At the time of marriage, it has been customary for the new wife to adopt her husband’s name. But after divorce, the former spouse may have many reasons to return to her birth name. This situation is probably best addressed at the time of the divorce.

You can request that the judge handling your divorce make a formal order restoring your former or birth name. If your divorce decree includes such an order, that will provide sufficient documentation of your name change.

Ask the court clerk for certified copies of the order as proof of the name change. You can then use this official documentation to have your name changed on your identification such as driver’s license, ATM cards, and other personal records.

If you have an existing divorce decree that doesn’t have the order that restores your birth name , you may be able to have the decree modified to include such an order. In California, this is possible even after the divorce is final. You should request a form entitled “Ex Parte Application for Restoration of Former Name After Entry of Judgment of Order (FL-395)” from the court or on the internet. You must file this form along with one copy of your judgment (final decree) with the court. You may file this document either in person or by mail. If you file by mail, be sure to enclose a self-addressed envelope.

If you have documentation showing your birth name, such as a birth certificate or an old passport you can probably resume using that name with out going through modification of your divorce decree. You should request that your name be changed on all your personal records including financial accounts, credit cards, etc. and begin using your former name consistently.

If you’re returning to a name you had before marriage, you’re far less likely to encounter difficulties with the change than if you adopt a completely new name, but you may still face some problems in returning to a previous name. This is more likely if you are a newly naturalized citizen or if you lack reliable documentation of your former name.

If you have a question regarding Family Law in California please contact us at (818) 926-4420 or visit the Family Law section on our website at Law Offices of Anat Resnik. Call today and we will connect you with Anat Resnik, an experienced, aggressive, affordable Divorce and Family Law Attorney in California. After you have spoken with our California Family Law attorney, we can schedule you a free face to face appointment to discuss your circumstances. If you have questions or are considering any aspect of filing for Divorce, a Paternity issues, Child Custody and Visitation, Spousal Support & Alimony, etc. we can help! Call us now at(818) 926-4420. We look forward to hearing from you and assisting you with any and all family law needs.

A marital settlement agreement, known as an “MSA”, defines the terms of a divorce and forms the basis of the after divorce relationship of the former partners. The spouses may not have to go to court when using this method. The parties have the option of creating their own written agreement which a judge might honor if the agreement is written correctly and covers all material aspects of the divorce. Marital settlement agreements can be entered into at any time before the final judgment. They are typically filed with the final judgment.

If the judge approves of the written agreement, it becomes a court order. These agreements usually cover property division, child custody, child plans, debt division, spousal support and any other relevant issues related to the divorce. In addition to these standard provisions, a MSA may also contain any other agreement of the parties. Due to the fact that there are few guidelines and rules regarding such agreements, every agreement should be specifically written for each individual case. This enables the spouses to devise arrangments and come to agreements that would be difficult for an outside party to arrive at.

Filing a marital settlement agreement does have advantages. It lays out all of the agreements in writing, limiting ambiguities. It allows the paries in the divorce to feel that they have had their own imput in the matter, rather than having a disinterested individual decide the outcome. It also proves to the court that major issues were considered, and allow the case to move more quickly though the process.

A marital settlement agreement is legally enforceable and should be drafted by an experienced family law attorney. California community property law is highly complex; therefore, there are strict requirements, which must be adhered to in order to create an enforceable agreement. After the agreement is signed by both parties and filed with the court, it governs spousal support, child custody and visitation or child support issues. At any point after the agreement is submitted to the court a party may challenge its enforceability. The agreement must comply with the law or it may be challenged and thereby overturned.

If the spouses can come to terms prior to going to court, it can save much time and money that would otherwise be spent on legal fees. Once the parties and their respective attorneys can reach an agreement on all issues to be included in the agreement, time and money will be saved in preparation and participation in a trial. Enforcement of family law orders can be problematic.

Once a party receives a court order in his or her favor in a family law case, the other party must still comply with that order. Often a party must go back to court to enforce the order. Using a marital settlement agreement indicates that both parties are more likely to comply with the terms of the agreement.

If you have a question regarding Family Law in Southern California please contact us at (818) 926-4420 or visit the Family Law section on our website at Law Offices of Anat Resnik. Call today and we will connect you with Anat Resnik, an experienced, aggressive, affordable Divorce and Family Law Attorney in Southern California. After you have spoken with our Southern California Family Law attorney, we can schedule you a free face to face appointment to discuss your circumstances. If you have questions or are considering any aspect of filing for Divorce, a Paternity issues, Child Custody and Visitation, Spousal Support & Alimony, etc. we can help! Call us now at(818) 926-4420. We look forward to hearing from you and assisting you with any and all family law needs.

The engagement is over and the question of the engagement ring arises. Added to the emotional ruin, the parties involved must deal with the question of whether the engagement ring needs to be returned. Though most engagements lead to a marriage, some engagements do not make it to the altar and result in significant conflict over the engagement ring.

Courts generally treat the engagement ring as a gift, from the donor (the person who gave the ring) to the donee (the person who received it). To be considered a legal gift, three things must be present: the donor’s intent to give the ring as a gift, the donor’s delivery of it to the donee, and the donee’s acceptance of the item. If the person to whom the ring was given can show all three elements, a court will consider the ring to be a gift.

The California Civil Code § 1590 states: Where either party to a contemplated marriage in this State makes a gift of money or property to the other on the basis or assumption that the marriage will take place, in the event that the donee refuses to enter into the marriage as contemplated or that it is given up by mutual consent, the donor may recover such gift or such part of its value as may, under all of the circumstances of the case, be found by a court or jury to be just.

This means that the court considers such a gift, such as a ring, to be a conditional one. That means that, until some future event occurs, in this case the marriage, the gift isn’t final. So, if the marriage does not occur, then the donor has the right to get the gift back. In real life, many parents use this concept by, for example, giving a teenage son the keys to the family car, on the condition that he maintain a certain grade point average for a specified period of time. If he doesn’t make the grade, the keys must be returned.

Women who want to keep their engagement rings often argue that the condition needed to make the engagement ring a final gift is simply the acceptance of the proposal of marriage, not the completion of the marriage ceremony. That way, if the engagement is broken, the ring remains her property.

However, this argument often loses. The majority of courts find that the gift of an engagement ring contains an implied condition of marriage; acceptance of the proposal is not the underlying “deal.” Absent some other understanding — say, that the ring is merely a memento of a great friendship — most courts look at engagement rings as conditional gifts given in contemplation of marriage.

If you have a question regarding Family Law in Los Angeles please contact us at (818) 926-4420 or visit the Family Law section on our website at Law Offices of Anat Resnik. Call today and we will connect you with Anat Resnik, an experienced, aggressive, affordable Divorce and Family Law Attorney in Encino. After you have spoken with our Los Angeles Family Law attorney, we can schedule you a free face to face appointment to discuss your circumstances. If you have questions or are considering any aspect of filing for Divorce, a Paternity issues, Child Custody and Visitation, Spousal Support & Alimony, etc. we can help! Call us now at(818) 926-4420. We look forward to hearing from you and assisting you with any and all family law needs.