Ex-Wife Paid Nearly Double The Amount Of Fees To Her Attorney And She Would Get Trust Loans To Pay Ex-Husband, Justifying The Family Court Award.
In the area of Family Code section 2030, the end goal is to level the “playing field” for family court litigants. The next case, Marriage of Khym & Miner, Case No. A172209 (1st Dist., Div. 2 May 26, 2026) (unpublished), demonstrates how this principle works where family law sides do have different financial resources.
After very contested proceedings, the family law judge awarded $371,438.55 in past and future attorney’s fees/costs to ex-husband under section 2030. This was no abuse of discretion, given the family court’s explicit findings in so ordering. The record showed ex-wife incurred nearly double that amount in her own attorney’s fees/costs, funded by discretionary distributions from a trust which may have been suspicious in nature and in contravention of the family law dissolution restraining order applicable when a divorce proceeding is filed. It was not improper for the family law judge to consider the amount of ex-wife’s attorney’s fees in making a section 2030 award to ex-husband. Furthermore, the family court did not err in determining that ex-wife might have to take on debt to equalize the playing field, relying on In re Marriage of Hofer, 208 Cal.App.4th 454, 460 (2012)—a case not even distinguished by ex-wife. Fee award affirmed.