This guide walks through the California divorce process step by step — from confirming you can file here, through serving your spouse and exchanging financial disclosures, to the judgment that ends the marriage. California's process has a few features that surprise people: a strict residency requirement, automatic restraining orders that take effect the moment you file, mandatory financial disclosure, and a six-month waiting period no one can waive.
This is general information about California law, not legal advice. Consult a California-licensed family law attorney about your situation.
No-fault: the only ground you need
California is a pure no-fault state. A standard divorce (the legal term is "dissolution of marriage") rests on one ground: irreconcilable differences that have caused the irremediable breakdown of the marriage (Fam. Code § 2310). You do not have to prove adultery, cruelty, abandonment, or any other wrongdoing, and your spouse cannot defeat the divorce by claiming the marriage can be saved or by simply refusing to cooperate. The second statutory ground, permanent legal incapacity to make decisions, is rare and requires medical proof. Because fault is irrelevant to whether the divorce is granted, the case focuses entirely on the practical questions: property, debt, support, and children.
Step 1: Confirm residency
To file for divorce in California, at least one spouse must have lived in the state for six months and in the filing county for three months before filing (Fam. Code § 2320). If you don't yet meet the requirement, you can file for legal separation first (which has no residency requirement) and amend to a divorce once you qualify. Same-sex spouses who married in California but now live in a state that won't dissolve their marriage may be able to file here even without meeting the residency rule, because California will dissolve a marriage it created.
Step 2: File the Petition
The case begins when one spouse (the petitioner) files a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage (Form FL-100) and a Summons (Form FL-110) with the Superior Court and pays the filing fee (roughly $435–$450, with fee waivers available). If there are minor children, the petitioner also files a Declaration Under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (Form FL-105). The Summons carries Automatic Temporary Restraining Orders (ATROS) that immediately bind both spouses — barring them from transferring, selling, or hiding assets, changing insurance beneficiaries, taking on extraordinary debt, or taking minor children out of state without written consent or a court order. ATROS apply to the petitioner the moment the case is filed and to the respondent once served.
Step 3: Serve your spouse
The petitioner must have the other spouse (the respondent) formally served with the papers — you cannot hand them over yourself. Service is done by another adult over 18 who is not a party, a registered process server, or the sheriff, who completes a Proof of Service of Summons (Form FL-115). The respondent then has 30 days to file a Response (Form FL-120). If they don't, the petitioner can proceed by default. A respondent who is willing to participate but doesn't dispute anything can sign a Notice and Acknowledgment of Receipt (Form FL-117) to accept service without a process server.
Step 4: Exchange financial disclosures
Both spouses must exchange Preliminary Declarations of Disclosure — a Schedule of Assets and Debts (Form FL-142) and an Income and Expense Declaration (Form FL-150) — listing everything they own and owe, along with the Declaration Regarding Service (Form FL-141) confirming the exchange. Before judgment, the spouses also exchange (or formally waive) Final Declarations of Disclosure. Full, honest disclosure is a continuing duty; concealing assets can lead to serious sanctions, including awarding the hidden asset entirely to the other spouse.
Step 5: Resolve the issues
The divorce can end one of three ways: by agreement (both spouses sign a Marital Settlement Agreement resolving property, support, and custody, and the judge enters judgment on the papers); by default (the respondent never answers); or by contested trial (a judge decides disputed issues). The great majority settle before trial, often after temporary-orders hearings, mediation, or a settlement conference. The final judgment is entered on the Judgment (Form FL-180), accompanied by a Notice of Entry of Judgment (Form FL-190).
The six-month waiting period
No matter how quickly the paperwork moves, a California divorce cannot be final until at least six months after the respondent was served or first appeared (Fam. Code § 2339). This applies even when both spouses agree on everything from day one. The six months sets the earliest date the marital status can end; other issues can resolve sooner or later. Couples in a hurry to be single again sometimes ask the court to bifurcate — terminate marital status on the six-month date while leaving property and support to be finished afterward.
It is worth being clear about what the six-month period is and is not. It is not a deadline by which the divorce must finish — many cases, especially contested ones, take far longer. It is a statutory floor: the marital status cannot legally end before it runs, even in a fully agreed, no-children, no-property case. The clock starts when the respondent is served or first appears, not when the petition is filed, so delays in serving the other spouse push the earliest possible final date back. And reaching the six-month mark does not make anyone automatically single — the court still has to enter a judgment. A couple who settles everything in month two will simply wait until month six for the judgment to take effect on marital status, while a couple still fighting over property in month ten is held up by the dispute, not by the waiting period.
The step-by-step sequence at a glance
- Confirm residency — six months in California, three in the county (Fam. Code § 2320).
- File the Petition (FL-100) and Summons (FL-110) with the Superior Court and pay the fee; ATROS take effect.
- Serve the respondent and file the Proof of Service; the 30-day response clock starts.
- Respondent files a Response (FL-120) — or the case proceeds toward default if no response is filed.
- Exchange Preliminary Declarations of Disclosure (FL-142, FL-150) and file the Declaration Regarding Service (FL-141).
- Request temporary orders if needed for support, custody, or use of property while the case is pending.
- Negotiate a Marital Settlement Agreement, or prepare for trial on the contested issues.
- Submit the judgment (FL-180); the court enters it once the six-month period has run.
California statutes and forms behind the process
The key authorities that govern a California divorce are all in the Family Code: § 2310 (grounds — irreconcilable differences), § 2320 (residency — six months state, three months county), § 2339 (six-month waiting period before marital status can terminate), and § 2104–§ 2106 (the mandatory disclosure rules). Property is divided as community property under §§ 760 and 2550. The forms (FL-100, FL-110, FL-120, FL-142, FL-150, FL-180) are Judicial Council forms used statewide and available free from the California Courts self-help center.
