Divorce is the legal dissolution of a Marriage or Domestic Partnership by a court of law. It is similar to a legal separation in which the Court can make orders in regards to various matters such as child custody, child support, spousal support, division of property and assets, and division of debts. It establishes new terms between a couple, creating, rescinding and/or rearranging duties and obligations relating to property, spousal support, and children.

There are two main differences between legal separation and a divorce in California. Divorce terminates the marriage whereas legal separation does not. Therefore, a party whom is legally separated from his or her spouse or partner is not permitted to remarry. This is due to the fact that the marriage has not ended. The second difference is that there is no statutory residential time requirement for filing a legal separation. Although a party must have resided in the state of California for at least six (6) months and at least three (3) months in the county where he or she intends to file the divorce petition, that same party is immediately permitted to file a legal separation petition even if he or she does not meet the statutory residential time requirement as stated above.

A divorce proceeding can be quite overwhelming and every missed step can lead to adverse consequences. If you are considering filing for a divorce, please contact our office at (626) 626-7789 for an initial consultation so that our attorney can assist you in taking the proper steps.