Legal Question in Family Law in California

No, there is no way to get a divorce without involving the person you are divorcing. You should be able to get a divorce concluded and your ex out of your life relatively simply, but you have created a very legally complicated situation in the technicalities by letting it go on this long. It may not be very difficult for a Family Law attorney, but there is no way for a lay person like yourself to sort this out. If you would like to meet in my San Jose office I would be happy to help you, or feel free to find another local Family Law attorney. But the bottom line is you need some professional help to sort this out.

Tim is absolutely correct. The sad fact is that each day that goes by, you are not receiving the child support from your ex that you and your children rightfully deserve. If you do not want to entangle your ex in your lives by asking for support, the best approach might be to file a divorce reserving the child support. Get him served and hopefully, he will fail to respond to the divorce and you could proceed by way of default. Please consider consulting with an experienced family law attorney to explore your legal options.

He has to get served. He does not have to sign anything for your divorce to be legal.