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DECLARATION OF ERICA XXXXXXX
I, Erica XXXXXXX, hereby declare as follows:
I. I am the Petitioner in the above-entitled matter and submit
this declaration in support of my Request for Order re Entry of a Domestic
Relations Order (“DRO”) to divide the community interest of the Respondent’s
retirements within the California Public Employees’ Retirement System
(“CalPERS”) pursuant to the Judgment of Dissolution previously entered
herein. I am also requesting that the Court order the Respondent pay me
spousal support as I have recently become unemployed.
II. The facts stated herein are within my personal knowledge,
except those matters stated on information and belief, and as to those facts,
I believe them to be true. If called upon as a witness I could and would
competently testify to the matters set forth in this Declaration.
III. Respondent Daniel XXXXXXX (herein “Respondent”) and I were
married on September 3, 19XX and separated on August 30, 20XX. We had a long
term marriage of approximately XXXXXXX years. Our Stipulated Judgment was
entered on December 15, 20XX (“the Judgment”), a true and correct copy of
which is attached hereto as Exhibit 1.
Entry of DRO dividing the CalPERS account
IV. Pursuant to the Judgment, I was awarded one-half of the
community interest in the CalPERS retirement benefits standing in the
Respondent’ name. (See Judgment of Dissolution, page 4, lines 7 through 10;
page 6, lines 21 through 26; and page 7, lines 1 through 12). The Judgment
orders the CalPERS account to be divided pursuant to a DRO on or before April
10, 20XX. The Judgment further orders the Respondent to be solely responsible
for the cost of preparing the DRO. Finally the Judgment also provides:
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The Court reserves jurisdiction to make such orders
relating to these retirement benefits that are necessary to
carry out the terms of this judgment and specifically
reserves jurisdiction over an award of Family Code Section
271 attorney’s fees to have the QDRO(s) drafted and entered
after April 10, 20XX. (See Judgment, page 7, lines 7
through 12)
This language in the Judgment was included in order to protect me and
incentivize the Respondent in finalizing the division of the retirement
benefits in a timely manner. It is now August of 20XX and the CalPERS
retirement account still remains undivided. Patrick Maislin, Esq., our QDRO
counsel, prepared and sent us the DRO dividing the Respondent’s CalPERS
account in April of 20XX. My attorney and I executed the DRO on June 10, 20XX
and provided the Respondent with our original signatures, along with the
orders dividing the retirement accounts held in my name. A true copy of the
DRO that Attorney Maislin prepared and I signed is attached hereto and marked
Exhibit 2. I am requesting that the Court require and cause it to be entered.
Respondent represented that his attorney Gina Rios would handle the filing of
the QDRO’s and DRO. Although the qualified domestic relations order
pertaining to my retirement accounts have been filed and entered by the
Court, the DRO pertaining to Respondent’s CalPERS account has still not been
entered. I have requested, through my attorney, copies of the fully executed
DRO from Respondent since we have never received their signatures, let alone
conformed copies from the Court. My attorney’s declaration, filed
concurrently herein, attests to the numerous attempts made over the past year
to obtain these fully executed copies.
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V. Respondent has completely ignored my requests that he produce his
signature pages for the CalPERS DRO over the past year-a very simple request
to comply with. Given the Respondent’s behavior and the fact that all other
QDRO’s and DRO’s signed by me in June of 20XX have already been entered, I
can only presume that that the Respondent has been holding onto the DRO
dividing the CalPERS held in his name. I request that the Court immediately
sign the DRO and enter it without Respondent’s signature and that of his
attorney. Additionally, I request that the Court order Respondent to pay my
attorney’s fees and costs that I have incurred regarding this issue. I would
not have had to file this current RFO if the Respondent and his attorney
adhered to the terms of the Judgment and followed through on the execution of
the DRO in a timely manner. This RFO also could have been avoided if
Respondent provided me with his signatures on the DRO as I’ve been
requesting. I have been more than patient and reasonable by giving the
Respondent the benefit of the doubt by giving him more than a year to comply
with the Judgment.
Modification in Spousal Support
VI. The Judgment reserves jurisdiction over the issue of spousal
support. Specifically, in this regard, it states as follows:
Respondent shall pay spousal support of ZERO to the Petitioner.
