Contract analysis

I. Executive Summary This memorandum sets forth the recommended case strategy for the representation of Marguerite Delphine Fonseca (DOB June 14, 1984) in a custody and parenting-plan dispute currently pending in the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, Stanley Mosk Courthouse, under Case No. 22STFL09847. Ms. Fonseca is a Senior Vice President of Original Content Development at Luminos Entertainment G

II. Procedural Background A. Dissolution History The parties' domestic partnership was registered with the California Secretary of State on September 12, 2015, under File No. DP-2015-038741. Marguerite D. Fonseca and Rafael J. Medrano were never legally married; their legal relationship was established and governed exclusively by the California Domestic Partner Rights and Responsibilities Act of 2003 (Family Code §§

III. Legal Framework A. California Family Code — Custody Standards The California Family Code establishes a comprehensive framework for custody determinations applicable to the dissolution of both marriages and registered domestic partnerships. The key statutory provisions are as follows. Legal Custody vs. Physical Custody. California law distinguishes between legal custody and physical custody. "Legal custody" refer

IV. Client's Position — Strengths A. Primary Caretaker History Ms. Fonseca has been the primary caretaker of both children throughout the domestic partnership and in the period since the dissolution. During the years of the domestic partnership, it was Ms. Fonseca who managed the overwhelming majority of the children's day-to-day care, including morning routines, school preparation, school drop-off and pick-up, meal

V. Client's Position — Weaknesses and Risk Factors A candid assessment of our client's position requires acknowledgment of several weaknesses and risk factors that will likely be raised by opposing counsel or that may affect the court's analysis. It is important that we address these proactively and manage Ms. Fonseca's expectations accordingly. A. Income Disparity and Support Obligation The most significant counteri

VI. Proposed Custody and Timeshare Framework Based on the foregoing analysis, we recommend pursuing the following custody and timeshare framework in negotiations and, if necessary, in court proceedings. A. Legal Custody We recommend seeking joint legal custody with tie-breaking authority to Ms. Fonseca on educational decisions. Joint legal custody is the norm in California and reflects the court's strong preference f

VII. Child Support Strategy A. Income Analysis The child support calculation under the California guideline requires a precise determination of each parent's gross income from all sources. The parties' respective income positions are as follows: Marguerite D. Fonseca. Ms. Fonseca's income is relatively straightforward to calculate. Her gross monthly income, inclusive of base salary, average annual bonus, and average

VIII. Proposed Timeline and Action Items The following timeline sets forth the key milestones and action items for this matter, organized by phase. A. Immediate (Next 1–2 Weeks: April 25 – May 9, 2023)

1. Finalize and File Request for Order (RFO) re Custody and Child Support. We will prepare and file an RFO seeking temporary orders regarding legal custody, physical custody, a parenting schedule, and child support. The target filing date is May 2, 2023. The RFO will be supported by a detailed declaration from Ms. Fonseca and an Income and Expense Declaration. The RFO will request a hearing at the earliest available

2. Prepare and File Declaration of Marguerite D. Fonseca in Support of RFO. Devon Archer will draft the client declaration, setting forth the relevant factual background, the history of Ms. Fonseca's role as primary caretaker, the breakdown of the informal custody arrangement, and the proposed parenting plan. The declaration will be factual, measured in tone, and focused on the children's best interests — not adversa

3. Prepare and File Income and Expense Declaration (FL-150). Nadia Petrov will prepare the Income and Expense Declaration for Ms. Fonseca, reflecting her current income from all sources (base salary, bonus, RSU vesting), monthly expenses, and the children's monthly expenses. This is a mandatory filing in any proceeding involving child support.

