My Marriage isn’t Valid. What happens to our property?
In 1941, Alfred Hitchcock made "Mr. & Mrs. Smith", a screwball comedy that airs from time to time on TCM or AMC with the beautiful Carole Lombard and Robert Montgomery...
How does California define Community Property?
California defines the term “community property” as real property (land and basically everything attached to it) and personal property (almost everything else), located anywhere in the world, that was acquired...
Set for Family Law Trial? How to Avoid it.
What are the alternatives to conducting a Divorce or Custody Trial? For financial issues concerning property, support, or attorney fees, a trial is completely avoided by the development and negotiation...
What is a Family Law Trial?
A trial is a full hearing concerning disputed issues involving witnesses and other admissible evidence. At the end of the trial, the judge will make a ruling. Hughes Law Group...
Is what I tell a divorce lawyer confidential?
This is a common question we get at Hughes Law Group. Tell your divorce attorney your true concerns and be candid with your goals and your reasons. It is essential...
What issues can be resolved in a California divorce?
The Family Court is a Court of limited jurisdiction. It does not involve all disputes between married persons. In general, the Family Court is limited to resolving issues of child...
I am in a Covenant Marriage. Can I get a California Divorce?
California does not differentiate between valid types of marriage when granting a Divorce or Legal Separation. Three states (Arkansas, Arizona, and Louisiana) have a special marriage distinction which restricts reasons...
How does a California Court determine the “Date of Separation” in a divorce case?
Date of Separation The “date of separation” is very important for community property purposes, because property acquired after the date of separation is not subject to the legal presumption that...
The Destruction of Disparaging Comments
In my practice of Family Law for twenty five years, I’ve heard several judges give “the speech” to child custody litigants that refuse to recognize the destruction that their negative...