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Razai Nefulda Family Law Scholarship (ID 2180)


Scholarship Description

Start Date:
4/1/2017
Deadline:
12/15/2017
Website:
http://www.orangecountyfamilylawattorneys.com/scholarship/
Amount:
$1500
Description:
The Orange County divorce attorneys at Razai & Nefulda believe in the importance of education and the impact it has on our children, families and society as a whole. Each of our attorneys have made personal sacrifices in their pursuit of education, both in their undergraduate and graduate studies. We recognize that as the next generation of professionals, we have a responsibility to give back to our communities. To accomplish that goal, we have set up the Razai & Nefulda merit based Family Law Scholarship, which is awarded to one student.

Contact Information

Email:
[email protected]
Contact Notes:
Deadline: December 15, 2016 (all applications must be received no later than December 15, 2016). All applications must only be sent/transmitted by email to [email protected]. Applications sent by any other method will NOT be accepted.

Eligibility

Gender:
NA
Major/Career:
Law Fields
Eligibility:
Please include all items with your application submission.
Full name
Mailing address
Email address
Name and address of school where you are attending
Degree you are pursuing as well as year of study (i.e. freshman, junior, sophomore, senior or 1L, 2L, or 3L)
Best contact telephone number
Special Criteria:
2017 Essay Question:
The purpose of spousal support, also known as alimony, in California is to ensure that the recipient spouse has sufficient income to meet his/her needs based on the marital standard of living established during the marriage. Unlike child support (and temporary spousal support pending the divorce), which is determined by a guideline formula, judges in California have broad discretion to determine the amount of permanent spousal support using a set of factors as set forth in California Family Code section 4320. Furthermore, in marriages of long term duration (usually defined as 10 years or longer), the Court cannot set a termination date for permanent spousal support, meaning that permanent spousal support is “open-ended,” barring a significant change in circumstance. This broad discretion oftentimes results in unpredictable and unfair results that vary widely from judge to judge, leaving litigants (both the payor and payee) feeling like the system is unfair or “broken.” In this regard:

-Do you believe that there should be a mandated guideline formula to determine permanent spousal support in California (versus the discretion based system that we currently operate under in setting permanent spousal support under Family Code Section 4320)?
-If so, what do you propose as the guidelines that a judge should consider in setting permanent spousal support in California (list out your proposed guidelines and state why you believe your proposed guidelines should be considered in setting permanent spousal support)?
-Do you believe that judges should be able to set a termination date for spousal support in long-term marriages of 10 years or more in California (and if so, when should it and when shouldn’t it apply in various cases)?
-What impact would your proposed guidelines have on cases wherein permanent spousal support was previously ordered and comes back before the Court in California (due to one party petitioning the Court to modify spousal support either up or down) under your proposed guidelines (meaning should the Court apply your proposed guidelines or its prior findings (if it becomes law) when it initially set permanent spousal support based on the marital standard of living that was determined?

The essay should be between 2500 and 4000 words.