Short answer: To start a California divorce, confirm that California and the intended county satisfy current residence and venue rules, complete the current Petition and Summons forms, file them with the Superior Court, and arrange lawful service. The filing starts a case; it does not by itself resolve property, support, parenting, or marital status.

Before filing, identify safety concerns, children’s residences, existing orders, major assets and debts, and any other state or country involved. Download current Judicial Council forms and instructions rather than relying on an old packet. The Petition generally identifies the marriage, children, property and support issues; the Summons gives notice of the case and contains important restrictions. The respondent must be served through a lawful method, and proof of service must be filed.

After filing and service, track response and disclosure requirements, temporary-order options, and local court notices. A domestic-violence restraining-order request is a separate process, although it may affect family-law planning. Do not move children, transfer property, or sign a settlement without understanding the consequences.

A filing checklist is useful, but jurisdiction, service, safety, and financial facts can change the correct sequence. Confirm current forms, fees, e-filing rules, and local procedures before submission.

For the broader stages after filing, see California divorce forms, disclosures, and case milestones.

What the first filing does—and does not do

The Petition asks the court to open a dissolution, legal-separation, or nullity case and identifies the relief that may need to be decided. The Summons gives formal notice and carries important automatic restrictions. Neither document is a final judgment, a custody order, a property award, or a support calculation. A spouse who needs immediate relief generally must use the current request-for-order process rather than treating the Petition as an emergency motion.

The case also has two parallel tracks: notice and response, and financial disclosure and decision-making. Service gives the other spouse a lawful opportunity to respond; it does not complete the financial exchange. Disclosures and supporting records help identify property, debts, income, support, and fee issues. A cooperative spouse still needs correct forms, complete information, signatures, and a judgment that satisfies California requirements.

Choose the filing path after issue-spotting

Before selecting a default, uncontested, or contested path, ask:

Are California residence and county venue supportable, and is another case pending?
Can the other spouse be served safely and lawfully?
Are there children, out-of-state residences, immigration concerns, or existing orders?
Is urgent support, custody, insurance, home access, or property preservation needed?
Are the financial records complete enough to evaluate an agreement?

An uncontested path may reduce disputes, but it does not waive disclosure or turn an incomplete agreement into a judgment. A default path is not a way to conceal property or skip required notices. If facts are disputed, formal discovery, temporary orders, or a trial may be necessary. The correct route depends on the case record and current court instructions.

A filing packet that is easier to review

Keep a secure folder containing the filed Petition and Summons, stamped copies, case number, fee or fee-waiver records, service documents, marriage and child information, existing orders, and a chronology of important events. Add recent pay records, tax returns, account and securities statements, retirement and business records, mortgage and debt statements, insurance information, and a list of missing documents. Label each item by date and source; do not edit an original to make the chronology look cleaner.

After service, calendar every date printed on the papers and every court notice. Record attempted service and file the required proof. If the spouse cannot be located, lives outside California, or raises a service objection, stop and obtain advice about the available procedure rather than repeatedly attempting an informal workaround.

1. Confirm the case can be filed in California

California residency and county venue are not just boxes on a form. Confirm the current residence facts for both spouses, the length of time a spouse has lived in California, the county connection, and whether a divorce, custody, support, or protective case is already pending elsewhere. Military service, an out-of-state spouse, an international residence, or uncertainty about the date of separation can change the analysis. Do not choose a county merely because it seems convenient.

If California is not yet the correct forum, filing first may create delay or a jurisdiction dispute. If safety is urgent, the appropriate protective process may be separate from the divorce case. A lawyer or the applicable Superior Court self-help center can help identify the procedural track without predicting the result.

2. Organize the facts before opening a case

Prepare a short chronology containing the marriage date, residences, separation events, children’s residences and schools, prior cases, orders, major assets and debts, income sources, and immediate deadlines. Gather account statements, tax returns, pay records, insurance information, deeds, loan statements, retirement records, securities statements, business documents, and relevant messages. Preserve originals and make a working copy; do not hide, transfer, destroy, or alter records.

This preparation is not a substitute for disclosure. It helps identify whether the petition needs requests about custody, support, property, attorney fees, or other relief. If an immigration, safety, disability, or language issue exists, raise it early and use a secure method to provide information.

