Child support is an amount of money a court orders either one parent or both parents to pay every month to help pay for the care of their child or children. Child support is normally ordered after a petition for divorce is filed, and usually the non-custodial parent pays child support to the custodial parent.
Misconceptions abound regarding child support. Some noncustodial and custodial parents alike think the money is intended to help support the custodial parent. Others believe that child support should be put in a separate account to be used only for the children’s direct expenses, and still others believe every penny should be accounted for on a monthly basis.
None of those misconceptions are true. The broad purpose of child support is to help provide for the needs of the children, which means it may be used to help pay for rent and utilities, groceries, clothing, and so on. A child support recipient does not normally have to account for how the money was spent.
If you feel you are getting the short end of the stick where child support is concerned, then think about the long-term costs that will accrue over the years your children are entitled to support. Paying for competent, aggressive representation now is worth every penny. Like the old adage, when it comes to legal advice you get what you pay for.
If you need an advocate on your side to fight for the outcome that is right for you and your children, contact an experienced family law attorney to petition the court on your behalf. The
Law Offices of Judy L. Burger will aggressively pursue the best outcome possible for you in your child support proceedings.
Judy L. Burger is known for her aggressive representation of clients in high conflict cases in and around the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento areas. If you are a parent facing a divorce, custody, or child support dispute, call us today to learn more about how we can help. Call (415)293-8314 in the San Francisco Bay area or (916)631-1935 in the Sacramento area, or contact us online via our
confidential inquiry form.
If you are the debtor in a family law judgment case who needs to defend against a collection action, your attorney may choose from a variety of options in your defense.
One of the tools used to defend collection by way of garnishment is a Claim of Exemption. Your attorney will prepare a document explaining why your wages should be excluded. Certain types of income and property are exempted from garnishment by law. After your attorney files your claim of exemption, the other party has ten days to oppose your claim.
Similarly, you can claim an exemption on certain types of property if a judgment creditor is seeking to impose a levy on your real or personal property. The claim of exemption should be prepared by your attorney, who knows which types of income and property are excluded from being subject to a levy.
If the other party submits a timely response to your claim of exemption, then the court will schedule a hearing and a judge will make the final decision regarding the exemptions.
If you are facing garnishment or levy, or if you are seeking to collect money from a family law judgment, call our office today. Judy L. Burger is known for her aggressive representation of clients in and around the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento areas. If you are dealing with either side of a family law judgment, call us today to learn more about how we can help. Call (415)293-8314 in the San Francisco Bay area or (916)631-1935 in the Sacramento area, or contact us online via our confidential inquiry form. 
If a former spouse or partner owes you money based on a judgment in a family law case, it is important for you to know that in California the collection of money from a family law judgment is the responsibility of the person to whom the money is owed. In other words, if you don’t take steps to enforce payment, the court won’t do it for you.
You can begin collecting as soon as a money judgment is entered. Filing an appeal or a bankruptcy petition will not release the payer from the responsibility to pay judgments related to family support.
If the responsible party fails to pay you on or before the court-ordered deadline, you should take steps to seek payment. Statistically, the longer a debt is owed, the harder it is to collect. Don’t waste precious time wondering whether you should do anything. If a court ordered your former spouse or partner to pay, then he or she should be required to do so.
Most importantly you should contact an aggressive and caring family law attorney. The sooner you contact us, the sooner we can get started on a plan to collect the money you are owed.
Many couples rushed at the chance to get married when Massachusetts passed a law allowing same-sex marriages back in 2004. From all over the country, couples flew to Massachusetts, staying only long enough to get married before returning to their home states. Unfortunately, just like many heterosexual marriages, things don’t always work out and many same-sex partners have decided to go their separate ways. This is where some same-sex couples are running into a problem.
If the state where a same-sex couple resides still does not recognize same-sex marriages, then the couple cannot get divorced. The obvious rationale is you can’t get divorced if you are not legally married.
In order to get legally divorced, a same-sex couple must seek a divorce in a state where the union is recognized. Most if not all states require residency for a minimum period of time before you can seek a divorce.
So, if a couple weds in Massachusetts but lives in Mississippi and they later decide to call it quits, they are typically stuck in the legal union, at least until they devise a solution to the lack of jurisdiction problem so they can get divorced in a same-sex marriage state.
Thankfully, California provides an option for same-sex couples who got married in California but now live in another state.
Same-sex married couples who got married in California but now live in another state that does not recognize same-sex marriages can file for divorced in California, despite California’s standard residency requirements for divorce.
If you need assistance getting divorced from your same-sex spouse, contact us to learn more about the filing requirements and limits on the court’s jurisdiction.
At the 
When someone files a credible report regarding a child in danger, an investigation must be conducted by either a social worker or the police. They will decide if the child appears to be in imminent danger and whether it is necessary to remove the child from his or her home.
Police or the social workers may decide that a child should be placed in temporary foster care for his or her safety if they believe the child was neglected, molested, or abused. The child may be sent to live with a relative, to the other legal parent if the parents do not live together, or to a foster home or shelter.
Once a child is removed from the home, social services should conduct a deeper investigation about the home environment, the parent or other caretakers, and the child. After an investigation, social services will make recommendations regarding what action they consider to be best for the child’s safety and personal wellbeing. They may recommend filing a petition in court to have a child declared “dependent.”
If you believe you have been wrongfully targeted by social services and need someone on your side to fight for you and your child, seek the help of an experienced family law attorney as soon as possible. A delay could be used against you by social services later.
At the 
Establishing Paternity
Emancipation is a legal way for a child to become an adult before reaching the age of adulthood, which in California is eighteen years. Once a child is emancipated, his or her parents do not legally have custody or control of him or her any longer.
Children who are emancipated lose the right to be supported by their parents, but they have the freedom to make their own choices regarding medical care, applying for a work permit, signing up for school or college, and living where they choose. Emancipated or not, children of mandatory school age must continue going to school.
There are basically three ways to become emancipated. Getting married or joining the U.S. Armed Forces will have the effect of emancipation, but both require a parent’s consent.
The third way for a child to become emancipated is to obtain a judicial declaration of emancipation. There are several requirements a child must fulfill before a court will grant emancipation, so it is best to proceed with the help of a qualified family law attorney if court is the only viable option.
The 