Legal Question in Family Law in California

Paying alimony to husband in no fault state

My sister just filed for divorce from

her husband of 5 years. They have

one small child together. She makes

over 3 times as much as he does and

pays most of the bills. In addition,

she is the primary caregiver to their

son. Her husband just lives the good

life on her dime and she is finally sick

of it. The problem is that they live in

CA, a no fault state and she will wind

up having to pay him alimony. They

have not had sexual relations in over

3 years due to his unwillingness to do

so. I also think he is having an affair

or is gay. Something is up. She has

not told her lawyer any of this

personal stuff because she says it

doesn't matter since it's a no fault

state. My question is, do his actions

have any bearing on how much she'll

have to pay him or custody? He

wants 50% custody but is never

there for his child as it is. Also, he will

not move out of the house as he

says it is just as much his, even

though she pays most of the bills.

Seems pretty unfair to me. It's one

thing if he stayed home with their

child and was the primary caregiver

but he's not. Is she just screwed?


Asked on 12/03/08, 11:59 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

PATRICK MCCRARY PATRICK MCCRARY

Re: Paying alimony to husband in no fault state

Yes it sounds unfair and she should have an attorney to assist her or it could get even more unfair. Good Luck, Pat McCrary

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Answered on 12/04/08, 11:41 am
Phillip Lemmons, Esq. Phillip Lemmons APC, Attorneys at Law

Re: Paying alimony to husband in no fault state

She needs to work with her attorney. If father never takes care of the kids, then he won't have primary custody. He'll have to find a job or be imputed with income. This is not unusual, expect for the gender role reversal. Usually the wife is the "apparent" homemaker.

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Answered on 12/06/08, 2:10 pm


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