What Are Your Divorce Rights as a Woman?
Every state in the country has a different set of laws when it comes to the matters of family law, especially divorce. However, there are certain aspects of a woman’s rights as a wife and a mother in a divorce lawsuit that stay fairly typical across all states. So if you have decided to divorce your husband, you must consult an attorney before filing your petition in the court. An experienced attorney can not only assist you with the proceedings of the litigation but also help you understand and preserve your rights as a woman.
Spousal support
In many cases, where the husband is the primary breadwinner of the family and the couple is no longer cohabiting, the wife has the right to demand temporary financial support even during the period of litigation before the final verdict is announced. The temporary spousal support is referred to as ‘pendente lite’ and stays in effect only until the final decree of divorce is announced by the judge. The pendent lite does not imply that the court will award you permanent alimony provision even after the case is dismissed. However, the temporary support can be extremely useful in making ends meet while the expensive litigation goes on.
Restraining orders
If your husband tries to harm, threaten, harass or abuse you in any way, you can immediately seek the assistance of the law enforcement officials and request a restraining order against your spouse from the court of law. A restraining order specifies guidelines to restrict the communication from your husband and can even go to the extent of asking him to move out of the marital residence and live elsewhere. In addition to this, if your husband tries to move the children out of the state before the final verdict is announced, you have the right to inform the legal authorities and get him to stop.
Household expenses
Regardless of whether your husband chooses to stay with you or moves out of your marital home, it is your right to demand his share in the mortgage or rental payments. The court of law makes it mandatory for both the spouses to make an equal contribution towards the payment installments of their marital home. However, such an order is mostly temporary in nature and is issued on ‘pendente lite’ basis as an alternative for spousal support until the final decree of divorce is ordered.
Although it is natural to feel emotionally vulnerable in a grave situation such as a broken marriage, it is advisable to stay put and deal with the situation in a logical way.
To learn more about the divorce process in California and how mediation can help, please visit our page, What is Divorce Mediation.
Gerald A. Maggio is a trained Orange County divorce mediator who has amicably resolved cases many cases out of court, as well as an experienced divorce and family law attorney. Mr. Maggio founded California Divorce Mediators in 2012 with the belief that although “not every marriage can be saved, every family can” and a mission to save families from the financial and emotional distress associated with traditional divorce litigation. California Divorce Mediators is located in Irvine, California, and serves the Orange County area and other counties in California offering divorce mediation, child custody mediation and mediation of other family law matters.
