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ADOPTION. The Firm’s family law practitioners represent clients who wish to legally adopt a child. In addition to assisting clients through the process of private adoptions, we represent grandparents and other family members who wish to adopt a child when the child’s parents lose parental rights or are incarcerated.
GUARDIANSHIP. We represent clients in establishing legal guardianship of a child during the time that the child’s parents are unavailable to care for him or her.
CHILD REPRESENTATION. In highly-conflicted divorce cases, the Judge may appoint
us to represent a child of the separated spouses for the duration of the
dissolution as minor’s counsel. The parents may also agree that we
will represent their child in the divorce when they believe that it would
be in the child’s best interest to have his or her own legal voice.
PATERNITY. We assist fathers and mothers regarding paternity issues (both establishing and challenging paternity), including the related issues of custody, visitation, and child support.
JUVENILE. When a child enters the juvenile court system, we are available to represent either the child or the child’s parents in the proceedings.
RESTRAINING ORDERS
If a person has been physically or emotionally abused, we represent them in seeking restraining orders against the abuser. We also seek restraining orders to protect clients from harassment.
SPECIAL MASTER/PRIVATE JUDGING
Judges often appoint our family law practitioners to act as Special Masters (settlement facilitators) in divorce cases to assist spouses in resolving financial and custodial issues without the need for a trial. We also act as private judges when the parties prefer to have a family law specialist resolve their conflicted issues outside of the courtroom.
Price, Postel & Parma, LLP’s Family Law Practice Group specializes in four main areas:
MARRIAGE and DOMESTIC PARTNER ISSUES
DIVORCE/DISSOLUTION. The Firm’s family law attorneys assist clients through the entire process of their divorce, whether simple or complex, involve minor children or not, or whether the separated spouses are cooperative or acrimonious. We guide clients through this very difficult time in their lives, and advise on all matters specific to that client’s needs, including child custody, financial support, property division, insurance, debt allocation, and tax issues. We remain available to clients after their divorce is final for whatever needs they may have, including enforcing orders (for example, contempt and wage assignments), revising wills, trusts, and other legal documents, and modifying support.
LEGAL SEPARATION. Clients who do not want a divorce (for example, because
of residency requirements, religious reasons, or because they want additional
time to decide how to proceed), sometimes choose a legal separation.
DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIPS. We advise clients on the current status of California
domestic partnership law and on the rights and obligations of domestic
partners in California. We assist with estate planning, survivor benefits,
income tax issues, property rights, health insurance, and adoption of partners'
children. We also help clients register as domestic partners with the State
of California, we prepare agreements between domestic partners for property,
support, and other issues, and we represent clients in enforcing their
legal rights.
SPOUSAL SUPPORT (often referred to as “alimony”). The Firm handles spousal support issues, including temporary support during the dissolution process, permanent support after the divorce is final, and post-judgment modifications of support.
PRENUPTIAL AND POSTNUPTIAL AGREEMENTS. We consult with clients who wish to protect their interests in the event of a divorce and draft comprehensive prenuptial (a.k.a. “premarital”) and post-nuptial agreements on their behalf.
CHILDREN’S ISSUES
CHILD CUSTODY AND VISITATION. Generally, child custody (legal and physical) and visitation take place in the context of a divorce, but we also represent clients in custody disputes involving parents who never married and same-sex parents.
Family Law Group Attorneys
Penny Clemmons,
Ph.D., CFLS
Family Law Group