Legal Question in Family Law in California
Divorce Final in CA July 2011, married just under 15 years. Exwife cohabitates with her boyfriend and his parents, since August 2010. We have 50/50 custody split, I pay her spousal support. How difficult to get that terminated due to cohabitation? Also I pay a low amount of child support due to her previous income vs mine with 50/50... We entered into the child support/spousal support via an agreement, I want her imputed with income to keep my child support about the same. Is that possible?
2 Answers from Attorneys
If she is living with another man, although not married, the court may assume that she would not need as much spousal support. It may not completely eliminate the support but you have a good chance to get it reduced.
In terms of income imputation. You have a stipulated child support not a court ordered one. It may or may not reflect the current guideline child support. You should at least find someone to run a dissomaster calculation to see if your support money is within the guideline amount. You can go to a self-help center to use their computer to run the calculator for free. If you try to modify the child support, the court will first bring the amount to the guideline. Do not know why you want to impute her previous income. If she voluntarily quit her job or got a low income job, you have a good chance to get her income imputed. In order to impute her income, you must show (1) she has capability to earn previous income, (2) her willingness to find a job that pays her that much, and (3) there are opportunities out there.
To get a modification you must show a change of circumstances from the date of the agreement. Did she begin co-habiting after the agreement. Did her employment change after the date of the agreement. You would do well to get a consultation with an attorney to give you some guidance.