Divorce:
A divorce (also called "dissolution of marriage" or "dissolution of domestic partnership") ends your marriage or domestic partnership. After you get divorced, you will be single, and you can marry or become a domestic partner again.
If you get divorced, you can ask the judge for orders like child support, spousal support, partner support, custody and visitation, domestic violence restraining orders, division of property, and other orders.
For married persons to get a divorce, you MUST meet California's residency requirement.
Legal Separation:
A legal separation does not end a marriage or domestic partnership. You can't marry or enter into a partnership with someone else if you are legally separated (and not divorced). A legal separation is for couples that do not want to get divorced but want to live apart and decide on money, property, and parenting issues. Couples sometimes prefer separation for religious reasons.
You do not need to meet California's residency requirement to file for a legal separation. If you file for a legal separation, you may later be able to file an amended petition to ask the court for a divorce-after you meet the residency requirements.
In a legal separation case, you can ask the judge for orders like child support, spousal support, partner support, custody and visitation, domestic violence restraining orders, or any other orders you can get with a divorce case.
Annulment:
An annulment (or "nullity of marriage" or "nullity of domestic partnership") is when a court says your marriage or domestic partnership is NOT legally valid. A marriage or domestic partnership that is incestuous or bigamous is never valid. Other marriages and partnerships can be declared "void" because:
Annulments are very rare. If you ask to have your marriage or domestic partnership annulled, you will have to go to hearing with a judge.
Custody:
When you separate or divorce, you need to decide who will have “custody” of your children and how they will be taken care of. You also need to decide on visitation, which means how each parent will spend time with the children.
There are two kinds of "custody" orders:
Legal custody can be:
Some examples of the decisions or choices parents with legal custody make are:
Physical custody can be:
Sometimes, a judge gives parents joint legal custody, but not joint physical custody. This means both parents have share the responsibility in making important decisions in the children’s lives. But, the children live with one parent most of the time. The parent who does not have physical custody usually has visitation with the children.
Support Orders: Child support payments are usually made until children turn 18, or 19 if they are still in high school full time, living at home, and can't support themselves. Parents may agree to support a child longer. The court may also order that both parents continue to support a disabled adult child that is not self-supporting. The judge will take many things into consideration when deciding what spousal support should be ordered. Examples of some things the judge may consider are: Either spouse can later ask the judge to change the support amount if the situation changes. A spouse can also ask the judge for help collecting (enforcing) a support order. The judge will take many things into consideration when deciding what partner support should be ordered. Examples of some things the judge may consider are: Either domestic partner can later ask the judge to change the support amount if the situation changes. A domestic partner can also ask the judge for help collecting (enforcing) a support order. After January 1, 2005, if parents are registered domestic partners when a child is born, the law assumes that the domestic partners are parents. However, since this law is new and unsettled, same sex parents should get legal advice to make sure that the parentage is clear. Parents who are not married when a child is born can sign a Voluntary Declaration of Paternity before they leave the hospital, or after. When people who are not married can't agree about parentage, the court can order genetic testing. Usually a child's parentage must be established before you can get child support or custody and visitation orders. You can ask the judge for child support or custody and visitation as part of a case that establishes the parentage of a child.
Child support is the amount of money that the court orders one parent to pay the other parent every month for the support of the child(ren). California has a formula (called a "guideline") for figuring out how much child support should be paid in all cases.
When a couple separates or divorces, the court may order one spouse to pay the other a certain amount of support money each month. This is called "spousal support."
When domestic partners separate or divorce, the court may order one domestic partner to pay the other a certain amount of support money each month. This is called "partner support."
Parentage:
"Establishing parentage" means saying who the legal parents of a child are if the parents were not married when the child was born. If the parents were married when the child was born, the law usually considers the husband to be the father.
ALERT! If a person is established as a legal parent of a child, that person MUST support the child. It's a crime for a legal parent to fail to support his or her child. A legal parent also has the right to get custody and/or visitation rights related to the child.
Adoption:
Stepparent adoption: When the spouse of the child's parent adopts that child. The law recognizes domestic partners too for stepparent adoptions.
Domestic Partner adoption: When the domestic partner of a child's parent adopts that child. A domestic partner adoption is the same as a stepparent adoption. Once the adoption is final, the domestic partner also becomes the child's legal parent, with all the legal rights and responsibilities of a parent/child relationship.
Independent, agency or international adoption:
What is the difference between a stepparent/domestic partner adoption and independent, agency or international adoptions?
The stepparent adoption is a little simpler than the other types because one of the child's birth parent still remains as the child's parent. In the other three types of adoptions, the court ends the parental rights of both parents to their children. The adoptive parents become the children's legal parents and have all the rights and responsibilities of a parent and child relationship.
Restraining Orders:
A restraining order is a court order that can protect you from being physically abused, threatened, stalked, or harassed. There are 4 kinds of orders you can ask for: Domestic Violence Restraining Order, Civil Harassment Restraining Order, Elder or Dependent Restraining Order and Workplace Violence Restraining Order.
Domestic Violence Restraining Order:
You can ask for a Domestic Violence Restraining Order if:
*You have to be more involved than just roommates.
Civil Harassment Restraining Order:
You can ask for a Civil Harassment Restraining Order if you suffer harassment by someone who is not close to you. Harassment is violence, a threat of violence, or actions that really scare, annoy or harass you, done on purpose and for no good reason. Civil harassment order can be used to protect you from roommates, neighbors, and co-workers.
Elder or Dependent Adult Protective Order:
You can ask for an Elder or Dependent Adult Restraining Order if:
Workplace Violence Restraining Order:
You can ask for a Workplace Violence Restraining Order if:
* An employee CAN'T ask for a Workplace Violence Restraining Order.
Guardianship:
Guardianship is a court proceeding in which a judge gives someone who is not the parent:
Probate Guardianship of the Person is set up because a child is living with an adult who is not a parent, and the adult needs the legal right to make decisions on behalf of the child.
There are two types of Probate Guardianship:
Emergency Orders:
In an emergency situation, the court has the authority to issue an immediate temporary order. Motions for Emergency Orders can include orders related to issues including the parties’ safety, finances, use of property, maintenance, child support, parenting plans or residential schedules, and guardians ad litem.
Simple Trusts:
A living trust lets an adult put assets and property, like bank accounts, real estate and life insurance, under the control of a trustee. Most people set themselves up as the trustee and they also name a trusted person to be the successor trustee. When they die or become unable to manage the trust, the successor trustee takes over. Living trusts are a good choice for people who make a lot of assets and can understand how their assets should be managed.
Wills:
A legal paper that lists a person's wishes about what will happen to his or her personal property after death.
Durable Power of Attorney:
A power of attorney exists when a person (the "principal") authorizes someone else (the "agent" or "attorney in fact") to take care of business for the principal. A power of attorney authorizes the agent to do whatever is necessary to manage the principal's assets. A "limited" or "special" power of attorney can be made more restrictive, by setting time limits for the agent to serve, limiting the agent to certain actions, or authorizing the agent to manage only particular assets. There are "general" powers of attorney, "limited" or "special" powers of attorney, and "durable" powers of attorney. A general or limited power of attorney ends when the principal becomes incapacitated. A durable power of attorney stays in effect if the principal becomes incapacitated.
Qualified Domestic Relations Orders (QDROs):
Qualified Domestic Relations Orders (QDROs) are an order or judgment issued by a court and approved by a pension plan, that divides a pension plan in order to make a fair division of property or to pay for child or spousal support.
Other Documents:
Other documents include evictions, personal injury claims, criminal record expungement, etc...