In California, irreconcilable differences basically mean that the legitimate ends of marriage have been destroyed and the Court may grant a divorce based on the what it considerers to be fatal to the marriage. If, however, the Court believes that there is a reasonable basis for reconciliation, the Court can put the case on hold for 30 days. The end effect of a divorce based on irreconcilable differences means that a divorce can be granted even if both parties do not agree on the divorce.

In settling property or dividing assets, fault does not enter the equation. California is a community property state. This means that all the assets and liabilities a couple acquires during the course of a marriage are presumes to be equal and therefore equally divided. However, sometimes a Court may not always divide the property in the manner in which a party may desire. This can create great difficulties for both the parties.

In addition to irreconcilable differences, a divorce may also be obtained base on incurable insanity. In order to obtain a divorce based on incurable insanity, the husband or wife must prove by competent medical or psychiatric testimony that the insane spouse was incurably insane at the time of the original marriage.

Spousal support is alive and well in the Sate of California. There are a number of different factors a Court considers in deciding on an amount of spousal support such as:

• How long the marriage has lasted;
• The education and work experience of the couple;
• The relative ages of the couple;
• Standards of living;
• The health of the parties and as to whether or not either spouse has special needs;
• Whether or not there is a special needs child in the home which needs assistance;
• Contributions each spouse has made to the marriage and to the household.

The real goal of the California Courts is to ensure that each spouse is financially independent and is able to sustain themselves without the need for pubic assistance. The Courts do have great discretion in awarding spousal support and if your are faced with the prospect of receiving spousal support or with the prospect of paying spousal support, you need the help of an experienced California divorce lawyer to represent you.

Over the past decade or so, people have bought into the mistaken belief that they can avoid California divorce laws and division of property by moving to a different state. However, this is untrue and unfounded. What ends up eventually happening is that the parties have something called a dual divorce and they still have to end of litigating certain issues in California. In other words, they end up getting divorced in two different locations or states. The process can get quite messy.

In obtaining a divorce, the process begins when one party serves the divorce papers on the other party. This is called the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage. The Court then must some initial documents on the other party - the Summons. Both the petition and the Summons contain general information which requires statistical information, identification of the parties and minor children, a list of assets and any relief requested, such as spousal support, custody arrangements, and division of property. The answering spouse, the Respondent, is required to respond with a Notice of Appearance within 30 days. After the Summons is served, the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage is then served on the Respondent. The Petition will describe in more detail the basis for divorce as well as any relief requested. The Respondent than has 30 days to respond. In the response, the Respondent may either admit or deny certain section of the Petition.

If a settlement is negotiated after the Respondent files an answer, this is generally considered to be an uncontested divorce. In this circumstance, it is really not necessary for either party to ever go to Court. They simply have to file a Marital Settlement Agreement or Stipulated Judgment which will then be incorporated into the final judgment. Uncontested divorces usually last between 6 months and year while a contested divorce can last for years.

If the Respondent fails to file an answer, the Petitioner may move for a default judgment. In spite of the name, the Petitioner must still appear in Court and offer sufficient evident to prove the allegation asserted. This is called "proving up" the dissolution for marriage.

After the initial answer has been filed with the Court, the discovery process begins. The first time a couple is likely to be in front of a Court is at the Show Cause hearing. At this hearing the Judge will make temporary rulings with regard to custody of the children, spousal support, child support and any temporary restraining orders which may be necessary.

Following the Show Cause hearing, the couple will engage in an exchange of information and documentation concerning information relevant to the divorce. The first component to this is called the Preliminary Declaration of Disclosure. This is a form in which each party must list all community assets, current income and expenses.

Following the discovery process, each side is afforded the opportunity to discuss settlement of the case. If the case is able to reach a settlement agreement, one of the attorneys will prepare a Marital Settlement Agreement that will contain the agreement of the spouses. The spouses and the attorneys are required to sign this agreement. If the spouses fail to settle the case, a trial on the merits will occur. A trial means that the couple is unable to reach an agreement is the spouses are asking the Court to make a decision for them. This should be a last resort and should be avoided if at all possible.

After the parties enter into a Marital Settlement agreement, one of the attorneys will prepare the final document in the process - the Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage. The Judgment is then approved and signed by the presiding Court and each attorney is sent a copy of the Notice of Entry of Judgment.

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Call the Experienced Attorneys at Smith & Garg Today

If you are considering getting a divorce in the Long Beach area, in the Los Angeles area, or in the Orange City area, contact the experienced and dedicated Dissolution of Marriage attorneys at Smith & Garg for a consultation. The process of getting a divorce in the State of California can be very complex. If you do not have the assistance of an experienced divorce attorney, you are definitely at a disadvantage. Contact Smith & Garg today to schedule a consultation.