Monday, December 14, 2009

SAN BERNARDINO CUSTODY AND SUPPORT ATTORNEY

THE LAW OFFICES OF FRANK J PRAINITO HAS BEEN SERVING SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY RESIDENTS FOR 14 YEARS WITH POSITIVE PRAISES FROM CLIENTS.

YOUR CASE WILL BE PROFESSIONALLY ACCESSED BY AN ATTORNEY WHO WILL DISCUSS YOUR CONCERNS AND LIKELY OUTCOME OF THE CASE. WE WORK TO MINIMIZE THE COSTS TO YOU WHILE GETTING THE RESULTS YOU EXPECT.

CALL 909-884-2191 TO SET A CONSULTATION TIME.

Monday, November 2, 2009

FAMILY LAW DIVORCE ATTORNEY SAN BERNARDINO

San Bernardino Family Law AND Divorce Lawyer
At the Law Offices of Frank J. Prainito, we work hard to effectively resolve your legal matters in a reasonable amount of time. We are proud of our San Bernardino roots and our commitment to our neighbors throughout the region. It is our goal to resolve your legal issues in a reasonable time so you may get on with your life.

Your initial consultation
When you come into our office for your initial consultation, we will talk about your concerns, discuss the legal aspects of your case, and advise you of the best way to approach your problems. We will also discuss the probable outcome of the case. Because communication is so essential to an effective attorney-client relationship, we take care to maintain a helpful, approachable environment.

Our retainer agreements are reasonable and flexible in order to allow all clients to have the professional legal counsel they deserve.

CALL 909 884-2191 TO SET A TIME TO SPEAK WITH ATTORNEY PRAINITO.

Monday, October 26, 2009

AFFORDABLE LOW COST DIVORCE IN SAN BERNARDINO WITH ATTORNEY

EXPERIENCED AFFORDABLE SAN BERNARDINO FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY IS NOW OFFERING YOU HIS SERVICES AS A MEDIATOR IN PROCESSING YOUR DIVORCE AT A LOW COST.

If you are facing divorce, you may have heard the mediation is an alternative to a traditional divorce trial. Although divorce mediation is not right in every situation, many couples are able to use mediation to finalize their legal matters in an efficient, timely, and COST EFFECTIVE manner.

As your family law mediator, I will prepare a Stipulated Judgment that is fair to both parties and submit it on your behalf for a final judgment.

It is important that both of you have reached an agreement on all of the issues to make this work. But it can save you a LOT of money over a traditional divorce will you are in and out of court and in and out of mediation.

PLEASE CALL FRANK PRAINITO AT 909-884-2191 to set a time for an appointment.

Friday, July 17, 2009

LIVING TRUST OR WILL FOR ESTATE PLANNING

LIVING TRUST OR WILL ?

By: Frank J. Prainito, Attorney at Law

A prudent person will make certain his/her affairs are in order before they lose the capacity to make their wishes known. We see examples of unexpected passing in the news everyday. The question is whether these perons clearly stated their wishes. Sometimes being who they wish to be the caregiver of the children or whom they wish to handle their estate? I am not certain if some of these persons who passed with Wills ever reaffirmed or republished the Wills but it is always a good idea to have your legal documents reviewed periodically so to ease any controversy.

The QUESTION is which is better a Will or a Living Trust? One thing for certain is a Will means probate. A Will must be filed with the courts to prove it is genuine and to obtain orders to transfer the assets. A Will means under the scrutiny of the courts. The courts will be involved every step of the way. It may be many months before the property is distributed to whom the decedent wished. This also means attorneys will be involved which causes the estate to shrink. Generally thousands of dollars in legal fees must be paid. In fact, some attorneys have a huge inventory of Wills secured in their office . . . just waiting for a person to pass so they can begin administration. The whole world will know about your legal afairs as this is a public proceeding. A Living Trust does not need to be probated. Of course, the successor trustee will need to provide notice to the heirs and provide each of them with a copy of the trust documents, but this is a private matter. The heirs need to be advised who was named as Succesor Trustee and the estate will be handled by this person in accourdance to the decedent's wishes. The Successor Trustee may wait the staturory period of time after providing notice to the heirs or may just begin to collect the assets for administration. There is not a need to publish the Trust in a newspaper or log the Trust with the court. This is generally the most cost effective manner to handle your estate. The key word here is of course "trustee" as in who do you trust to be responsible to distribute your estate? Where such a trusted person exists . . . you may be far better off with a Living Trust coupled with some other documents than just a Last Will and Testament. Sometimes an attorney is named as the Successor Trustee where no one else exists.