How long it really takes and what it costs
Uncontested cases typically finalize in about six to nine months (driven by the waiting period, disclosure, and court scheduling); contested cases run one to two years or more. The court filing fee is about $435–$450 per spouse; attorney fees vary widely, from a few thousand dollars for a simple uncontested case to $10,000–$30,000+ when custody or assets are contested. California family lawyers commonly bill $300–$500 per hour against an upfront retainer, so the single largest cost driver is the level of conflict — every disputed issue adds hours.
Default, uncontested, and contested cases
It helps to understand the three procedural paths a California divorce can take, because they differ sharply in cost and effort. A true default happens when the respondent is served and simply never files a Response within the 30 days; the petitioner can then ask the court to enter judgment without the other spouse's participation, often on the terms the petitioner requested. A default with agreement is similar on paper — the respondent does not file a formal Response — but the spouses have actually negotiated and signed a written settlement, which the court enters as the judgment; this is common when the couple agrees but wants to save a filing fee for the respondent. An uncontested case in the fuller sense is one where the respondent does participate, both sides complete disclosure, and they resolve everything in a Marital Settlement Agreement that the judge approves on the papers, usually without anyone appearing in court. A contested case is one where the spouses cannot agree on one or more issues — support, custody, the characterization or value of property — and a judge ultimately decides those issues, often after temporary-orders hearings, a mandatory settlement conference, and sometimes a trial. Most cases that begin as contested still settle before trial, because trials are expensive and unpredictable; the goal of disclosure, mediation, and settlement conferences is precisely to narrow the disputed issues until an agreement becomes possible.
Divorce, legal separation, and annulment
California offers three ways to end or alter a marriage. A divorce (dissolution) legally ends the marriage and frees both spouses to remarry. A legal separation resolves the same issues — property, support, custody — but leaves the spouses married; people choose it for religious or insurance reasons, or because they don't yet meet the residency requirement. An annulment (nullity) treats the marriage as if it never legally existed, but it is available only on narrow grounds such as bigamy, fraud, or incest, and the burden of proof is high.
Temporary orders while the case is pending
A divorce can take many months, and life does not pause in the meantime — bills come due, children need a schedule, and one spouse may suddenly be without the income they relied on. California lets either spouse ask for temporary orders early in the case, by filing a Request for Order (Form FL-300). These short-term orders can set temporary spousal and child support, establish a temporary custody and parenting-time schedule, decide who stays in the family home, and allocate responsibility for paying debts while the divorce is pending. Temporary support is often calculated with a local guideline calculator, which makes it relatively predictable. The orders last only until the judgment or a further order replaces them, but they matter a great deal in practice: they hold the financial and parenting status quo together during the months the case is being worked out, and the arrangement that holds during that period sometimes shapes what the parties ultimately agree to at judgment. A spouse who needs support, a parenting schedule, or exclusive use of the home should not wait passively for the divorce to conclude — the temporary-orders process exists precisely to address those needs in the interim.
Frequently asked questions
How do I start a divorce in California?
Meet the residency requirement (Fam. Code § 2320), then file a Petition (FL-100) and Summons (FL-110) with the Superior Court, pay the fee, and serve your spouse. Automatic restraining orders take effect at filing.
How long does it take?
At minimum six months from service (Fam. Code § 2339). Uncontested cases typically finalize in six to nine months; contested cases take a year or more.
Can I get divorced if my spouse won't respond?
Yes. If the respondent doesn't file a Response within 30 days, you can proceed by default and the court can grant the divorce without their participation.
Do we have to go to court?
Often no. If you reach a full written agreement, the judge can enter the judgment on the papers without a hearing. Court appearances are more likely for contested matters.
Do I need to prove my spouse did something wrong?
No. California is no-fault. The only ground is irreconcilable differences (Fam. Code § 2310), so misconduct like adultery is generally irrelevant to whether the divorce is granted — though abuse can affect custody and financial misconduct can affect the property split.
Can my spouse stop the divorce?
No. One spouse cannot block a no-fault divorce by refusing to agree, refusing to sign, or claiming the marriage can be saved. If they don't participate, the case proceeds by default.
What are the ATROS and do they really apply to me too?
Yes. The Automatic Temporary Restraining Orders printed on the Summons bind both spouses — the petitioner the moment the case is filed and the respondent once served. They bar transferring, selling, or hiding assets, changing insurance beneficiaries, taking on extraordinary debt, and removing minor children from the state without written consent or a court order. They are not aimed at one "bad" spouse; they freeze the financial status quo so the estate is preserved while the case is pending.
Can we use the same lawyer to save money?
No. A single attorney cannot represent both spouses, because their interests are legally adverse even in an amicable case. One spouse can hire an attorney while the other proceeds self-represented, or the couple can use a neutral mediator and then have each spouse's draft agreement independently reviewed. A consultation or a review of the Marital Settlement Agreement is often money well spent even when the divorce is friendly.
When to talk to a California family law attorney
Many simple, amicable divorces can be handled with the court's self-help packets. But the stakes — and the value of a California family law attorney — rise quickly when there are minor children, a business, real estate, retirement accounts needing a Qualified Domestic Relations Order, hard-to-value or possibly hidden assets, a long marriage where spousal support may continue indefinitely, or any history of domestic violence. Even in an agreeable case, a single consultation or a review of your draft Marital Settlement Agreement can catch expensive, hard-to-undo mistakes before they are locked into a judgment.
Talk to a California family law attorney
For the complete picture, see our complete guide to California divorce and family law. To find a California-licensed attorney, browse the directory by practice area and county — free, no obligation.