I was thinking about hiring an attorney, but then a couple people told me I could easily do it myself and save money. I’ve spoken to a couple people who have used a paralegal. I’m wondering if that’s the route I should take, or if I should simply go online as I know you have to, fill out the form, print it out, and bring it to the courthouse for filing. I don’t expect he will contest anything.
If you have signicant assets or kids, I’d recommend a lawyer. If not,bayou can fill out the forms and see what happens.
If you have anything (house, retirement savings, inheritance from a grandparent) to lose, get a lawyer. If you have no assets and don’t expect to, you might look for a copy ofhttp://www.nolo.com/products/divorce-and-child-custody"] nolo’s divorce books for your state.
Much depends on how angry and proactive your soon-to-be-exspouse is.
I was told by an attorney I consulted that he has no rights to my inheritance money.
Many courts in California have self-help centers. Go in and talk to someone in a court near you. Divorces can be relatively simple, depending on a number of factors which people who have posted above have already mentioned. Talk to the folks in the court, let them explain the process to you, and decide if it sounds simple enough for you to deal with on your own.
If you have any doubts at all about that, get yourself a lawyer.
If you decide to fill out the documents yourself, see if your local courthouse has a self-help center. They might have the forms and a guide that will help you fill out the forms correctly on your first try.
Huh, I’ve been told that in CA any gains in the marriage would need to be equally divided. You might dig around on google and see if you can find a cite.
If you are going to be your own laywer, I would really recommend doing as much research as you can.
From what I recall of her first thread here, the OP has kids, and her husband is unemployed.
Pretty sure you’re going to need a lawyer to sort this one out.
However, all the debts incurred during the marriage can be assigned to one party, at the judge’s discretion.
Will OP get a new user name after she gets2befree?
Possible, but you have to go down to Louisiana to try it.
And they’ll make sure he/she gets it instead of the ex. :rolleyes:
I hate lawyers.
**Today 07:04 AM **Asimovian
**Today 07:05 AM **jsgoddess
Are you two on opposite ends of the couch with your laptops? 
What’ll really fry your brain is when you start asking yourself why both of us are educated on and eager to discuss California divorces. 
It would if I didn’t know the answer. 
I just loved the simulpost.
Did this lawyer provide you with the reason he/she made that statement? Can you cite the section of statute and/or case law which makes it immune from division?
CA (last I heard, been here since '79) is a community property state.
What a “lawyer said” is not really a good argument should your spouse smell money and learn of the community property rule.
Unless you have the ability to make a proper argument in court, get a lawyer, or at least have one briefed and having read all the relevant paperwork (yes, you will probably pay for the time) and ready to step in should it turn ugly.
Or be prepared to kiss off 1/2 of that money
If you have children or own property, get a lawyer. Otherwise, you MAY be able to do it yourself if all you have is one car per adult and your clothing and household items.
No. Two parties can make any agreement that they want.
There are various rules in place for when the two parties can’t agree but that’s a different story.
As has been cited already, this is totally incorrect. However, the other spouse is entitled to half of any gains on the inheritance made during the marriage.
Where are you getting this last part from? The cite above explicitly states otherwise.
Emphasis mine.
So even if an inheritance was obtained after the marriage happened, that money is still considered separate property per subsection 2, and profits from that are STILL separate property, per subsection 3.