My co-parent refuses to notify me about important events, what can I do?

/

Experienced Bay Area attorneys will tell their family law clients that when one parent refuses to notify the other parent about  important school events, medical appointments, extracurricular activities that you have to ask the Court for a specific order addressing the problem.

Here are some examples of what you can request:

(1) Order that requires the time frame for information to be given.  For example, within 48 hours of scheduling a routine medical appointment, notice must be provided to the other parent.  

(2) Order that requires weekly exchange of information or a shared google calendar. 

(3) Order that both parents be included on all school and medical communications. 

In the alternative, we like solutions such as Our Family Wizard and 2houses, which are programs that keep track of your Child’s schedule and other important information. These programs are online apps that can be accessed from your phone or computer. 

If you have questions about co-parenting plans, please email me at amanda@gordonfamilylaw.com

How do I enforce my court order that my ex pay my attorneys fees?

/

Experienced Bay Area family law attorneys will sometimes encounter a situation where although the other side has been ordered to pay fees, they simply refuse to do so.  

Typically, when the court makes an attorneys fee award, the court orders that payor spouse make the payment directly to the recipient spouse or the the recipient spouses’ attorney. Sometimes the payor does not have the money or does not want to pay. This is a violation of a court order and contempt of court. 

The remedy for failure to pay is not to file another family law motion, but instead to enforce the fee award through California Code of Civil Procedure (see Title 9, Enforcement of Judgments Section 680.010 and Section 1209 et sq. Relating to contempt of court). 

If you have questions about how to enforce a fee award, please email me at amanda@gordonfamilylaw.com

Can you impute income from assets?

/

Maybe. The court's ability to impute income from assets derives from section 4058, which defines "annual gross income" as "income from whatever source derived," and states that "[t]he court may, in its discretion, consider the earning capacity of a parent in lieu of the parent's income . . . ." (Id. at subds. (a) & (b).) The provision has been consistently interpreted to include the supporting party's ability to earn income from non-income producing or underperforming assets. 

You can contact me at Amanda@gordonfamilylaw.com for more information.