Frequently Asked Questions About Divorce

Q: How long is the divorce process?
A: A divorce, now known as Dissolution of Marriage, must take 6 months from the time your spouse is served (legally notified) with the documents. If your case becomes contested, however, it can and most likely will take much, much longer.

Q: Do my spouse and I both have to hire attorneys?
A: No. You may certainly want to hire an attorney for a consultation.

Q: Do we necessarily need to have an attorney at all?
A: No. Once your legal questions have been answered by an attorney, you may hire that attorney to handle your case and represent you. Or, you may choose to represent yourselves and hire a mediator or paralegal (now known as a legal document assistant) to prepare the paperwork for you. By using one first, you never relinquish your right to hire or use the other at any time.

Q: Will I have to go to court?
A: No, if you and your spouse can reach an amicable agreement and settlement. Often times, when the parties have worked out their own settlement, that agreement is signed and notarized by each of you and submitted to the court without a personal appearance. If, on the other hand, you and your spouse cannot come to an amicable settlement through this process, you will have to go to court, and probably more than once.

Q:Should I Move Out of the Marital Residence?
A:Be sure to consult with an attorney before leaving the marital residence. Leaving the home is typically defined as actually taking personal items with you (clothing, automobile, sentimental possessions, etc.) and acting as though you are going to declare a new residence for a significant amount of time.

Q:How Do I Get a Divorce?
A: Before getting a divorce you, or you and your spouse should decide that you absolutely want a divorce. Even though in the divorce process, everything is reversible, it is important that you realize that the road is sometimes very long and can be a difficult one to travel.

Q:What if I Do Not Want a Divorce?
A: Just because your spouse wants a divorce does not mean you have to agree with it. Divorce is something that slowly builds. It is rarely something that happens over night. Your spouse may have made up his or her mind up long ago that divorce is the only option.

Q:Can You Modify Child Support Orders?
A: Making changes to an existing child support order is not uncommon. Most states will not allow a request for modification on a child support order unless a significant amount of time has passed since the order was put into place.

Q:Can I Deny My Ex-spouse Visitation?
A: Unless the court has granted a modification of the visitation arrangement, then you can not and should not deny visitation! Denying visitation is one of the biggest mistakes made by most custodial parents. You may believe you have a justifiable reason for denying the visitation rights, but by law your are not permitted to do so.

Q:How Do I Get Custody of My Child(ren)?
A: The first and most important step to getting custody of your child(ren) is to be a great parent and to be honest. Being a great parent is not always the easiest task during divorce, but it is important to acknowledge each and every action concerning the divorce and how it may or may not effect the child(ren).

Q:What if I Do Not Like the Judges Decision?
A: The purpose of the ruling is to establish what exactly should be stated in the Final Divorce Decree. Once the attorneys have drafted the Final Divorce Decree and both parties have agreed that it coincides with the ruling, it will be presented to the Judge for signing.

Q:What is Fair Spousal Support or Alimony?
A: If you and your spouse can not come to agreement on the amount of spousal support to be paid, for what length of time, and under what conditions, than the court will decide this for you.

Contact our San Francisco Divorce Lawyer now.

	Did You Know?
	Permanent and incurable insanity is a ground for divorce. For insanity to be considered permanently incurable, a person must have been confined in a mental institution, hospital, or other institution for at least three years, and at least two physicians competent in psychiatry must testify that the insanity is permanently incurable.