital status to name a partial list. Our San Diego family law lawyers are familiar with each of these situations.

Family Law in San Diego, California is also a procedure. There are many courts in San Diego however there are a limited number which hear family law cases. The main court house for family law matters is in San Diego on Sixth Street. There are six departments and all only hear family law cases. There is an ancillary courthouse in San Diego located on Fourth Street at the Madge Bradley court house however only two departments hear family law cases and both of these are on the sixth floor. Another court house is located in Vista in the north county of San Diego. This is a large courthouse and there are many other types of cases heard other than family law. There are five departments which hear family law matters in the Vista court house. There is also a court in El Cajon which hears family law cases. These are heard on the second floor of the El Cajon court house and there are three departments which hear family law cases. The last court house is in Chula Vista and there are normally three departments which hear family law cases. Court houses and departments change and it is essential to verify the correct court house and department prior to attending any court hearing.

Family Law encompasses also the analyzation of the issues presented from an attorney perspective as well as from the client perspective. Every client is a unique individual and each factual situation is different however the law which applies to all cases is the same no matter who the litigant is. As such, each case must be analyzed individually and an experienced family law lawyer in San Diego is necessary to make sure all issues are addressed and that the client is informed of their rights and can make an intelligent and informed decision about each issue.

There are inter relationships between the different areas of family law which impact on others. It is crucial to understand these so that a "global" strategy can be implemented. As an example, there is an inverse relationship between the percentage of custody and visitation and the amount of child support. This gives the payor [normally non custodial parent although not always] the financial incentive to increase the time share to decrease the child support guideline amount and the payee [normally the custodial parent although not always] the financial incentive to decrease the time share to increase the child support guideline amount. There are the inter relationships in many areas of family law. At our firm of Doppelt and Forney, APLC, we would be pleased to offer you a complimentary Dissomaster analysis of the guideline child support for San Diego, California. In this way, you can know what the Court would order and then can make an informed and intelligent decision. No attorney can guarantee the outcome of any case however the child support is by guideline and our office has the same computer program as do the Judges so this gives a fair amount of certainty.

Family law also means to minimize costs and expenses incurred with the dissolution of any marriage or the filing of an action for annulment, paternity, or legal separation. There are tax implications and a CPA must be consulted for these. There are legal fees and most San Diego family law attorneys ask for a retainer or deposit as an advance against billing at an hourly rate. Most attorneys also charge for postage, parking, mileage, copying and fax charges. These are in addition to the filing fees of $320 for the filing of any petition and $40 for the filing of any order to show cause hearing which are the current fees in San Diego. In San Diego family law courts, if the matter is over one hour, there may be fees for the Court Reporter under the Code. In addition, particularly in the area of support, there may be times when family support {child and spousal support combined in one amount which is 100% deductible} is the most appropriate strategy.

Another example of strategies under the current law involves child support which is not deductible to the payor nor included in income of the payee and spousal support which is exactly the opposite as this is 100% deductible to the payor and 100% included in income for the payee. This firm does not give tax advice and the disclaimer is below. Clearly, given the tax brackets and income, it is more beneficial for a higher wage earning payor to deduct 100% of the support payment and more beneficial for the lower wage earning payee to obtain more money each month even though taxable if the net income of the payee will be higher. This must be done after an analysis by a Certified Public Accountant or other licensed tax preparer. In this manner, both the payor and payee may have a higher net income even though the payor is paying more support and the payee is receiving more support. Again, this firm must disclaim giving any tax advice.

Contact Us Online or call us at 858-312-8500 in Southern California. The family law attorneys at our San Diego firm will be pleased to offer you a complimentary and confidential consultation up to a length of 30 minutes to discuss strategies and techniques to assist in protecting your rights and trying to obtain your legal goals.