THEREFORE, Generally speaking a person is better off with a Trust than a Will and it is highly recomended a Trust be established when a Person owns real property. The ownership interest can pass to the selected beneficiary outside of probate in a very effective riskfree way. After the Trust is carefully drafted, the real property is put into the name of the trust and recorded with the county recorder. The owner is now the Trust! But the transferor is the trustor who generally is also the First Trustee and will retain control over the property. The Trustor/Trustee can be both husband and wife initially with the estate eventually controlled by the Successor Trustee who may be a child or children of the trustor. The word "living" refers to a Trust that may be changed during the life of the trustor(s) while they are in good health . . . So they may sell the property if they wish or change the ultimate beneficiary designations as many times as they wish while they are still in good health.

WARNING: Paralegals are not attorneys. They often will prepare wills or trusts for clients and give the wrong advise or missing information. It is not a good idea to buy a will or trust from a person who says he is an estate planner . . . such as an insurance agent or the like . . . as they will generally charge you as much as an attorney but often are not legally competent to properly prepare the documents or to make certain the documents are fully executed. This includes on line services such as the ones advertised on your friendly radio station or news paper. More times than not you are being cheated.

For real peace of mind you should visit with an Estate Planning Attorney who understands Probate Law and who can properly direct you to the documents you need.

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT PRAINITOLAW.COM
OR CALL FRANK J PRAINITO AT 909-884-2191.

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

CHILD SUPPORT MODIFICATIONS IN BAD TIMES

In these hard economic times it is sometimes hard to make ends meet on stale support orders leaving the custodial parent struggling to provide for the children and themselves. Both parents have a legal obligation to support their children but sometimes the non-custodial parent just doesn't care or forgets he has an obligation. The legal system allows us several remedies in forcing the other parent to pay what the legislatures have provided as guideline support. The easiest way is to reach an agreement. A stipulation to upward modify a support order can be submitted to the court and made a new order . . . followed by a new wage assignment. If this is not possible then you must take the matter before the courts and request a new court order. An attorney can be very helpful in cases like these in compelling the other party to provide copies of their most recent tax returns, pay check stubs, bank accounts, credit applications, and all other like documents to prove actual income. The Law Offices of Frank J Prainito has over 15 years experience in getting the job done right the first time and quickly so you will not be facing months of delay before money begins coming in.

Call us at 909-884-2191

Bring in your case file for review and Attorney Prainito will run Guideline Numbers for your New Orders.

Monday, April 20, 2009

SPOUSAL SUPPORT ATTORNEY

Family Law Attorney's should know initial spousal support will be granted upon a showing of need by the moving party. The court will consider each parties income and expenses together with an explanation as to why spousal support is needed at this time. The court's have a wide discretion in setting an amount for support and the duration of support. In awarding long term spousal support the court must base its decision on the "standard of living" established during the time of marriage under Family Law Code Section 4320 where the marital standard of living is to be weighed under the circumstances set forward in that code section. A key factor is the earning capacity of each party. Is the capacity sufficient to maintain the standard of living? And the court must take into account the other factors: marketable skills, future earning ability, the extent to which the party wanting support contributed to the other parties education . . . the ability of the better earner to support the other spouse. The needs of each party and the obligations of each AND the DURATION OF THE MARRIAGE. Is this marriage over 10 years or a shorter term? If less than 10 years there is a presumption that support should be no longer than one half the length of the marriage. ALSO a Conviction of Domestic Violence can be a factor to consider: IF there was within 5 years there is a presumption an award of temporary spousal support or permanent spousal support should be made.

Need an opinion? You may call 909-884-2191 the Law Offices of Frank J. Prainito for a consultation. See us at prainitolaw.com.

SAN BERNARDINO DIVORCE ATTORNEY

Monday, March 16, 2009

CHILD CUSTODY

Sole physical custody mean that the child will reside with, and under the supervision of, ONE PARENT, subject to the court's power to order visitation. This is not the order you wish to receive. It is given many times where there was NO DETRIMENT shown and the order should have read JOINT PHYSICAL CUSTODY.

