Do I have a legal obligation to support my Spouse?
Full Question:
Answer:
This is controlled by Section 4300 of the California Family Code which provides:
4300. Subject to this division, a person shall support the person's spouse.
4301. Subject to Section 914, a person shall support the person's spouse while they are living together out of the separate property of the person when there is no community property or quasi-community property.
4302. A person is not liable for support of the person's spouse when the person is living separate from the spouse by agreement unless support is stipulated in the agreement.
4303.
(a) The obligee spouse, or the county on behalf of the obligee spouse, may bring an action against the obligor spouse to enforce the duty of support.
(b) If the county furnishes support to a spouse, the county has the same right as the spouse to whom the support was furnished to secure reimbursement and obtain continuing support. The right of the county to reimbursement is subject to any limitation otherwise imposed by the law of this state.
(c) The court may order the obligor to pay the county reasonable attorney's fees and court costs in a proceeding brought by the county under this section.
914.
(a) Notwithstanding Section 913, a married person is personally liable for the following debts incurred by the person's spouse during marriage:(1) A debt incurred for necessaries of life of the person's spouse while the spouses are living together.
(2) Except as provided in Section 4302, a debt incurred for common necessaries of life of the person's spouse while the spouses are
living separately.(b) The separate property of a married person may be applied to the satisfaction of a debt for which the person is personally liable pursuant to this section. If separate property is so applied at a time when nonexempt property in the community estate or separate property of the person's spouse is available but is not applied to the satisfaction of the debt, the married person is entitled to reimbursement to the extent such property was available.
(c)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the statute of limitations set forth in Section 366.2 of the Code of Civil Procedure shall apply if the spouse for whom the married person is personally liable dies.
(2) If the surviving spouse had actual knowledge of the debt prior to expiration of the period set forth in Section 366.2 of the Code of Civil Procedure and the personal representative of the deceased spouse's estate failed to provide the creditor asserting the claim under this section with a timely written notice of the probate administration of the estate in the manner provided for pursuant to Section 9050 of the Probate Code, the statute of limitations set forth in Section 337 or 339 of the Code of Civil Procedure, as applicable, shall apply.
