Riverside Family Law Attorneys

In her practice of family law, attorney Catherine A. Schwartz understands the emotional elements involved in the end of a marriage. She dedicates herself in helping her clients through a legally complex and highly personal, sometimes adversarial process.

Every Aspect Of Family Law Covered

At the Law Offices of Schwartz & Godbey, our practice of family law focuses on the following:

  • Divorce/legal separation — We spend time with clients to inform them of their rights and options in preparing for post-divorce lives. In some cases, counseling and therapy could be of benefit. For others, legal separations or annulments are more appropriate.
  • Child custody and visitation — The best interests of children should be the focus of legal or physical custody agreements. Court-approved mediation is required by the state and is encouraged by Riverside family lawyer Catherine A. Schwartz.
  • Child support — Married or divorced, parents are responsible for financial support of their children. Statutory formulas exist that account for income, expenses and time spent with children. The standard of living prior to the dissolution may also be taken into account.
  • Spousal support — Also known as alimony or maintenance, spousal support helps spouses maintain the marital standard of living and ease the post-marriage transition. No formulas exist, and duration is based on the discretion of the courts.
  • Property division — The most amicable and uncontested of divorces can turn contentious if disputes over property arise. Oftentimes, these disagreements end up in litigation when couples cannot agree on what they believe is marital and nonmarital property.
  • Domestic violence — A sad and sometimes tragic side of divorce, domestic violence accusations can impact custody and visitation agreements. Frustration can lead one spouse to lash out physically or make false allegations to gain an advantage in a divorce proceeding.
    Juvenile dependency/juvenile delinquency — When a child is suspected of being mistreated, abused or neglected, we help families get through a challenging juvenile court process. We help children emerge from a bureaucratic system to reunite with parents and avoid possible juvenile delinquency.
  • Paternity actions — Establishing parentage is often necessary when the legal parents of a child are not married. Without a signed voluntary declaration of paternity, blood testing is needed. Once paternity is established, we help our clients work out custody and support arrangements.
  • High net worth divorce — If your California marriage is ending in a courtroom, in a contentious high-asset divorce, you need quality, experienced family law attorneys in your corner to ensure that your property division and asset division goals are respected.
  • Military divorce — If ownership of a military pension or military benefits is at stake during your uncontested or contested military divorce, one skilled family law firm in Riverside has experience you can trust — the Law Offices of Schwartz & Godbey.
  • Same-sex divorce/domestic partnerships — Is your same-sex marriage ending in California? Contact us.
  • Modifications — No divorce is ever really “final.” Incomes rise and fall. Extra jobs to help make ends meet can take parents away from children. A lost job can adversely affect a noncustodial parent’s ability to make child support and alimony payments.
  • Parental relocations — When a parental relocation, child relocation or “move away” after a divorce threatens to disturb a child custody or visitation routine — and harms the best interests of the child — our team of skilled family law attorneys has the experience you can trust to get positive results.
  • Ex parte emergency hearings — In California, an ex parte application consists of a request of a court to make an emergency order in the event that harm may come to someone in a family.
  • Restraining orders/protective orders — Are you a target of domestic violence and in need of a protective order to ensure your family’s safety?
  • Grandparents’ rights — When grandparents’ rights become factors in determining revised child custody and visitation arrangements after a divorce, and especially when parents have shirked their responsibilities to their child, our experienced Riverside family law attorneys can help.
  • Guardianships — If you are seeking to establish a guardianship, to ensure the long-term care of a minor child or senior citizen with special needs — but you don’t know how to go about it — you could benefit from the assistance of a knowledgeable, understanding family law attorney.

Contact Divorce Lawyer Catherine A. Schwartz

For more information, contact the Law Offices of Schwartz & Godbey at (951) 686-8190 to schedule a free initial consultation.

Catherine was the first lawyer I’ve met who actually said and completed what she told me she would do. I’ve never written a review for anything before this but I truly feel it deserves to be heard. This law group stepped up and got the job done. I am extremely thankful for the diligent and caring effort that was put into my case and I never felt I was being taken advantage of or left in the dark about my case. I’ve experience other lawyers that have only had their best interest in mind and took advantage of me. Catherine and her group always were thoughtful and caring about my case as small as it was. I’m forever thankful for their compassion and hard work.