Family Law: Land Use Attorney Ex-Husband With Disparate Income Properly Had To Pay Needs Based Fees To Ex-Wife

Case Illustrates the High Price of Divorce.

     Not so much for its discussion of some needs-based fee orders, Marriage of Schulman, Case No. D063341 (4^th Dist., Div. 1 Jan. 21, 2014) (unpublished) was revealing in the high price of divorce: ex-husband spent $76,000 in fees (resorting to defending himself with some family law consultation), while ex-wife’s fees reached over $120,000. Wow!

     On the merits, the interesting part of the decision was the lower and appellate courts’ recognition that ex-wife’s loans from her mother to pay fees did not retard a needs-based award of fees, especially given evidence that daughter was expected to repay mother over time.

     BONUS:  For a Wikipedia “List of most expensive divorces,” click here.