Santa Clara County Spousal Support Lawyer - John S. Yohanan

Alimony awards are based upon many different variables:

• The receiving spouse's education, health, work history, and earning potential
• The length of the marriage
• The paying spouse's income, earning potential, and health
• The existence and enforceability of a prenuptial agreement
• The marital standard of living

The legal understanding, negotiating skills, and courtroom experience of your divorce lawyer can make a critical difference in whether you receive spousal support or avoid paying support. For advice and skillful representation on spousal support issues, talk with an experienced San Jose divorce attorney.

Contact the law office of John S. Yohanan. I have more than 30 years of experience in California family law courts helping my clients resolve disputes concerning:

• Temporary spousal support (based on state or county guidelines to help maintain the financial status quo of the parties during the divorce proceedings)
• Permanent spousal support
• Motions to modify spousal support based on changed circumstances
• Enforcement of alimony payments

Most of all, I can help you maximize the value of your spousal support payments or minimize the burden of making them by considering alimony in the context of division of the community property, child support rights and obligations, and the tax consequences of your divorce.

Alimony is normally tax-deductible to the paying party, and represents taxable income to the receiving party. By structuring your overall divorce settlement carefully, certain distributions of property can be made in lieu of spousal support in order to reduce the receiving party's tax liability. In other words, a relatively low spousal support award can sometimes work to the receiving party's advantage, if the property division is structured properly.

My experience with difficult spousal support questions and my creativity in finding effective solutions can represent an excellent opportunity for you to survive your divorce in better shape than you thought possible.

Whether you expect to receive or pay alimony, contact my San Jose law office for sophisticated spousal support advice.