Legal Question in Family Law in California

Re: New Spouse's Income

Dear Inquirer:

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If you haven't already done so, please visit my

web site at --

http://home.pacbell.net/edbjr/ OR

http://www.CaliforniaDivorceAttorney.com

The site contains quite a bit of general information about California Family Law, Tenants' Rights, and Juvenile Dependencies, as well as information about me (education, experience, et cetera) and my office (location, hours, fees, policies).

NOW, IN RESPONSE TO YOUR INQUIRY --

You are married. WIth some exceptions, there is no "my income / his income" or "my expenses / his expenses." With some exceptions, what's yours is his and what's his is yours. That is what the concept of community propery means.

That said, the only way that YOUR income is included in the child support CALCULATION is to the extent that it may increase your joint tax liability and decrease your husband's net disposal income. As a result, your husband's child support obligation could actually decrease -- all other things being equal -- as a result of your additional income. (Seems odd, but that's the law.) I am very surprised that your husband's lawyer did not explain this to him. Keep in mind that once the support order is calculated and rendered, payment of the ordered amount can come from your husband's separate property income/assets, if any, or from his/your community property (i.e., from your combined incomes).

Why would you wait for the court to FORCE you to give the mother an insurance card? You are paying for the coverage, why wouldn't you want the child to receive the necessary care whether the child is in the custody of either parent. Assuming Joint Legal Custody, the parents are obligated to keep each other informed of medical circumstances and to make significant decisions about health care by agreement. Your husband can continue to be fully involved whether or not mother has a card.

Thanks for sharing your interesting inquiry with us on LawGuru, and good luck with your case.