Family Law

San Jose Family Law Attorney explains the spouse receiving support should try to maximize the amount of domestic support vs. a property settlement in a divorce decree

By Scott Sagaria

San Jose Family Law Attorney explains the spouse receiving support should try to maximize the amount of domestic  support vs. a property settlement in a divorce decree.

Persons going through, or contemplating, divorce should do some planning with their family law attorney if they believe they will be receiving child support or spousal support as a result of the divorce.  Recent changes to the bankruptcy laws make domestic support a much more attractive option than a property settlement.

If the divorce decree has a significant property settlement within it, the property may be at risk if the former spouse files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection.  While you may each own half of the property, if your spouse files for a bankruptcy liquidation, the bankruptcy trustee can liquidate their ownership interest in the property, which may force you to raise cash in a hurry or sell the property to satisfy the creditor who will now be pursuing the entire debt from you. To decide what is best for you, please consult an attorney.

By contrast, domestic support is not dischargeable in bankruptcy.  So if your spouse files for bankruptcy, it does not remove the child support or alimony payments.  The 2005 bankruptcy reform law moved domestic support to the front of the creditor line to ensure that bankruptcy laws were not used to shirk responsibility for domestic support obligations.

Your family law attorney can guide you through the property settlement process to ensure that you receive the best possible settlement for you and any children that you may have.  If necessary, your attorney can consult with a bankruptcy attorney to ensure that your settlement will stand up to a bankruptcy filing by your spouse.

Here at Sagaria Law, we offer a full range of family law and legal services including  divorce,  paternity, adoption, child custody and visitation matters, child support, spousal support, alimony, juvenile dependency, domestic violence, division of property, grandparent visitation and custody, etc. We have seven California locations including San Jose, San Francisco, Redwood City, Fremont, San Diego, Roseville and Sacramento. We offer a free thirty minute consultation, either in person at any of our offices, or over the phone. Call our offices today and we can connect you with an attorney immediately or we can schedule your free consultation with one of our family law attorneys : (408) 279-2288 or (800) 941-6730 or visit www.sagarialaw.com

Full post as published by California Family Law Blog on November 02, 2009 (boomark / email).