Legal Question in Family Law in California

Re: no marital separation agreement

First off nothing gets done without the appropriate papers being filed by both parties. Filing the Petition and Response is only the beginning!! If you have a house involved than I highly recommend that you hire an attorney to get you through this. If you are located in Southern California you may call me for a free consultation at 818-342-8020 x1

Re: no marital separation agreement

The divorce is proceeding, meaning that the mandatory waiting period is ticking away, but Atty. Fernandez is right--in order to finalize it, certain papers need to be filed. There's lots of resources for you to find out what needs to happen next, and to make sure you get your fair share. Consulting with an attorney is one way; many communities have free or low-cost alternatives available through their lawyer referral service with the local bar association. The number in LA is (213) 627-2727. Be sure you know your rights (as well as what needs to happen to finalize the divorce) before too much more time passes. This is too important to ignore! Property rights and spousal support can equal thousands of dollars (in many cases), so don't be penny-wise and pound foolish, as they say!

There's also some good self-help books on the market about California divorce procedure. Try Nolo Press, at www.nolo.com.

If you and your husband would consider sitting down together to talk about how to resolve the issues, consider mediation. It's a great, inexpensive way to resolve divorces without a lot of acrimony. You can read more about it on my web site, www.peace-talks.com, or your local Bar association may have referrals.

I've also written a book which may be of some help. You can check it out at www.yourdivorceadvisor.com. The web site has some good tips and resources for people starting a divorce (and the book is great too, of course!), and most are either free or very low cost.

Good luck!

Diana Mercer

Re: no marital separation agreement

There are several things that must be done in order for your marriage to be concluded. Each of you must serve the other a Preliminary Declaration of Disclosure. You also have to either reach an agreement on the distribution of your assets & debts and on spousal support. This must then be reduced to a Marital Settlement Agreement. If you can't reach an agreement, then you must go to court.

You may wish to have an attorney help you with concluding things. If you are in Santa Clara County you can call my office at 408-287-8484 to set up a free one-half hour consultation.

Re: no marital separation agreement

YOUR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE WILL NOT BE AUTOMATICALLY ENTERED BY THE COURT AFTER THE SIX MONTHS PERIOD IS OVER. YOUR CASE SHOULD EITHER BE FINALIZED BY A STIPULATED JUDGMENT (SIGNED BY YOU AND YOUR SPOUSE) DIVIDING THE COMMUNITY PROPERTY OR THROUGH A COURT TRIAL IF YOU ARE NOT IN AGREEMENT WITH YOUR SPOUSE AS TO ALL ISSUES OF THE DIVORCE. IN THAT CASE YOU OR YOUR SPOUSE MAY REQUEST A TRIAL DATE FROM THE COURT FILING THE APPROPRIATE DOCUMENTS. IF YOU NEED ASSISTANCE PLEASE CALL MY OFFICE AT 310-839-7700.