Divorce Attorneys Santa Cruz

Divorce Attorneys Santa Cruz

Divorce signals a significant transition in the lives of those families that experience it, and protecting your financial and parental rights from the outset is critical. Every divorce is uniquely personal, but the basic terms do not vary from case to case. If you are preparing to file for divorce or are already facing a divorce, it is time to consult with an experienced divorce attorney in Santa Cruz. 

Child Custody

If you and your divorcing spouse share children, the matter of child custody is paramount, and in California, child custody is addressed in terms of both legal custody and parenting time. Legal custody determines each parent’s decision-making authority, which can be either sole or joint. The kinds of primary decisions involved include all the following:

• Those related to your children’s education and daycare
• Those related to health care for your children
• Those related to your children’s extracurricular activities and travel
• Those related to your children’s religious education

When parents have joint legal custody, they can make each decision together, but additional options include one parent having the power to break a tie if need be or both parents dividing the responsibility between them according to the kind of decision that needs to be made. 

Your parenting time schedule will outline when the children are with you and when they are with their other parent. In the State of California, these determinations are made in accordance with the children’s best interests, but courts find that maximizing the amount of time each parent spends with their children generally supports this goal. 

Child Support

Child Support is the government’s tool for ensuring that both parents uphold their financial responsibility to their children. While a wide range of variables factor into this calculation, the primary concerns are the amount of parenting time each parent has and each parent’s income. 

The Division of Marital Property

In California, couples must divide their marital assets between them equally upon divorce. Marital assets are those properties that you, your spouse, or both of you together acquired over the course of your marriage. Separate assets are those properties that either of you brought into the marriage with you, and they remain that spouse’s sole property. Any commingling of assets, however, can diminish their separate nature.

Alimony

In California, alimony is called spousal support, and it is designed to help those spouses whose finances are hit hardest by divorce become more financially independent – when their exes have the financial means to provide support. Spousal support is generally set for an amount and duration that allows the recipient to obtain the experience, job skills, or education needed to better support themself.  

An Experienced Divorce Attorney in Santa Cruz Is Standing By to Help

At Miranda, Magden & Miranda, LLP, in Santa Cruz, our formidable divorce attorneys appreciate the significant impact of divorce and have the experience, legal insight, and drive to skillfully advocate for each of our client’s most favorable case resolutions. We are on your side and here to help, so please do not delay contacting us for more information about what we can do to help you today.