Pursuant to the financial circumstances set forth in Paragraph
16, Respondent has paid no temporary spousal support to the
Petitioner. During the marriage, the community earned an income
which allowed the parties to live a comfortable lifestyle and own
a home. Neither party can enjoy the lifestyle the parties enjoyed
during marriage. Each party is advised that he/she may serve upon
the other a “Request for Production of and Income and Expense
Declaration After Judgment” as of January 1, 20XX and each year
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thereafter. Upon application by either party, the Court may make
a de novo determination on the subject matter of spousal support
retroactive to the date of filing the application. On application
by a party prior to either attaining the age of 65, the Court
shall have jurisdiction to determine whether it is appropriate
based on all relevant facts and circumstances of the parties at
the time of the application to order spousal support for either
party. The Court’s jurisdiction over the subject matter for
spousal support shall continue until either party’s death, the
remarriage of the Petitioner, or modification or termination by
further Court order, whichever occurs first.
(See Judgment, page 7, lines 1-4; page 9, lines 15-26).
VII. I am not yet 65 years old. At the time of the signing of the
Judgment, I was employed at XXXXX XXXXX as a Visual Communications
Coordinator and I earned a gross monthly income of $4,791.00 . I lost my
position at XXXXX XXXXX in or around June 20XX. I began to collect
unemployment wages in July 20XX and received $450.00 per week for eighty-five
weeks. I have completely exhausted all of my unemployment benefits and I
stopped receiving unemployment checks in or around March 20XX.
VIII. In August of 20XX, I was able to obtain a contract position with
XXXXX XXXXX. The contract lasted for a time period of 11 months, with no
guarantee of future work once the contract ended. Although I worked full
time, I was a 1099 employee with zero benefits. My contract ended in July 1,
20XX and was not renewed. I have been looking for other employment since that
time, but have not had success in obtaining a position. I am most qualified
for a position as a packing coordinator, but have the relevant qualifications
to apply for other coordinator jobs. Since January 20XX, I have searched for
and applied to between 15-20 jobs, most of them for coordinator positions.
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I have had approximately 4-6 interviews with companies such as Pepsi, the
NFL, and the Allan Lund company, but thus far, I have not received any
offers. I have a few follow up interviews and I am hopeful that I will be
able to secure a full-time position in the near future. I wish to go back to
work and be able to support myself without any financial assistance from the
Respondent, but the reality of my current situation has necessitated the
filing of this RFO re Spousal Support.
IX. I moved in my mother’s house in La Crescenta in May 2010 with our
son Dylan, during the pendency of the divorce proceedings. After I lost my
job with XXXXX XXXXX, I relied on my unemployment wages, child support
payments, and financial assistance from my mother to meet our family’s living
expenses. My mother, our children Dylan and Dana, and I lived simply and
modestly.
X. My mother’s health deteriorated in 20XX and she passed away in
October 20XX. She did not have a will when she passed away and we are
currently finalizing the probate process, with her sole asset being the house
in which I currently reside. As her eldest child, I am the administrator of
her estate. My sister and I are the intestate beneficiaries of her estate in
equal shares. My sister and I have a temporary agreement that my children and
I can continue to live in the La Crescenta house so long as I pay the
mortgage payments of $663.00 per month and take care of all maintenance and
repairs.
XI. I am currently struggling to make ends meet and take care of the
basic necessities for myself. Our adult daughter, Dana A. XXXXXXX, graduated
from college in May of 20XX and lives with me and does not contribute to the
household expenses. I am unable to meet my financial obligations and I worry
about how I can pay for food, housing and bills next month. I already have a
significant debt from college loans that are already deferred. All sources
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Of funds that I have previously relied on to live are now exhausted. I am no
longer eligible to receive unemployment benefits, child support has been
terminated as our son Dylan has recently graduated from high school, and I
can no longer rely on my mother who has passed away to assist me.
XII. Respondent is employed full-time and earns a gross income of
approximately $6,088.00 per month according to our Stipulated Judgment filed
in 20XX. I do not know what he currently earns but believe it is in the same
range as he is still employed by the city of Glendale. Accordingly, I
respectfully request that the Court modify the Judgment and order the
Respondent to pay me reasonable spousal support. I intend to keep Respondent
informed of my job prospects and immediately inform him if I receive a job
offer.
I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of
California that the foregoing is true and correct and that this declaration
was executed on September ________, 20XX at ___________________________,
California.
See attached facsimile signature
____________________________________
ERICA XXXXXXX