In California you may file your divorce by faxing the documents
to the courthouse. No appearance in court will ever be necessary.
You may also mail the documents or take them to the courthouse
in person.
General Divorce Procedure:
A marriage of 5 years or less may be dissolved by summary action.
Either spouse may file a joint Petition for Summary Dissolution of
marriage if the spouse has met the residency requirements for a standard
dissolution of marriage, and:
1) there is an irreparable breakdown of the marriage due to
irreconcilable differences;
2) there are no children born of or adopted during the marriage;
3) the wife is not pregnant;
4) neither spouse owns real estate;
5) there are no unpaid debts exceeding $4000 incurred during the marriage;
6) the total value of community property (including any differed
compensation or retirement plans but excluding cars and loans) is less
then $25000;
7) neither spouse has separate property (excluding cars and loans)
exceeding $25000 in value on January 1 of every odd-numbered year, the
dollar amounts in this section may be revised;
8) the spouses have signed an agreement regarding the division of their
assets and their liabilities and have signed any documents or given proof
of any transfers necessary to effectuate an agreement;
9) the spouses waive any rights to spousal support (maintenance);
10) the spouses waive their right to appeal the dissolution of marriage
and their right to a new trial upon entry of the final dissolution of
marriage judgment;
11) the spouses have read and understood the summary dissolution of marriage
brochure available from the County Clerk;
12) both spouses want the marriage to be dissolved. Official mandatory
and optional forms for filing for a summary Dissolution of marriage are
available from the County Clerk of any county.
|
|
Residence Requirements:
In California you may file your divorce if you have been a resident for 6
months and a resident for 3 months in the county in which he or she is filing.
There is a 6-month waiting period after the service of process of the
appearance by the other spouse before the court finalizes the dissolution
of marriage.
Grounds for California Divorce:
No-fault:
The no-fault ground for
divorce is irreconcilable differences that have caused the irreparable
breakdown of the marriage.
Fault-based:
The fault-based ground is incurable insanity.
Legal Separation:
To obtain a legal separation in CA, the legal separation must be grounded
on irreconcilable differences or incurable insanity.
Mediation or Counseling:
If the court concludes there is a reasonable possibility of reconciliation
in a no-fault case, the proceeding will be delayed for 30 days. If there
is no reconciliation, either spouse can request legal separation or
dissolution of marriage.
Where to file for divorce:
In the county of the filing spouse; the spouse must have resided in the
county for 3 months.
Title of Divorce action:
Petition for dissolution of marriage.
|
