Legal Question in Family Law in California
my wife has left the state with my kids while i was in jail she did not provide an address or a phone # to where she had moved to. there is no custody orders what so ever. since i have been released from jail i have filed for divorce and 50/50 joint custody. I also have the DA of Orange County CA trying to locate her so i can serve her the papers i have filed. The DA hasn't located her yet and the judge keeps making me push the court date back until she is served. But i cant serve her without an address. WHAT SHOULD I DO?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Nothing you can do but find her and serve her. Keep working with the DA. Eventually if you can demonstrate to the court that you have exhausted all means of finding her, the court will allow you to serve her by publication of notice in the newspaper. The DA and the Family Court Facilitator can help you figure out when and how to apply for that. In the meantime, though, you need to find her anyway, because she has your kids. So keep on it. The court can't ever let you have a trial date until she is served.