Husband Did Not Have Liquid Assets To Do This, So Installment Payment Was Needed.
In Marriage of Straw, Case No. C072933 (3d Dist. July 6, 2015) (unpublished), husband was ordered to pay Family Code section 2030 “needs based” fees of $40,000 to wife so she could either pay off her attorney or have continued assistance of counsel. Given that there was some disparity in access to funds, the merits determination was affirmed by the Third District.
However, the trial court had ordered husband to pay the $40,000 “forthwith” in a lump sum. The appellate court had difficulty with this directive, given that the parties had less than $5,000 in liquid assets. So, that aspect was reversed with remand directions to direct payment in manageable installments by husband based on income/capabilities. (In re Marriage of Schulze, 60 Cal.App.4th 519, 532 (1997).)