Definition of Judgment For Divorce

A judgment for divorce is the court order issued by the court to terminate a marital contract. The divorce is not final until the judge signs the divorce judgment and a court clerk mails the divorce judgment to each spouse or partner, with the date that the judgment was filed stamped in the upper right corner.

The judgment for divorce is not given until the proper divorce steps are taken. For instance, in the state of California there must be a petitioner, who files the divorce forms with the court, (including the petition). They also must file the summons and the Declaration under Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act form. Next, the respondent, or other spouse, must be served with all of the forms. The respondent has 30 days to file and serve a Response.

The petitioner must then complete more forms such as the Declaration of Disclosure, Income and Expense Declaration, Schedule of Assets and Debts or Property Declaration, and all tax returns filed by the party in the 2 years before serving the disclosure documents. Then both parties must file a Declaration Regarding Service with the court saying disclosures were served. If the respondent does not serve disclosures, the petitioner can still finish the case without them.

Additionally, the divorce is not final until other issues are resolved such determining child custody and spousal support arrangements and distributing the property. These issues may be negotiated by the couple, but if an agreement cannot be reached, the court may intervene. After the details of the divorce are finalized a divorce judgment is issued.

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