California Family Law Blog

Guardianship of the person is one of the two types of probate guardianships. This type of guardianship grants the same kind of responsibilities of a parent to a guardian who will be in charge of caring for a child, giving full legal and physical custody of the child to this guardian.

This type of guardianship may be required when a parent isn’t able to care for the child as he/she should be cared for, not being able to provide for his/her basic needs. There can be many reasons why but some may be that one or both of the parents are mentally or physically challenged, they might have to travel overseas if working for the armed forces. The parent might also need some time to take care of their own issues before they are able to care for another person such as if they have to go to rehab or are incarcerated. Any number of things might place a child under a guardian’s care but the court will always work in the best interests of the child and will seek a safe, caring and stable environment in which to grow up in.

Anyone can be chosen to be a guardian, either a family member, close family friend, or any other person who has been deemed suitable as a caregiver to the child in question. Some of the responsibilities will include:

-Providing the child with basic care needs such as food, water, shelter and clothing,
-Providing a safe and caring environment,
-Providing the child with medical and dental care,
-Providing an education for the child including access to special education services if needed

When a couple ends their marriage or registered domestic partnership, there are often children involved. Child support is a court-set amount of money that must be paid to one parent to help support the child/children. This amount is paid every month and the amount is determined by a judge using a child support guideline that looks at several factors to come up with an amount that would best benefit the children. this order must be made after your divorce or legal separation has been finalized and is usually paid until the child turns 18 and has graduated from high school.

Every county has resources available to help you prepare forms, get information on court procedures and answer questions that you may have concerning your court hearings etc.

Spousal/partner support is usually ordered by a judge to be given to one of the spouses/partners by the other in order to help them support themselves.

There must be a court case to legally and officially start any kind of spousal or partner support. This order can be requested by one of the spouses/partners during any one of the following cases and can even take effect while the case is still in court:

-A divorce,
-A legal separation,
-An annulment,
-A domestic violence retraining order.

A spousal or partner support can be ordered after the divorce or separation has been finalized.

Being served with a petition and summons for a divorce or legal separation means that your spouse has requested the courts to end your marriage or registered domestic partnership.

When making a request for a divorce or separation, either spouse or domestic partner can file the petition without the other person’s consent.  The State of California is a no-fault state where no proof of maltreatment is needed and all that is has to be given as a reason are ‘irreconcilable differences’.

If you are having irreconcilable differences, contact the Orange County divorce attorney.

There are many reasons some people may opt for a legal separation rather than a divorce. There could be religious reasons, tax and/or insurance reasons among other things. Though you will be separated, you will technically still be married but you’ll be able to make court orders about support, custody, visitation etc. Also you’ll be able to divide property, bills and debts as well as make financial arrangements. To obtain a legal separation you will need to file a petition with the court which is like a legally binding consent decree.

Occasionally, couples do get back together but if there are irreconcilable differences and you want a divorce, you must file a petition with the court.

Divorce lawyer in Orange County