4. Retain Harold K. Yamamoto / Yamamoto Brace & Liu, LLP. We will send the engagement and scope letter to Mr. Yamamoto's firm within the next five business days, retaining him to perform the forensic income analysis of Mr. Medrano's earnings and the Medrano Visuals, LLC loan-out entity. The proposed flat fee is $14,750, payable from the client's retainer. The engagement letter will define the scope of work, the docum

5. Child Support Guideline Analysis Memorandum. Nadia Petrov will prepare a comprehensive child support guideline analysis memorandum, including DissoMaster runs at multiple timeshare scenarios (55/45, 60/40, 63/37, 65/35, and 70/30), using the preliminary income estimates. This memorandum is expected by approximately May 15, 2023. B. Short-Term (May–July 2023)

6. Seek Temporary Custody Order at Hearing on RFO. At the hearing on the RFO (anticipated approximately June–July 2023), we will seek a temporary custody order establishing a 60/40 timeshare in Ms. Fonseca's favor during the pendency of the proceedings. A temporary order is critical to establishing the status quo, which will influence the final custody determination. We are deliberately proposing a 60/40 temporary or

7. Meet-and-Confer with Opposing Counsel. We will initiate a meet-and-confer with Gwendolyn R. Kwan at KD&S to discuss the parties' respective custody proposals and the possibility of engaging a mediator to resolve the dispute without contested hearings. The meet-and-confer will be conducted professionally and in a spirit of good faith, consistent with our strategy of pursuing settlement wherever possible. We expect

8. Anticipate Appointment of Minor's Counsel. As discussed above, we anticipate that the court may appoint counsel for the minor children pursuant to Family Code § 3150, either on its own motion at the RFO hearing or in response to a request by one of the parties. We should welcome this appointment and cooperate fully with minor's counsel. If the court does not raise the issue, we should consider requesting it, as an

9. Stipulate to Appointment of Private Custody Evaluator. We recommend stipulating with opposing counsel to the appointment of Dr. Elena V. Sorensen, Psy.D. (California License No. PSY 24891), of Sorensen Family Behavioral Health, P.C., located in Encino, California, as the private custody evaluator. Dr. Sorensen is a highly respected forensic psychologist specializing in child custody evaluations. She has been court

10. File Stipulation and Proposed Order to Seal the Court File. As discussed in Section III.E, we recommend filing a stipulated motion to seal the court file under California Rules of Court, Rule 2.550 et seq. We anticipate that opposing counsel will agree to this stipulation, given both parties' interest in protecting the children's privacy and their own public profiles. We will prepare the stipulation, declaration

11. Cooperate with Custody Evaluation Process. Once the custody evaluator is appointed and begins the evaluation process, we will prepare Ms. Fonseca thoroughly for each phase of the evaluation, including: • Individual parent interviews with Dr. Sorensen; • Home visits to Ms. Fonseca's residence; • Observation of parent-child interactions; • Psychological testing (if ordered); • Identification and coordination with c

12. Receive and Analyze Custody Evaluation Report. Based on Dr. Sorensen's typical timeline, we estimate that the custody evaluation report will be completed approximately twelve weeks from the date of the appointment order, targeting October 2023. Once received, we will conduct a thorough analysis of the report, including its factual findings, clinical assessments, and recommendations regarding legal custody, physic

13. Receive and Analyze Forensic Accountant's Income Report. Mr. Yamamoto's forensic income analysis should be completed by approximately August–September 2023, depending on the availability of Mr. Medrano's financial records. If Mr. Medrano voluntarily produces his financial records in response to our discovery requests, the analysis may be completed sooner. If production is contested, it may be delayed. Once the fo

14. Engage a Mediator. We recommend engaging Hon. Constance M. Yee (Ret.) of Pacific Coast Dispute Resolution Services, located at 801 South Figueroa Street, Suite 1250, Los Angeles, California 90017, to serve as the mediator in this matter. Judge Yee is a retired Los Angeles Superior Court Judge who served for fifteen years on the family law bench and now specializes in the mediation and arbitration of high-asset fa

15. Prepare Confidential Mediation Briefs. We will prepare comprehensive confidential mediation briefs to be submitted to Judge Yee in advance of the mediation sessions. The briefs will summarize the factual background, the parties' respective positions, the custody evaluation report (if available by this time), the forensic income analysis, the proposed parenting plan, and the child support proposals. The briefs wil

16. Conduct Mediation Sessions. We anticipate two to three mediation sessions to reach a comprehensive agreement. The first session would focus on custody