Sources and scope: the legal statements below were compared with the linked California statutes, court rules, and court or agency material. This is general legal information, not advice about a specific case.
First, make sure California—and the county you chose—can hear the case
Family Code §2320 usually requires at least one spouse to have lived in California for the previous six months and in the filing county for the previous three months. If neither spouse has met those periods, legal separation may be available now, with a request to change the case to divorce after residency is established.
Most petitions rely on irreconcilable differences, meaning the marriage has broken down beyond repair. California's other statutory ground is permanent legal incapacity to make decisions. Adultery is not a separate ground for divorce, although a spouse's conduct can still matter to questions such as safety, custody, support, sanctions, or missing money.
Choose the filing path that matches your situation
In the regular process, one spouse files Petition—Marriage/Domestic Partnership (FL-100) and Summons (FL-110). FL-105 is also required when the spouses have children under 18 together. Someone other than the filing spouse serves the papers, and the other spouse may respond with FL-120.
Since January 1, 2026, spouses who expect to agree on every issue can begin together with Joint Petition (FL-700) and Joint Summons (FL-710). No service or response is needed, but both spouses sign and the published filing fee is $870. Neither spouse can ask for temporary orders while the joint petition remains active. Either can revoke it and continue the same case through the regular process.
Summary dissolution has a much narrower gate. Among other requirements, the marriage must have lasted less than five years from marriage to separation; the spouses cannot have children together or a current pregnancy; they cannot own real estate, and the only permitted real-estate lease is for their residence, has no purchase option, and ends within a year after filing; community debt must be under $7,000 excluding car loans; and community property and each spouse's separate property must stay below the current $57,000 limits, excluding vehicles. Both spouses must waive support and sign a property agreement.
| Path | How it begins | Service or response | Important limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular petition | One spouse files FL-100 and FL-110 | Formal service; the other spouse may file FL-120 | A party may ask for temporary orders |
| Joint petition | Both spouses sign FL-700 and FL-710 | No service or response | The spouses must ultimately agree on every issue; no temporary orders while the joint petition is active |
| Summary dissolution | A qualifying couple files together | No ordinary summons-and-response sequence | Every marriage, child, property, debt, real-estate, support, and agreement requirement must be met |
What happens in a regular divorce case
1. Fill out the opening forms
Prepare FL-100 and FL-110 and, if there are children under 18 together, FL-105. Check the filing court for any local cover sheet or venue form.
2. File with the correct Superior Court
Pay the $435–$450 first-paper fee or submit a fee-waiver request. Keep the clerk-stamped copies and case number.
3. Have another adult serve the papers
The petitioner cannot do this personally. After delivery, the server completes FL-115; the petitioner files it with the court.
4. Deal with the response and urgent needs
The respondent ordinarily has 30 days after personal service to file FL-120. Either party may use a Request for Order when a temporary decision is needed.
5. Exchange financial disclosures
Serve the required income, expense, property, and debt information on the other spouse. File FL-141—not the private financial packet—with the court.
6. Work through the disputed issues
Informal exchange, formal discovery, appraisals, negotiation, mediation, settlement conferences, and trial are different ways to resolve property, debt, support, custody, parenting time, and fee requests.
7. Finish the disclosure requirement
Serve final disclosures unless both spouses use the statutory waiver process, and comply with the court's pretrial or judgment rules.
8. Obtain judgment
Turn an agreement, default request, or trial ruling into judgment papers the court can sign. The marriage continues until the judgment's effective date.
Service starts the response deadline and usually starts the waiting period
The server must be at least 18 and cannot be a party. For personal service in a regular case, that person delivers the filed petition and summons, a blank FL-120, and any other required blank forms, then completes Proof of Service of Summons (FL-115). The petitioner files FL-115.
Personal service ordinarily gives the respondent 30 days to file a response. An informal email or casual handoff may not count. If the spouse cannot be found, substituted service, publication, posting, or another method has separate requirements; court permission may be necessary.
In a regular case, marital status cannot ordinarily end until six months after service of the summons and petition or the respondent's appearance, whichever happened first. A joint petition uses its filing date because both spouses begin the case together.
Agreement does not eliminate financial disclosure
The petitioner ordinarily serves preliminary disclosures within 60 days after filing, and a participating respondent within 60 days after filing a response. The packet usually includes FL-140, FL-150, and either FL-142 or FL-160, together with the financial records the forms and statute require.
