How Attorneys Negotiate in a California Divorce
Attorneys can help spouses negotiate beneficial settlements during divorce cases. Here’s everything you need to know about attorneys’ negotiation process in a California divorce.
Attorneys can help spouses negotiate a compromise during divorce cases. The negotiation process in a divorce case can be long and challenging, therefore, having an experienced attorney’s guidance can lead to a more mutually beneficial settlement.
Temporary Orders in a California Divorce
During the process of divorce, attorneys will often attempt to negotiate desired temporary orders for the spouse they work with. Temporary orders are rulings made by family courts about marital issues that need to be resolved quickly. Both spouses are allowed to request a temporary order (even prior to divorce papers being filed). After a temporary order is issued, hearings will be scheduled to follow in the near future. Temporary order hearings typically address:
- Which spouse possesses the marital residence and whether or not the home can be sold
- Which spouse has ownership of family automobiles
- Child support according to a child support calculator
- Spousal support payments
- Child custody and visitation that occurs prior to official separation
- Health insurance and uninsured medical expense payments
- Restraining orders (if necessary, this can force one spouse out of the home)
- Keeping a spouse from selling shared community property
Temporary orders are particularly important in divorce cases as they effectively predict long-term divorce agreements. If spouses are satisfied with conditions brought about by temporary orders, those conditions may remain after the divorce. If spouses are not satisfied with conditions brought about by temporary orders, attorneys may need to negotiate further plans to ensure spouses can come to an agreement. Attorneys will pay attention to factors that do not satisfy both parties and will attempt to make small compromises in order to ensure both spouses are satisfied. This can be a useful measure because if both spouses place the issue before a judge, neither party has any control over the outcome.
What happens at trial during a California divorce?
Prior to a divorce trial, judges will ask spouses questions to gauge whether the case is ready for trial and to determine how long such a trial might be.
Related: Divorce and Family Law Courthouses in Los Angeles
If judges consider the case ready, they will set a Mandatory Settlement Conference. If cases are projected to take a day at most, they may go to trial without a conference.
If cases take more than one day, judges will order the case to appear at a Readiness and Settlement Conference, or a court-supervised settlement discussion. If court assistance is necessary, attorneys can ask a judge to meet with the spouse for a voluntary settlement conference. Court-supervised conferences can be preferred in circumstances where spouses strongly disagree on specific issues. Court-supervised conferences provide the judge’s which can facilitate a settlement that pleases both parties. Attorneys may advise spouses to hire a retired judge to help create settlements if court-supervised conferences are unavailable.
Related: How to Make a Divorce Settlement Agreement in California
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