Joint physical custody means that each parent will have significant periods of physical custody with the child regardless if one parent has visitation or not. It is during the visitation time that that parent actually has physical custody.

If this is not what was ordered you have to ask why ?

If you have any questions, please feel free to call me at 909-884-2191.

LAW OFFICES OF FRANK J PRAINITO

Friday, February 20, 2009

SAN BERNARDINO CUSTODY

YOUR CHILD IS NOW LIVING OUT OF STATE . . .

You call your local San Bernardino Divorce Attorney and complain your x-spouse left California with your child and set up residence out of the state. You also complain that now she is bringing a motion in the other state to modify the custody order you and your San Bernardino Divorce Attorney fought hard to get. Can this be possible you ask?

Under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act [UCCJA] and Family Code Sections 3400-3425 you are advised that "California may assume jurisdiction if it is the child's home state at the time the action is commenced. Under the UCCJA you may be able to cause your x-spouse's out of state law suit to be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.

Here is the test:

Has California been the child's home state within SIX MONTHS before the action is commenced?

Is the child absent from California because of removal or retention by a person claiming custody of the child or for other reasons; and

Does a parent or person acting as a parent continue to live in California ???

Where ORDERS have been made in California regarding Custody and/or Visitation and a least ONE PARENT still remains in that State/County then that State/County still has jurisdiction over the child . . .

IF YOU SIT AND DO NOTHING AND THE OTHER PARENT WAITS SIX MONTHS BEFORE BRINGING AN ACTION YOU MAY LOSE JURISDICTION AND HAVE TO DEFEND YOURSELF IN THE OTHER STATE !

A child's "HOME STATE" is the state in which the child has lived with one or both parents, or with a person acting as a parent, for a least 6 months immediately preceding months or, if the child is less than 6 months old, from birth.

A person acting as a parent is one having PHYSICAL CUSTODY of the child.

Call your local San Bernardino Divorce Attorney for more . . .

Thanks,


FRANK J PRAINITO
909-884-2191

Friday, February 13, 2009

SAN BERNARDINO DIVORCE CHILD SUPPORT

As a San Bernardino Divorce Attorney I often get asked HOW DOES UNIFORM GUIDELINE FOR SUPPORT WORK ????

I think I am paying too much and want to know what the courts must consider.

Here is my answer:

1. A parent's first and principal obligation is to support his or her minor children according to that parents circumstances and station in life.
2. BOTH parents are mutually responsible for the support of their children.
3. The GUIDELINE takes into account each parent's actual income and level of responsibility for the children. Example: How much time are the children with each parent.
4. EACH parent should pay for the support of the children according to his or her ability. This ability to gain income . . . you can't just say I am not working or I am in school ,,, you have an equal duty to support and the Court will access and income is your not making one.
5. The interest of children is the States top priority. Not your interest ,,, the State does not care if you don't have money left to pay your bills.
STOP !!! DON'T VOLUNTEER INFORMATION TO DEPARTMENT OF CHILD SUPPORT SERVICES BEFORE MEETING WITH AN ATTORNEY.
6. The Children should share the standard of living of the custodial household ....
7. Support is always modifiable to reflect the increased costs of raising children and changes in income of the parents. You CAN'T WAIVE CHILD SUPPORT it is not right so it is not biding in a court of law. Be careful when you are told "give me custody and I won't seek support" this is not binding.
8. The court presumes the parent having primary physical responsibility [time] with the children contributes a significant portion of available resources for the support of the children and so it is the OTHER PARENT THE COURT CONSIDERS NON-CUSTODIAL AND CALCULATES SUPPORT BASED ON THE PERCENTAGE OF TIME HE OR SHE SPENDS WITH THE CHILDREN. So PERCENT is an important factor in how much support you will be paying.

Here is an example . . . in working out a support order your more likely than not to use a computer program which computes "guideline" child support . . . the higher percent of time in your collum the better . . . 25% is better than 20% and 35% is better than 25% and so on and so on . . .

I WILL PROVIDE MORE IN MY NEXT BLOG . . .