Those private financial papers go to the other spouse, not into the public court file. FL-141 tells the court they were served. Final disclosures are generally due before settlement or trial and no later than 45 days before the first assigned trial date, unless both spouses validly waive them—often with FL-144.
- List property and debt even when only one spouse's name appears on the account or title.
- Flag community, separate, and mixed claims instead of assuming the title answers ownership.
- Correct information that has become incomplete or out of date before settlement or trial.
- Keep bank, tax, loan, retirement, title, and valuation records in a form the other side and the court can follow.
Temporary orders address the months before judgment
In a regular case, a Request for Order can ask for temporary decisions about custody, parenting time, child or spousal support, control of property, attorney fees, and other available relief. A contested custody request ordinarily goes through court-connected mediation before the hearing. Emergency orders have stricter standards and notice rules.
Even a complete settlement does not end the case by itself. The terms need to appear in judgment papers that clearly address property, debt, support, taxes, and parenting orders. If an issue remains disputed, the judge decides it from admissible evidence under the law governing that issue.
Why many California divorces take longer than six months
Family Code §2339 prevents marital status from ending before the six-month point in a regular case, but nothing happens automatically on that date. The court still needs a valid service record, completed disclosures, resolved issues, and judgment papers it can sign. Discovery, appraisals, custody work, settlement, trial, and the court's calendar can all add time.
There may also be work after judgment: record a deed, transfer a vehicle or account, prepare a retirement division order, adjust withholding, refinance joint debt, update insurance or beneficiaries where permitted, and order certified copies. Assigning a debt to one spouse does not by itself release the other spouse from the creditor's contract.
Questions readers often ask
Frequently asked questions
How long must I live in California before filing for divorce?
Usually, one spouse must have lived in California for the previous six months and in the filing county for the previous three months. Legal separation and special jurisdiction rules may provide another route.
Are we divorced automatically after six months?
No. In a regular case, six months is only the earliest date marital status may end under §2339. The court must enter judgment, and missing disclosures, unresolved issues, incomplete papers, or scheduling can take the case beyond that date.
Can I hand the divorce papers to my spouse myself?
No. The server for the initial personal service must be at least 18 and cannot be a party. That person completes FL-115 and returns it to the petitioner for filing.
Do we still need disclosures if we agree on everything?
Generally, yes. Preliminary disclosures are required even when spouses expect to settle. Final disclosures can be waived only through the statutory process; an informal agreement to skip them is not enough.
What is California's new joint-petition option?
Since January 1, 2026, spouses can start one regular case together with FL-700 and FL-710. There is no service or response, the published fee is $870, and temporary orders are unavailable while the joint petition remains active.
Is summary dissolution just another name for an uncontested divorce?
No. A regular divorce can be uncontested even when the couple does not meet summary-dissolution limits. Summary dissolution is available only if every requirement concerning marriage length, children, real estate, property, debt, support, and agreement is satisfied.
Sources used for this guide
Official sources
- California Courts — Start a divorce or legal separation
Explains who meets the ordinary residency rules, which statewide forms start a regular case, and how the $435–$450 filing fee fits into filing.
- California Courts — Serve divorce papers
Explains who may serve the papers, what the server delivers, how FL-115 proves service, and when the usual 30-day response period begins.
- California Courts — The four parts of a divorce
Walks through the four parts of a regular case: filing and service, financial disclosure, deciding the issues, and obtaining judgment.
- California Courts — Financial disclosures
Covers preliminary and final disclosures, the 60-day preliminary deadline, service on the other spouse, and the proof filed with the court.
- California Family Code §2310 — Grounds
Lists California's two statutory grounds: irreconcilable differences and permanent legal incapacity to make decisions.
- California Family Code §2320 — Divorce residency
Sets the ordinary six-month California and three-month county residence requirements for a dissolution case.
- California Family Code §2339 — Earliest termination date
Sets the earliest status-termination date in a regular case at six months from service or the respondent's appearance, whichever happened first.
- California Family Code §2104 — Preliminary disclosures
Governs preliminary declarations of disclosure and the ordinary 60-day service deadlines for petitioner and respondent.
- California Family Code §2105 — Final disclosures
Governs final disclosure timing and the written procedure spouses may use to waive final declarations.
- California Courts — Joint petition for divorce
Explains the joint-petition route introduced January 1, 2026: the forms, $870 fee, no-service process, bar on temporary orders, and revocation option.
- California Courts — Summary dissolution qualifications
Lists every summary-dissolution qualification, including marriage length, children, real estate, property and debt limits, support waiver, and agreement.