Fee Decision Can Be Based On Declarations Alone.
In Marriage of Filadelfina, Case No. G050184 (4th Dist., Div. 3 Nov. 30, 2015) (unpublished), husband appealed a $43,000 fee award to wife under Family Code section 2030’s “needs based” rubric. On appeal, husband claimed a due process violation in that the family law judge only rendered a decision based on declarations and income/expense statements rather than holding a trial on the fee request. The due process challenge was rejected in a 3-0 opinion authored by Justice Aronson. “Neither the Rule of Court [rule 5.427] nor Judicial Council Form [FL-3] requires a trial on a party’s attorney fee request,” with the adjudication properly based on the parties’ declarations and paper submissions. Wife then requested more fees for winning on appeal, but the reviewing court determined this was inappropriate because the court had no current information on the parties’ current financial situation—although indicating that this request could be renewed before the family law judge if wife so desired.