Hi,

Welcome to the September newsletter of Provinziano & Associates, answering your questions on family law issues in Los Angeles County and throughout the state of California, and sharing what the firm has been working on.

What the Hollywood Strikes Means for Families of Divorce

The Writers Guild strike, which has been going on for more than four months, and the Screen Actors Guild strike, which has already lasted two months, can negatively affect alimony and child support legal agreements.

Alphonse Provinziano says workers who go on strike are no different than workers who lose their job or have their salary cut: They are obligated to pay alimony and child support at their current rate until they go before a judge and ask for a change.

But that doesn't mean they are off the hook for payments during the strike. Courts will often lower the amount to something that is doable -- like the prevailing minimum wage -- so workers on strike will need to make up that income somehow.

Those payments can quickly add up, with individuals going into thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars in arrears, so workers should take immediate action in court to ask for payments to be reduced going forward.

Provinziano says he would not be surprised if some of the members of the Writers Guild and the Screen Actors Guild are moonlighting with delivery services like DoorDash or Uber to make up those payments.

“In a shorter strike, workers might just end up making the payments out of their savings but as they've stretched on, that's no longer an option for most,” he said. With no end in sight for the strikes, this is only going to be more of an issue this fall, especially with schools back in session.

Provinziano Spotlight: Mathilde Dugué

A native of France, Mathilde Dugué earned her law degree in business law and an MBA and passed the French Bar exam. After gaining experience at a "big law" firm and the Ministry of Justice, Mathilde got an LL.M. from the UCLA School of Law.

Early in her career, Mathilde realized that she didn't just want to be a lawyer, but she also wanted to make an impact. "As a family law attorney, I get to help and support people who are often experiencing the most difficult times of their lives," she said. She enjoys the strategy of legal work, seeing it as something like a chess game, but when she's not working, she likes to head over to Manhattan Beach.

For more about Mathilde or any of our other attorneys, visit our team page.

Serving International Residents

At Provinziano & Associates, we recognize the importance of finding quality family law firms for international residents living in the Los Angeles area.

To help serve our clients with international ties, our legal team includes native Chinese, French, and Spanish speakers, and we recently updated our website to include translations into Chinese, French, Korean, and Spanish.

We're also working to create direct relationships with the international legal community. For example, we were recently added to the French Consulate in L.A.’s list of attorneys serving French-speaking residents in the area.

We will be publishing new blog articles soon focusing on what international residents need to know about family law, including international child custody, so be on the lookout.

Three Ways the California LGBTQ+ Community Faces Challenges With Family Law

There are also some fundamental differences in dealing with LGBTQ+ family law, both in terms of the law itself and the situations rainbow families are more likely to find themselves in.

California family laws don’t always reflect the realities of today’s households, especially among the LGBTQ+ community.

Here is a quick look at three differences that may apply to you and your family:

1) Parents aren’t always automatically recognized, especially when adoption or assisted reproduction is involved.

Custody rights can prove technically challenging, particularly for divorcing couples who have conceived through surrogacy and in vitro fertilization and establishing parental rights will often rely on pre-existing pieces of documentation, such as pre-birth orders and adoption papers.

2) Litigation can unintentionally “out” transgender people by disclosing prior names.

For trans members of the LGBTQ+ community, there can be several considerations when it comes to family law that do not apply to their cisgender counterparts. First, there is the consideration that the prior name disclosure required for litigation may unintentionally “out” transgender people who have not shared their transition publicly. Pronouns can also be an additional source of anxiety for LGBTQ+ people during litigation.

The legal system can feel outdated at times, with several laws traditionally having been written exclusively in “he/him” pronouns.

3) Social services agencies don’t always respond effectively to LGBTQ+ needs in domestic violence situations.

Certain members of the LGBTQ+ community are at greater risk of domestic violence.

A CDC study showed that 61 percent of bisexual women have experienced physical or sexual violence or stalking from their current or previous partners, and another study showed that approximately 60 percent of trans people have experienced domestic violence in the home (from either their partners or other members of the family).

However, the wider understanding of LGBTQ+ domestic violence is often quite limited, and services and legal help are often targeted toward heterosexual couples.

Click here to learn more about family law for LGBTQ+ families in California and what this might look like in your situation. If you have questions, we want to hear from you at (310) 620-1499.

Did You Know?

Same-sex parents have the same child custody and parental rights as different-gender partners; however, establishing paternity can sometimes include unique challenges. Learn more about what this looks like in California here.

Food for Thought

“Be not afraid of going slowly, be afraid only of standing still.” – Chinese proverb

If You Need Help

If you or someone you know is in need of aggressive representation in a family law matter, don't hesitate to reach out to us at 310-620-1499 or visit provinziano.com to book your free case evaluation.

Have a Question?

Have a question about California family law? Email it to info@provinziano.com.

We hope you have a wonderful day!

Alphonse Provinziano & the Provinziano Team