A restraining order often changes almost everything in a divorce in a drastic way.  If you are going to file for divorce while a restraining order is already in effect, you will find that the divorce decisions will be made with less options than usual because the court’s protective order takes precedent.

A restraining order typically has a big impact on Spousal Support, Visitation and Custody.  For example the California Domestic Violence Prevention Act states that a person who has been subjected to a restraining order can be prevented from receiving spousal support from the other spouse, can limit a parent’s access to their kids, and sometimes all the way up to awarding sole legal and physical custody to the other spouse. Visitation rights can also be affected, with the restraining order denying visitation or allowing only some form of supervised visitation.  If this is your situation, we would recommend that you call Steve Whitworth for your free consultation on your options and potential next steps in order to defend yourself

Although restraining orders might not directly determine child support and the amounts of the support, it does indirectly impact it by making custody decisions.  The amount of time a parent has with their kids is one of the biggest factors of how much child support is paid and which spouse will be paying the support each month.

The best thing you can do when you’re faced with restraining orders, criminal charges, divorce, custody of the children, spousal and child support is to hire an experienced Criminal AND Divorce Attorney that understands both and how they impact each other. If you already have a restraining order or are seeking a complicated restraining order, or there is domestic violence or a crime involved in an upcoming divorce, a good first step is calling Steve Whitworth, who you can feel comfortable with and will guide you through the entire process.

Steve Whitworth does offer free consultations so you can ask questions and find out your options. Steve, realizes that finding the right attorney-client partnership can help set a complicated divorce, when children are involved, off on the right foot for the emotional journey ahead.