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Title
Rules and Forms | Family Law: Changes to Spousal Support and Property Division Forms (Action Required)
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Summary
Summary
The Family and Juvenile Law Advisory Committee recommends approving one new optional form (FL-349) and revising two optional forms (FL-157 and FL-343) relating to spousal support, as well as revising one optional form (FL-345) relating to property division in family law cases.
Proposed revisions to form FL-157 incorporate amendments to Family Code section 4320. The Court of Appeal urged the Judicial Council and local courts to change the language in form FL-343 relating to Family Code section 4337. Form FL-349 responds to the requests of judicial officers for a form to make findings under Family Code section 4320 when issuing or modifying a judgment for spousal or partner support. And proposed revisions to form FL-345 respond to requests made by judicial officers to simplify a specific item relating to the assignment of debts in a judgment.
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Recommendation
Recommendation
The Family and Juvenile Law Advisory Committee recommends that the Judicial Council, effective January 1, 2021:
1. Revise Spousal or Partner Support Declaration Attachment (form FL-157) to:
(a) Include the amendments to Family Code section 4320 enacted by Assembly Bill 929 (Rubio; Stats. 2018, ch. 938) that describe the types of documented evidence of domestic violence that a party may submit for the court to consider before issuing a judgment for support;
(b) Change all references of “partner” and “partnership” to “domestic partner” and “domestic partnership,” including in the title of the form; and
(c) Reorganize the form’s content to reflect the same construction as that of new form FL-349, and make other clarifying changes;
2. Revise Spousal, Partner, or Family Support Order Attachment (form FL-343) to:
(a) Strike the current language in item 6b and add language that is consistent with the opinion of the Court of Appeal in In re Marriage of Martin (2019) 32 Cal.App.5th 1195 that a party should not have to check a box (affirmatively “opt in”) to have the support payor’s obligation to pay support end on the death of either party or the remarriage or registration of a new domestic partnership of the support payee;
(b) Include a new item for the court to indicate that its findings on permanent spousal support orders under Family Code section 4320 are either specified on the form itself, included in a numbered attachment, or specified in proposed new form FL-349;
(c) Reorganize the content of the items under more specific subject headings; and
(d) Expand the form to three pages to allow more space for the court to make its orders or the parties to write their agreement;
3. Approve optional Spousal or Domestic Partner Support Factors Under Family Code Section 4320─Attachment (form FL-349) to serve as the court’s mandated findings or the parties’ stipulations (the form could serve as an attachment to Findings and Order After Hearing (form FL-340), Restraining Order After Hearing (CLETS-OAH) (form DV-130), Judgment (form FL-180), the parties’ written agreement, or another document specified by the parties); and
4. Revise Property Order Attachment to Judgment (form FL-345) at item 2c and 2d, to list the debts assigned to petitioner and respondent, respectively; delete the phrase “hold harmless”; and simplify the notice about creditors not being bound by the judgment.