THE Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 requires that US Citizens sponsoring an alien for legal permanent residency execute an immigration form I-864 Affidavit of Support.  This is an agreement between the US Government and the Sponsor to promise to support the immigrant beneficiary seeking admission to the US at a level…

THE Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 requires that U.S. Citizens sponsoring an alien for legal permanent residency execute an immigration form I-864 Affidavit of Support. This is an agreement between the U.S. Government and the Sponsor to promise to support the immigrant beneficiary seeking admission to the U.S. at a level…

WIDOWS of U.S. citizens have many options of obtaining their greencard should their U.S. citizen spouse die. Under INA Section 201(b)(2)(A)(i), Widows are allowed to remain classified as immediate relatives and to continue to be eligible to immigrate if they file an I-360 selfpetition within two years of the death of the U.S. citizen or…

Question: I contributed money which I saved before the marriage into purchasing a property during the marriage which I acquired with my spouse in joint name. During the marriage we cashed out most of the equity in that house to purchase several properties. The first house we purchased no longer has a lot of equity…

Establishing parentage rights for Moms is a lot easier than establishing one for unmarried Dads. Moms can establish this by simply showing proof of her having given birth to the child. Family Code §7610. Establishing parentage rights, including custody and visitation rights, becomes more problematic with unmarried Dads because proving yourself as the biological father…

IN previous editions of this article, the process of obtaining permanent residence through marriage was explored. Discussion of that procedure began with the supposition that the couple was married, and continued with the various steps to ultimately gain permanent residence. In many cases, however, a problem exists in even getting to the point at which…

DIVORCING couples with children sometimes worry about who is going to pay for their children’s college education after the divorce once their children graduate high school. They want a guarantee that their soon-to-be ex-spouse will share in the college expenses of their children. This is especially the case when the other spouse has moved on…

THIS is a common question among people contemplating divorce in California when the other spouse does not live in the state. The California Courts has the power to grant a divorce, annulment, or legal separation if either party is domiciled in the state. Domicile is where a person lives and intends to remain. However, there…

YOU and your spouse may have gone through a lengthy and contentious divorce proceeding. This is usually the most difficult period of a person’s life. Finally, time heals all pain. You and your spouse get tired of bickering and being mean to one another that you both decide to compromise on each other’s positions and…

THERE seems to be a misconception in the general public that you can only obtain a divorce in California if your spouse will sign the divorce papers. I get this question a lot from our family law clients. The fact is that California is a no fault state and you do not need your spouse’s…

MANY people try to file and open their own divorce case without an attorney in an effort to save on legal fees. Often, the self-represented divorce litigant would seek the assistance of the court facilitator’s office in preparing the papers to open their own divorce case. However once the divorce case is opened, many self-represented…

MANY people try to file and open their own divorce case without an attorney in an effort to save on legal fees. Often, the self-represented divorce litigant would seek the assistance of the court facilitator’s office in preparing the papers to open their own divorce case. However once the divorce case is opened, many self-represented…

MANY parents who may have problems refinancing their house due to low income in retirement or due to low credit score sometimes resort to the idea of having their married child serve as a co-borrower to refinance their house As part of the refinancing process, the parents usually adds their adult children to the deed…

Establishing parentage rights for Moms is a lot easier than establishing one for unmarried Dads. Moms can establish this by simply showing proof of her having given birth to the child. Family Code §7610. Establishing parentage rights, including custody and visitation rights, becomes more problematic with unmarried Dads because proving yourself as the biological father…

THIS is a common question among people contemplating divorce in California when the other spouse does not live in the state. The California Courts has the power to grant a divorce, annulment, or legal separation if either party is domiciled in the state. Domicile is where a person lives and intends to remain. However, there…

THIS is a common question among people contemplating divorce in California when the other spouse does not live in the state. The California Courts has the power to grant a divorce, annulment, or legal separation if either party is domiciled in the state. Domicile is where a person lives and intends to remain. However, there…

Generally, in California, property acquired by a spouse prior to marriage is considered separate property under family code section 770 while those acquired after marriage are considered community assets under family code section 760. How do you characterize real property purchased prior to marriage but with the mortgage principal paid down using community income or…

“The process of apportioning between the separate and community property component is laid out in the Marriage of Marsden. In that case, the court determined the ratio or percentage in which the mortgage loan principal was reduced during the marriage and applied that percentage to the appreciation of the real property during the marriage.” GENERALLY,…

GENERALLY, in California, property acquired by a spouse prior to marriage is considered separate property under family code section 770 while those acquired after marriage are considered community assets under family code section 760. How do you characterize real property purchased prior to marriage but with the mortgage principal paid down using community income or…

MANY parents who may have problems refinancing their house due to low income in retirement or due to low credit score sometimes resort to the idea of having their married child serve as a co-borrower to refinance their house As part of the refinancing process, the parents usually adds their adult children to the deed…

President Biden announced the highlights of a plan to reform the U.S. immigration system. The anticipated bill is expected to feature a path to permanent residence and citizenship for qualifying undocumented foreign nationals and those holding Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and H-2A status, mechanisms to clear extensive green card…

TO many people, the New Year signifies a chance to have a fresh beginning. This is also the time of the year many people realize when a marriage is not working out and it may be time to start a new life as a single person whether or not you have children. You can decide…

“If you and your spouse are communicating and have some type of respect left with one another, it may be more economical to continue residing in the same household until you resolve the issues in the divorce case.” TO many people, the New Year signifies a chance to have a fresh beginning. This is also…

Generally, in California, property acquired by a spouse prior to marriage is considered separate property under family code section 770 while those acquired after marriage are considered community assets under family code section 760. How do you characterize real property purchased prior to marriage but with the mortgage principal paid down using community income or…

Consider this common factual situation. You are over 21 years old and your US citizen parent petitions you while you are inside the United States. Since this is a preference category, you have to wait many years for your priority date to be current. As the years go by, your petitioning parent dies which in…

A postnuptial agreement is a contract between you and your spouse entered into after you get married resolving issues in your marriage. It is similar to a prenuptial agreement except it occurs after your marriage. For couples that get married without a prenuptial agreement, it is not too late to have an agreement dealing with…

THIS is a common question among people contemplating divorce in California when the other spouse does not live in the state. The California Courts has the power to grant a divorce, annulment, or legal separation if either party is domiciled in the state. Domicile is where a person lives and intends to remain. However, there…

THE COVID-19 Pandemic is a scary reality which affects everyone globally and has shut down the global economy. Individuals over 60 years old and individual that are immune compromised are more at risk of having serious complications with this virus. Individuals are dying all over the world in exponential numbers. Although we cannot completely control…