Monday, February 9, 2009

SAN BERNARDINO FAMILY LAW CUSTODY AND VISITATION ORDERS

The court has a wide discretion in choosing a parenting plan that may or may not be in the best interest of your children . . . including approving an agreement YOU may have reached during mediation. The court's primary focus should be "What is in the best interest of the children?" NOT what may be in YOUR best interest. Initially the court relys on recommendations of mediators at family court service but ultimately it will be the court's responsibility to make custody and visitation orders or approve a parenting plan you and the other party came to terms with. It is extremely important to be well prepared for mediation so you can communicate your concerns precisely to the mediator . . . in hopes she will agree with your wishes. Remember the court will review the recommendations of the mediator and very often adopt that plan as its initial order. This may not be what you wanted to see happen and you may feel helpless. However, you don't have to agree with the recommendations and you can ask the court to set the issue of Custody and Visitation for an evidentiary hearing. During this short trial you will be allowed to call witnesses and present evidence. The court must consider the evidence and circumstances being presented and apply an analysis before making a final order. The Health, safety, and welfare of the child is aways the most important concern for the court so prepare your case carefully. Despite the fact the State of California believes custody should be as equally as possible, one parent usually ends up with the bulk of the time with the other having very little. I cannot say enough how important it is to fight for as much time as possible initially and not wait and hope you can modify the plan later. The courts like to keep status quo so as not to disrupt the lives of the children so it is important not to give in to the other parent and agree to orders which will result in you having secondary time.

CALL ME AT 909-884-2191 TO SET A TIME FOR A CONSULTATION.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

FAMILY LAW AND HARASSMENT

Did you know that harassment and annoying telephone calls may get you in trouble. Too often one party in attempting to rebound from an antagonist in a divorce situation uses harassing tactics such as repeated telephone calls to get even. This is not recommended and will get you into trouble. Communicating for the sake of harassment will not be tolerated and will lead to retraining orders. The San Bernardino Family Law Courts may issue an ex parte order at the request of a moving party to enjoin the other party from molesting, attacking, striking, stalking, threatening, sexually assaulting, battering, harassing, telephoning, including, but not limited to, annoying telephone calls as described in Penal Code Section 653m, destroying personal property, contacting, either directly or indirectly, by mail or otherwise, coming within a specified distance of, or disturbing the peace of the other party, and in the Court's discretion ... and showing good cause include the other named family or household member in its orders.

As your Family Law and Divorce Attorney I would not recommend that your practice such tactics and you refrain from unnecessary communication with the other party.

San Bernardino Divorce Attorney. See me at prainitolaw.com.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

GOOD SAN BERNARDINO LAWYER

Frank J. Pranito is a San Bernardino Family Law Attorney who is dedicated to providing you with quality legal representation while easing the stress you may have about your legal concern. We believe it is our responsibility to provide you with honest, aggressive legal representation, as we work hard to resolve your legal matters within a reasonable amount of time. We are proud of our San Bernardino roots and our commitment to our neighbors throughout the region. Our experience in the local courts and legal community helps us in resolving legal issues efficiently and effectively. We are now offering new clients the advantage of Attorney Assisted Divorce where our paralegal staff prepares your pleadings with attorney review and direction. See us in Nolo Press adds.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

SAN BERNARDINO DIVORCE

The last time I was at the Superior Court of California County of San Bernardino court house I noticed a lot of people were representing them selves without an attorney. I felt bad for a lot of them because I know they were not getting fare orders and were walking away totally frustrated. Some of these people hired paralegal services to help them but others just went at it alone either way they were not walking away from the court house happy. I would have liked to have offered these people help but I am prevented from soliciting business so I didn't say a word. There still are a few family law attorneys like myself that will meet with people free of charge and review their case and offer advice. I will quote a fair retainer sometimes at 60% less than other attorneys and offer equal or better representation in the court room. Or I will offer my paralegal services to them for even greater savings. If you know someone in the San Bernardino area who needs help you may wish to refer them to me. They can call 909-884-2191 or contact me at my website prainitolaw.com either way.

Family Law

Thank you for visiting my blog. I will attempt to give you as much information about family law in San Bernardino as possible. As always if you need legal advice for any family law matter please do not hesitate to call my office 909-884-2191 or to visit my family law website.