3. Complete the current opening forms

California Courts currently identifies the forms and instructions used to begin a divorce. The Petition (FL-100) generally identifies the marriage, children, property, and requested orders. The Summons (FL-110) gives notice of the case and includes important restrictions. Depending on the facts, additional forms may be needed, including a confidential information form, child-related forms, or a request for temporary orders.

Read the instructions line by line. A form’s checkbox can affect what the court understands you are asking for. Do not guess at dates, addresses, legal status, or asset information. If you do not know an answer, learn how the current form permits that uncertainty to be stated rather than inserting a convenient estimate. Use the current version from an official California Courts source, not an old downloaded packet or an AI-generated replacement.

4. File with the Superior Court

File the completed documents with the appropriate Superior Court and pay the current fee or request a fee waiver if eligible. Filing creates the case and assigns a case number; it does not establish that the other spouse has been served or decide custody, support, property, or the final marital status. Keep the filed copies and confirm the court’s current filing, e-filing, and courtesy-copy instructions.

County administration can differ. San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Sonoma, and Napa may use different portals, hearing calendars, or self-help procedures. Check the court connected to the case rather than copying instructions from a neighboring county.

5. Arrange lawful service and track the response

The respondent generally must receive the filed papers through a person legally permitted to serve them; the petitioner should not assume that mailing papers personally completes service. The server and proof-of-service form must satisfy current requirements. A respondent may have a response deadline after service, and a missed response can create default risk. If the spouse cannot be found, refuses to cooperate, lives outside California, or has a safety concern, obtain advice about the correct service or alternative-service process.

Keep a service log with dates, addresses attempted, returned mail, and filed proofs. Do not use service as a confrontation. If a restraining-order or emergency custody issue exists, ask about that process promptly rather than waiting for ordinary divorce timelines.

6. Address disclosures and temporary needs

After filing and service, California divorce generally requires financial disclosures. A case may also need temporary orders for support, custody, exclusive use of a home, payment of debts, or attorney fees. A request for orders has its own forms, notice, service, and hearing requirements. Do not assume that filing the Petition gives you temporary custody or authorizes a unilateral change.

Continue to follow existing orders unless they are changed through a lawful agreement or court process. Do not move a child, cancel insurance, drain an account, or sign a property settlement merely because the petition was filed. For an uncontested divorce, agreement still requires complete disclosures, correct forms, lawful service, and a judgment that meets California requirements.

Filing checklist

Confirm residence, venue, and any competing case.
Identify safety, children, immigration, and urgent-deadline issues.
Download current forms and read their instructions.
Gather records and make secure copies.
Complete and file the Petition, Summons, and any required related forms.
Record the case number, filing date, fees, and next court instructions.
Arrange lawful service and file proof of service.
Calendar the response, disclosure, hearing, and settlement deadlines.
Obtain advice before changing a schedule, transferring property, or signing an agreement.

Common misconception correction

A filing is not a final divorce. “Uncontested,” “default,” or “online” describes a procedure or level of agreement, not a guarantee that the forms are complete or the result is fair. A six-month waiting period is not a promise that every case ends at six months. Current law, facts, service, disclosures, and court processing determine what happens next.

Decisions to make before filing

Decide what must be addressed immediately and what can wait for the ordinary case schedule. If income has stopped, a child’s schedule is unstable, or a spouse is threatening to sell property, ask about temporary relief rather than trying to solve the problem through a demand letter or a unilateral act. If the main concern is privacy, use a secure email account and review whether public filings disclose an address, employer, or financial account unnecessarily. A person dealing with violence may need a safety plan and a separate DVRO process before telling the other spouse about a filing.

If you and your spouse are cooperating, put the agreement in writing but do not treat a signed spreadsheet as a judgment. Confirm that the agreement covers property characterization, debts, support, taxes, retirement accounts, insurance, and children, and that required disclosures have been exchanged. If you are not cooperating, preserve records and communicate in a way that can be shown to the court without escalating conflict. In either situation, a short consultation before filing can identify a venue, service, or deadline problem that is difficult to repair later.

What to bring to a first review

Bring the marriage and separation dates, both current addresses, children’s information, any existing case numbers or orders, recent pay records, tax returns, statements for bank and securities accounts, retirement and business records, mortgage and debt statements, and a list of urgent concerns. Mark which documents are missing and how they might be obtained lawfully. This lets counsel distinguish a straightforward filing from a case requiring temporary orders, discovery, valuation, or protective relief.

How do I start or file for divorce in California?