Divorce is one of the most stressful events in a person’s life. At the Law Offices of Anat Resnik, we are dedicated to providing our Los Angeles County clients with the knowledge and substantive guidance necessary to navigate this difficult time in their lives. The Law Offices of Anat Resnik will help you with the first step of identifying the important legal issues in your divorce or marital dissolution case, and ascertain your needs. Frequently, divorce raises issues of child custody, visitation, child support, spousal support (alimony), and division of assets and debts. There may also be other options to divorce such as legal separation or annulment. We believe that once we help our clients understand these legal issues, we can offer our clients a realistic assessment of their case, and effectuate a strategy to pursue our clients’ and their children’s best interests.
Basics of Divorce
California is a “no fault” divorce state. This means that either party can seek a divorce without proving that the other spouse did anything wrong. Legally this is called “irreconcilable differences”. The divorce case starts with the filing and service on the other spouse of the Summons and Petition for Dissolution. Once the action has commenced, it will be necessary to obtain temporary orders regarding the minor children (custody and visitation orders) and/or finances (child support, spousal support (alimony), etc.). These orders will remain in effect, unless otherwise modified, during the duration of the divorce action. These temporary custody, visitation, child support, spousal support and other orders can be obtained through litigation by filing with the Court a Request for Order for Temporary Orders. However, the parties can also avoid Court by reaching an agreement on these issues regarding the children and/or finances and have their agreement submitted to the Court as a “Stipulation and Order”.
Once temporary orders are in place, the focus of any divorce action is the community assets and debts. To ascertain the nature and extent of the assets and debts, each spouse will need to complete and exchange with the other spouse financial statements (known as the Declaration of Disclosure). Based on these disclosures, discovery may be necessary to figure out the true nature and extent of these assets and debts. It is critical that an experienced family law attorney review your assets and debts to ascertain whether they are community property or separate property.
If settlement cannot be reached, the case will eventually have to go to trial. The trial may be on all issues in your case, or just one or more limited issues that could not be settled. At the Law Offices of Anat Resnik, we understand that the decision to settle or proceed to trial is dictated by a number of factors, primarily the pursuit of our clients’ best interests. Upon settlement or at the conclusion of trial, permament orders are in effect and the divorce action has concluded.
Regardless if your divorce involves straighforward or complex family law issues, including asset valuation and discovery of hidden assets, we will represent your interests through negotiation, litigation or alternative methods of dispute resolution. We are dedicated to getting you the results that you want and deserve.
Marital Dissolution Lawyers in Encino CA
The decision to dissolve a marriage may be complicated as well as emotional. At the Law Offices of Anat Resnik, we offer compassionate and zealous representation to protect your rights. We are Encino divorce attorneys who will remain focused on your needs and pursue your and your children’s best interests.
At the Law Offices of Anat Resnik we offer a free initial telephone consultation with an experienced family law attorney to discuss how we can help you with your specific family or divorce matter. Call or contact us to schedule your free consultation with an experienced divorce lawyer.
With offices conveniently located in Encino, California, we serve clients thoughout Los Angeles County, particularly the areas of Studio City, Sherman Oaks, Encino, Tarzana, Woodland Hills, Calabasas, Glendale, Burbank, Pasadena, Van Nuys, and the entire San Fernando Valley.
