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Divorce:
A
divorce, now known as a dissolution of marriage, is the
legal termination of a marriage. A divorce proceeding can
raise not only issues concerning the division of property
(and whether that property can be deemed either community
property or separate property), but also issues of
child
custody and visitation, child support and
spousal support.
The process of a dissolution of marriage contains four
basic phases.
1. After consultation a divorce (dissolution of marriage)
petition is prepared and filed with the Clerk of the
Court.
2. Usually, an initial hearing
is scheduled. The hearing can determine temporary orders
such as temporary child support, temporary spousal
support, temporary visitation orders and certain rights to
use the community/separate property of the parties. The
initial hearing can also include domestic violence issues
and stay-away/protective orders.
3. Discovery process is then
commenced. Written questions can be asked, a request to
produce certain documents, a request to answer whether a
document is genuine or whether a statement made is true
and depositions can be set.
4. The final phase would be a
hearing on all unsettled matters. The hearing may be in
the form of a trail, mediation or arbitration.
Most divorce matters can be
settled through negotiation between the parties. If a
complete agreement can be reached, a Marital Settlement
Agreement will be prepared and presented to the court for
its approval.
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