Legal Question in Family Law in California

Since I have been out of work for over 3 years after working in Civil Eng. firms for 38 years and I have been divorced for 7 years, the last 1 and 1/2 years I haven't been able to pay alimony. Since Oct. I have been working for Target doing stocking work at just over minimum wage and barely getting 20 maybe 30 hours a week and I am living at my sister's house for 1 and 1/2 years now. In the divorce decree I'm to pay her $650.00 a month but that was only because we agreed to that amount and I was making $75,000 a year at that time, my lawyer at the time said we could probably get the alimony down to $0.00 because of the bad habits, drugs, alcohol and infidelity she did before the divorce even though we were married for 24 years. We do have twin daughters who were 16 at the time of the divorce but they always lived with me because she turned into a drug-alcohol addict which her addict boyfriend got her started on and they would not live with her and only until they were in the Army for 3 years have they started to talk to her again on a regular basis. Since the divorce and the terrible economy, I have nothing left but this job at Target and hopes of working in Civil Eng. again. I lost all of my savings and most of the possessions except for a run down car which isn't worth hardly anything. She is now asking me to start paying alimony to her again and to start making up the back payments when I barely have anything left over to pay my sister. What would the courts ask me to do in this situation?


Asked on 1/10/12, 10:40 am

2 Answer from Attorneys
Arlene Kock Law Offices of Arlene D. Kock APLC

One thing you must do immediately is file your motion to reduce or suspend support. Support continues at the last court ordered rate until modified by a judge. The court has the power to reduce support all the way back to your motion filing date. Support will be based on your current income if the court believes you have exercised all reasonable efforts to be as gainfully employed in your current position and here are no civil engineer positions available.

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Answered on 1/10/12, 1:28 pm


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