Los Angeles & Ventura Family Law FAQs

Family Law Attorneys Servicing Los Angeles and Ventura Counties in California

What is a divorce?

“Marriage” is often referred to as a legal contract.  There were legal papers, such as a marriage license and/or certificate, signed by you and your spouse in order to be recognized as husband and wife under the law.  These formalities created certain rights and obligations for the husband and wife.  Those rights and obligations primarily pertain to financial and property rights created upon getting married.  Marriage gives each party certain rights in property, and it creates certain obligations of support for the spouse and any children they have together.  Those financial and property rights cannot be altered without a legal proceeding.

A divorce is the most common method of terminating or breaking the marriage contract.  In a divorce, the court declares the marriage contract broken, divides the parties’ property and debts, decides if either party should receive support, and determines the custody, support, and visitation with respect to any children the parties may have.  A divorce is granted by the court simply because one or both of the parties have irreconcilable differences and decided they wanted a divorce.

What is the difference between a divorce and a legal separation?

When a spouse files for divorce and the divorce is granted, their marriage is terminated.  However, when a spouse files for a legal separation and the separation is granted, they are still married and not free to remarry. One major advantage of a legal separation is that a person filing for legal separation does not need to meet California residency requirements in order to be eligible for a legal separation. 

What are the residency requirements for filing a divorce in California?

You must be a resident of the State of California for a period of 6 months and a resident of the county in which you want to file your divorce case for a period of 3 months, immediately preceding the filing of the case.

How long will it take for me to get divorced?

On average, a divorce will take anywhere from a minimum of 6 months to 18 months. In high conflict cases, a divorce can take up to 5 years. "Simple" cases involving a marriage without children, limited assets and minimum to no conflict between spouses can be resolved in the minimum 6 month period. The minimum 6 month period begins when the spouse not filing for divorce gets served.

Can my spouse stop me from getting a divorce?

No. California is a "No Fault" state, which means that either spouse may file for divorce at any time, for any reason.  If the other spouse wants to prevent the divorce from happening and chooses to ignore the lawsuit, then the spouse who filed the divorce can obtain a default judgment of dissolution of marriage and have judgment entered. However, the spouse filing for divorce will have to take several steps before the court will enter a default judgment.

If my spouse and I cannot agree on custody and/or visitation, how will a California court decidewho gets custody and visitation?

As with everything else in divorce, things are ideal when both parties can agree on the question of custody of the children.  Generally, the judge will accept any agreement you reach, provided it does not appear your agreement will cause harm to your children.  California statutory and case law state that there is no preference or presumption as to custody, and that the paramount rule is the best interests of the child.  

Most custody plans have joint legal custody to both parents and primary physical custody to one parent.  Legal custody refers to parenting decisions involving schooling, medical care, religion, and the like, and physical custody refers to child’s primary residence.  An exceptional situation must exist for the court to allow sole legal custody, therefore, most of the time the parties get joint legal custody with primary physical custody with one parent.  However, becoming more popular, so that neither parent feels like he or she is a “visitor” to the child, is to have both joint legal custody and joint physical custody, even where the physical custody is not equal periods of time.

If you and your spouse cannot agree as to custody and visitation, then you may be ordered to see a court mediator in counties that have Conciliation departments.  Only after such a mediation will the judge hear your custody or visitation dispute.  It is important to remember, however, that a judge cannot possibly know your child as well as you or your spouse, so it makes the most sense if you can work out custody and visitation between yourselves.   

Obviously, you will need to discuss the factors specific to your case and decisions with regards to visitation and custody shall be made after careful discussion between the parties and their attorneys.

Will I be entitled to child support?

As soon as a divorce or legal separation case has been filed, either spouse may be entitled to temporary child support.  The determination of child support is  based on numerous factors, including the amount of time each parent spends caring for the child, as well as each parent’s income, the needs of the child, and other issues. While the California guidelines are specific, the calculation itself can be complex and lead to a range of results. 

Will I be entitled to spousal support/alimony?

Spousal support/alimony may be granted to either spouse. The obligation to pay spousal support may be temporary (while the divorce is pending) and/or may continue  for a set period of time after the divorce. Court will consider a specific set of factors in ordering spousal support including, but not limited to, the length of the marriage, the incomes and earning abilities of each spouse, the age and health of each spouse and the presence of domestic violence in the relationship.

What will happen to all our property and/or debts?

If you and your spouse are unable to reach an agreement regarding the division of your assets and debts, the division of property and debts will be dependent upon the characterization of property as either community or separate. Because California is a community property state, each spouse will be entitled to one half of the community property.

What should I do if I am a victim of domestic violence?

Domestic violence is against the law.  If you are a victim of domestic violence, you should report the matter to the police.  If there is sufficient evidence of domestic violence, law enforcement will usually issue an Emergency Protective Order (EPO) that will restrain the abuser from making any contact with you for 7 days.  They may also refer the matter to the proper prosecuting agency to press charges.

Because the EPO the police provides expires in 7 days,it will be incumbent on you to seek out a temporary restraining order (TRO) through the civil court system for the safety of yourself and/or your children, if any.  The court will usually grant a TRO when there is a showing of immediate danger to the petitioning party and set a full hearing within 3 weeks to hear evidence to determine the length and terms of granting a permanent restraining order.

It is important to take domestic violence seriously as charges of domestic abuse in California carry serious consequences in both criminal and family courts.  The potential consequences of domestic violence may be the restriction or loss of custody or visitation privileges, the loss of use of firearms, and jail time.

Why should I hire Ardalan & Associates to represent me in my family law matter?

Going through a divorce, legal separation or paternity action may be a trying time in one's life. When faced with such a family law matter, the decisions you make in your case will have a substantial effect on you and your children emotionally, financially and in other significant ways. The attorneys at Ardalan & Associates understand the emotional and financial strain a family law matter can have on a family.  That is why the experienced attorneys at Ardalan & Associates will handle each family law matter with the utmost care and attention to ensure that the best possible results are reached for each client.

If you need assistance with a family law matter in Los Angeles or Ventura County, click here to complete our family law case evaluation form or contact our office immediately for a free 30 minute consultation.