It goes without saying that going through a divorce can be very challenging and stressful. But, once the case is finalized and the court issues a judgment, there should not be any problems after that, right? Unfortunately, this is not true with many cases in San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
Sometimes, one or both of the parties in the divorce fail to follow the terms of the divorce judgment. Other times, the parties disagree to certain provisions in the divorce decree, and what each party is required to do. And on other occasions, one party finds out some asset/property was not disclosed during the divorce, and claims it was not been properly divided.
These are just some of the problematic scenarios that we have encountered in our San Bernardino and Riverside divorce cases. If your divorce has been finalized and there are still problems regarding community property with your ex-spouse, it is important that you consult with a divorce attorney immediately. Wallin & Klarich has experienced divorce attorneys throughout San Bernardino and Riverside that have successfully handled these types of complicated matters, and they will be able to advise you on the best course of action in all stages of your case.
Failure to Follow the Divorce Judgment
To better illustrate how to deal with some of these post-judgment problems, it will be helpful to go through some examples.
For the first example, you and your ex-spouse obtained a divorce judgment that ordered your ex-spouse to sell the community property home you both purchased during the marriage. Once sold, your ex-spouse is required to give you your share of the proceeds from the sale. What options would you have if your ex-spouse decides to not sell the house? Or your ex-spouse sells the house, but fails to give you your share of the proceeds?
If your ex-spouse fails to sell the house or to give you your share of the sale proceeds, he/she is in direct violation of the court’s judgment and could face very serious penalties. One option you have is to seek an emergency hearing before the court – called an “ex parte hearing” – to inform the court of your ex-spouse’s actions and ask the court to order your ex-spouse to follow the divorce judgment. You also have the option to request sanctions and attorney’s fees from the court, due to having to come back to court because of your ex-spouse’s wrongful actions.
Disagreement Over the Divorce Judgment
For our next example, let’s say that the divorce judgment is the same as above, and that your ex-spouse is ordered to sell the house and divide the proceeds of the sale evenly. However, you and your ex-spouse interpret the judgment differently on how much each of you is to receive from the sale.
Similar to the previous example, you will have to seek a hearing with the court to clarify the terms of the divorce judgment, and how much each of you is to receive from the sale of the house.
Problems with Community Property After Divorce
In this last example, you find out after your divorce is finalized that your ex-spouse had property in his/her possession that was obtained during the marriage, but was never disclosed during the divorce case. You did not have any knowledge of this property at all.
Similar to the first example, you may have the option to seek an Ex Parte Hearing before the court to seek a proper determination and division of this property. Also, depending on the facts of the case, you may have the option to request sanctions and attorney’s fees against your ex-spouse for failing to properly disclose this property during the divorce proceedings.
Call the Riverside Divorce Attorneys at Wallin & Klarich
A divorce is difficult, but having an experienced Riverside divorce lawyer helping you can make things easier. This is why it is important to have a skilled San Bernardino and Riverside divorce lawyer review your case and advise you on the best options for your case. The attorneys at Wallin & Klarich have been successfully handling divorce cases for more than 30 years. We are familiar with what the San Bernardino and Riverside courts expect and want to see in these types of cases. You can rely on Wallin & Klarich to help you obtain the best possible result in your case.
Call our offices today at (888) 749-7428 for a free phone consultation. We will get through this together.
