If you are looking to work with a Fresno divorce attorney, you may already understand that California is a no-fault state. This negates the need to establish the grounds for divorce, other than claiming irreconcilable differences. From there, the key steps involved are as follows:
Step 1: Either you or your spouse files for divorce.
The official document is a Petition for Dissolution. Part of the filing involves serving the papers to the other partner, who then has 30 days to respond. If that partner fails to respond in the allotted time period, the petitioner can receive a default judgment, which basically grants everything requested in the original petition.
With the petition come automatic temporary restraining orders (ATROs) that basically lock into place where children live and the overall financial condition of the family and its assets. An ATRO specifically covers several restrictions:
- You cannot transfer, convey, encumber, or conceal property.
- You cannot remove minor children from the state.
- You cannot take a benefited party off of insurance.
- You cannot create probate transfer without notice.
This prevents any retaliatory or malicious efforts to thwart the opposing spouse.
Step 2: Order to Show Cause.
Technically, this is where key matters of property, spousal and child support, custody rights and managing ongoing payments (such as a mortgage) are formally established and written into a temporary court order.
Step 3: Enter into divorce negotiations.
Because the costs associated with a contested, litigious divorce in front of a judge are increasingly prohibitive, many couples are encouraged to first consider a mediated divorce. In this process, each party works with one intermediate, neutral mediator to resolve issues that ensure a fair, workable divorce settlement.
Contact The Law Offices of Jennifer S. Morrison today at 559-225-4300 if you need help filing divorce in Fresno or to simply discuss your case and to set up an interview where you can learn about the approach Jennifer Morrison and her staff take in all matters of family law.