Divorce is overwhelming. The future you had envisioned for yourself is being replaced with uncertainty and confusion. During this stressful time, you deserve to be surrounded by people who are compassionate, empathetic, and willing to support you. At Empower Law Group, we believe your attorney needs to be one of them. That is one of the primary reasons why we try to make the process simple and easy to comprehend. Let’s look at how you can begin seeing the entirety of your divorce process in four steps.
Step 1: Filing The Divorce Petition
Although your attorney will draft and file this on your behalf, it is essential to note California’s residency requirements:
- You must have been a resident of the county where you are filing for at least three months
- You must have been a resident of California for at least six months before filing
Step 2: Working Out a Temporary Agreement
Most attorneys will not do this, but it can be incredibly valuable to you during the divorce process. Some contested divorces can take years to finalize. Life continues while you are getting divorced, and there are bills to pay and children to provide for. Your temporary agreement addresses these issues. It outlines which spouse pays for what, how the mortgage will be paid, how debts will be handled, and how you split time with your children.
Step 3: Discovery Phase
Because you are getting divorced in California, you must disclose detailed information about your finances within 60 days after filing the divorce petition. Again, your attorney will guide you through each requirement to ensure it is done correctly, but these are the forms that we are referring to:
- Declaration of Disclosure
- Income and Expense Declaration
- Schedule of Assets & Debts
Along with these forms, your attorney may ask you to provide them with pay stubs, tax records, and bank statements. The law demands transparency, and if you are concerned about your spouse hiding assets, this is the phase in which you gain an intimate understanding of your overall financial picture.
Step 4: Finalizing
Before your divorce can be finalized, you, your spouse, and your attorneys need to work through how you will divide your property and assets while also developing a parenting plan. Your temporary agreement can serve as a starting point. Because your previous plan was temporary, you can modify and adjust it based on what has worked for you and your family.
Empower Law Group
At the Empower Law Group, we work with clients regarding their marital settlement agreements, dividing their property, and providing them with resources to improve the next chapter of their lives. If you have any additional questions regarding a family law issue, contact us to schedule a consultation.
Empower Law Group
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