Legal Question in Family Law in California

In 2010 the child/spousal support that I was to pay was determined using the California Guidelines Form. Part of the support agreement was that I would get 2 exemptions for both of our children. This was negotiated with my ex's lawyer present. Had I not taken the two exemptions my monthly support would have been lower, but I decided on taking the exemptions while paying more support.

Now my Ex is trying to use my kids for exemptions. She claims the exemptions stated on the guidelines are for weekly pay check exemptions (on w4) and not for end of year tax filing. I don't believe that to be the case, it should be for year end tax filing. The only document I have that proves that I get the kids for exemptions is the California Guidelines form, which shows all the numbers and 3 exemptions (me and my 2 kids). It's not written anywhere on the divorce

Am I correct that the 3 exemptions shown on the California Support Guidelines sheet are for year end tax filing? Is the California Support Guidelines form that has all the financial support #'s good enough to support my case?

Thanks,


Asked on 1/18/13, 12:56 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Anthony Roach Law Office of Anthony A. Roach

Your lawyers did a horrendous job. They should have made sure that your divorce decree had a provision for who got to claim the exemption and when.

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Answered on 1/19/13, 11:59 am

You are right. Her position makes no sense at all on a lot of levels. The main reason her claims are ridiculous is that it would totally screw up your taxes to do it that way. You would be badly under-withheld all year and face a big tax bill and possibly penalties at the end of the year. It should be obvious that if you claim exemptions from withholding that you can't take at the end of the year, you would be subject to interest and penalties if the IRS and FTB decided to go after you. It also would make the Dissomaster calculations wrong. She is just WAY off base. If your agreement says you get the exemptions it is for ALL purposes. Nothing else makes any sense at all.

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Answered on 1/21/13, 12:42 pm


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