Site Map

Browse the public pages, forms, guides, and technical resources available on this site.

Main Pages

California Service Areas

  • Peninsula

    Landing page for clients in Santa Clara County, San Mateo County, San Francisco County.

  • East Bay

    Landing page for clients in Alameda County, Contra Costa County.

  • North Bay

    Landing page for clients in Marin County, Sonoma County, Napa County.

  • Los Angeles County

    Landing page for clients in Los Angeles County.

  • Orange County

    Landing page for clients in Orange County.

  • Inland Empire

    Landing page for clients in Riverside County, San Bernardino County.

  • San Diego

    Landing page for clients in San Diego County.

  • Central Valley

    Landing page for clients in Fresno County, Kern County, Tulare County.

Family Law Rules

  • Summary Dissolution

    An educational explanation of California summary dissolution, who may qualify, and how it differs from a regular uncontested divorce.

  • Divorce Filing Requirements

    An educational explanation of California divorce residency, filing location, startup forms, service, fee waivers, and what happens after filing.

  • Default Divorce

    An educational explanation of California default divorce, default with agreement, response deadlines, disclosures, and default judgment paperwork.

  • Date of Separation

    An educational explanation of how the date of separation works in California divorce and why it can affect property, debt, and support issues.

  • Divorce Petition and Joint Petition

    An educational explanation of California divorce petitions, joint petitions, FL-100, FL-700, and how a petition differs from a final judgment or summary dissolution.

  • FL-120 Response Instructions

    Learn how to complete and file California form FL-120, meet the general 30-day deadline, serve the Response with FL-335, and avoid common default errors.

  • Amending a Petition or Response

    Learn when a California divorce Petition or Response may need amendment, how timing and service affect the process, and why amendments matter before default or judgment.

  • Legal Separation

    An educational explanation of California legal separation, how it differs from divorce, residency requirements, later divorce, property division, custody, and support.

  • Converting Legal Separation to Divorce

    An educational explanation of changing a pending California legal separation case to divorce, including residency requirements, amended petitions, responses, judgments, and marital status.

  • Legal Separation vs. Divorce

    An educational comparison of legal separation and divorce in California, including marital status, remarriage, residency requirements, court orders, and date of separation.

  • Family Residence in Divorce

    An educational explanation of how the family residence is addressed in a California divorce, including community and separate property issues, sale, buyout, refinance, mortgage responsibility, and judgment terms.

  • Real Property Buyout

    An educational explanation of real property buyouts in California divorce, including equity, valuation, refinance, loan assumption, title transfer, reimbursement claims, and sale fallback terms.

  • Retirement Accounts in Divorce

    An educational explanation of retirement accounts in California divorce, including community and separate interests, pensions, defined contribution plans, QDROs, IRAs, and common division problems.

  • Pensions in Divorce

    An educational explanation of pensions in California divorce, including community and separate interests, service credit, QDROs, public pension plans, valuation, and common mistakes.

  • Dividing a Car in a Divorce

    Learn how California divorce handles car equity, loans, title transfers, refinancing, negative equity, and leases—and what the judgment should address.

  • Business Interests

    An educational explanation of business interests in California divorce, including community and separate interests, valuation, goodwill, buyouts, offsets, sales, and reimbursement issues.

  • Watts Charges and Epstein Credits

    An educational explanation of Watts charges and Epstein credits in California divorce, including post-separation reimbursement claims, exclusive use of community assets, mortgage payments, offsets, waivers, and related property division issues.

  • Automatic Temporary Restraining Orders

    Learn how Automatic Temporary Restraining Orders (ATROs) work in a California divorce, when they start, what they restrict, and the main exceptions.

  • How Long Does Divorce Take?

    Learn California's minimum divorce waiting period, the steps before judgment, and why court review and county processing can make an agreed case take longer.

  • Contested vs. Uncontested

    Compare contested and uncontested California divorce, including agreement, court hearings, paperwork, timing, cost structure, and how a case may become uncontested.

  • Child Custody California

    A guide to legal custody, physical custody, visitation, best-interest standards, and modification of child custody orders in California.

  • House Title and Property Division

    Learn how deed title affects property characterization in California divorce, including Family Code sections 2581, 760, 852, and 721.

  • Child Support California

    A practical guide to California child support, including the statewide guideline formula, add-on expenses, modification rules, and when support ends.

  • Can Child Support be Waived?

    Learn whether child support can be waived in California, when parents can agree to a zero-dollar order, and why court approval is still required.

  • Smith/Ostler Support

    Learn how California Smith/Ostler support provisions can address bonuses, commissions, base support, reporting, payment timing, and other variable income terms.

  • How Spousal Support Is Calculated

    Learn how California calculates temporary and long-term spousal support, including software-based temporary estimates and the section 4320 factors for long-term support.

  • Spousal Support California

    A practical guide to temporary and long-term spousal support in California, including section 4320 factors, duration, modification, and when support ends.

  • How Long Spousal Support Lasts

    Learn how long spousal support can last in California, including temporary support, the half-length guideline, long-duration marriages, Gavron warnings, and step-down orders.

  • Waiving Spousal Support

    Learn how spousal support waivers work in California divorce cases, how waiver differs from reserving jurisdiction, and the rules for premarital support waivers.

  • Divorce With Children California

    Understand custody, visitation, and child support terms in California uncontested divorce cases where parents already have an agreement.

  • Property Division in California Divorce

    General information on how California divorce law treats community property, separate property, valuation, reimbursement claims, and related tax issues.

  • Division of Debts in a California Divorce

    General information on how California divorce law treats community debt, separate debt, post-separation obligations, and debt allocation in an overall equal division.

  • Dividing a House in a California Divorce

    General information on how California divorce law handles a house, including community and separate interests, buyouts, deferred sale, and Moore/Marsden analysis.

  • Community Property Basics

    A practical overview of community vs separate property concepts and how agreement-based judgments handle asset and debt division in California.

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Guides and Resources

Policies and Technical

Guide Library

All guide pages

These links point to the full public guide library currently published on the site.

FL-110 Summons Explained

An attorney-written explanation of California form FL-110, the 30-day response deadline, automatic restraining orders, issuance, service, and next steps.

Open page

FL-105 UCCJEA Instructions

Practical California FL-105 instructions covering each child's five-year residence history, other custody cases and orders, additional children, address safety, and filing.

Open page

Service of Process

Understand service of process in California family law cases, including how to serve opening divorce papers, Requests for Order, DVRO papers, and post-judgment motions.

Open page

Entering Default

Learn how entry of default works in a California divorce, including the 30-day response deadline, form FL-165, true default, and default with agreement.

Open page