Online Divorce by a California Uncontested Divorce Lawyer

The available grounds for divorce in California are irreconcilable differences or incurable insanity. The “insanity” ground does require medical proof. You can’t just tell the court that your spouse is crazy. So rest assured that Online Divorce Lawyer will always use the irreconcilable differences option. You don’t have to prove that ground. You only need to allege it and the court will believe you even if your spouse/partner denies that the marriage/partnership has broken down. In California, it only takes one spouse/partner to obtain a divorce.

In an uncontested divorce, it will take a minimum of 6 months plus one day to finalize your divorce from the date your spouse/partner was served with the initial filed documents. It can take longer if you or your spouse/partner delays  your case for any reason, but it cannot take less than 6 months. Online Divorce Lawyer will easily be able to complete your divorce in the minimum of 6 months providing only that you do not delay the case yourself and your spouse/partner does not contest the case or take other action that delays your case.

Of course, but why would you want to now that Online Divorce Lawyer exists? 

If you use an unregulated non-lawyer divorce mill, most of which are outside California, they are notoriously bad and incompetent. They’ll mess up your case because they are not lawyers, they now nothing about California divorce law, have no local knowledge about the rules and policies of your local court. And while the “cheap” ones claim “complete” fees of $139-$299, they all have hidden fees. Most have a $40 per month un-disclosed “storage” fee. They hit your credit card every month. And because they get paid every month, they also will leave one critical document out of each batch of docs they send you. You’ll file them at court, not knowing what’s missing, The court will sit on them for the usual 1-4 months and then reject them to you because of the missing doc. And guess what – the divorce mill gets paid another 1-4+ months. 

Unregulated online divorce mills will also aggressively up-sell so-called “premium” services at $199+. Many state in their Better Business Bureau complaints that they feel that “something bad” will happen to their divorces if they do not buy those “premium” packages.

It is easy to get up to a total fee of $450-$600 being paid to a divorce mill, and they are not lawyers. They do no legal rights checkup for you. They cannot discuss legal strategy with you. No one ever considers your legal position in your own divorce. This is NOT a “cheap” divorce.

Most Online Divorce Lawyers have flat fee packages that are in the range of $600 to $1000, particularly if you have no minor child of the marriage. And those fees include legal rights checkups and legal advice from a California lawyer.  These are NOT your grandparents’ divorce lawyers. Having an experienced local divorce lawyer on your team reduces your stress levels considerably.

There are 2 cost components in uncontested California divorce. There is the flat fee uncontested divorce package which again can often be in the $600-$1000 range. Your cost would also include the California court filing fee (currently $435 in most counties) unless you have a low income.

If you have a low income or receive certain types of public assistance, Online Divorce Lawyer is fully ready to handle your Request to Waive Court Fees.

Compare that to the $7500-$10000+ retainer fees and $450 billable hour treadmill offered by almost all traditional California divorce lawyers for full representation packages that are entirely unnecessary in a simple uncontested divorce.

Again, Online Divorce Lawyer is not your grandparents’ divorce lawyer. You now have a choice. Make the lawyer fit your uncontested case. Don’t make your case fit some traditional lawyer’s BMW payments.

A contested divorce is one in which the parties cannot agree on the terms of the divorce, such as how to divide assets and debts, the custody and parenting of minor children or the payment (or non-payment) of spousal support (alimony).

An uncontested California divorce is one in which the parties agree on all of the terms of the divorce, including the divorce itself.

Additionally, even if technically uncontested, you should treat your case as contested if it contains (1) a very large net marital estate value, (2) any complex legal issues or (3) domestic violence or the threat of domestic violence.

An example, but only an example of many, complex issues might be a special needs minor child who may require lifetime child support.

Regarding domestic violence, don’t kid yourself. Your health and well-being, and those of any minor child, are far more important than your divorce.

Such uncontested divorces require full legal representation at a much higher cost to take care of those inherent difficulties. It would be false economy to try to use online divorce in any such case, even if technically it is uncontested.

Bear in mind that your local Online Divorce Lawyer can certainly handle such cases, just not with a low flat fee uncontested divorce package. 

Yes, California is a no-fault divorce state.  You don’t have to prove any fault by anyone to get the divorce. You simply allege irreconcilable differences and no proof is required. Or more precisely, your mere claim that your marriage has broken down irretrievably is the proof.

So if you want a divorce, you will absolutely get a divorce. Your spouse cannot stop you from getting a divorce in California.

However, obviously your spouse/partner could make your divorce much more frustrating, expensive and time-consuming by contesting the case on one or more issues and hiring his or her own lawyer.

Alternatively, your spouse/partner could NOT contest the case but refuse to cooperate with you in being served with process, signing a written agreement with you or by other actions that can slow you down and increase stress levels. But obviously, such actions are not as expensive or frustrating as if s/he contests your divorce.

Again, your Online Divorce Lawyer will be well equipped to handle all such events.  If your spouse actually contests the case, while your Online Divorce Lawyer will still be able to handle your case, it may not be as part of his or her low cost, flat fee uncontested divorce offerings.

During an uncontested divorce in California, the parties’ community property assets and debts are divided according to California community property laws, which generally will mean equally, or pretty close to equally, or according to a written agreement signed by both spouses. 

Your local Online Divorce Lawyer will have a low flat fee uncontested divorce package that includes a Marital Settlement Agreement covering all issues in the divorce.