Similar to a dissolution action, a legal separation case deals with spousal support, child support, custody and visitation, division of property, allocation and payment of marital debts, and any reimbursement claims either party may have. This article discusses the differences between a legal separation and a divorce or dissolution of marriage.
The main difference between a legal separation proceeding and a divorce proceeding (dissolution of marriage proceeding) is the parties to the case still remain married to one another in a legal separation. A person obtaining a judgment of legal separation cannot marry anybody else unless they later file a petition for divorce or dissolution of marriage and obtain a judgment of dissolution.
Another significant difference between getting a legal separation and a dissolution of marriage is that by law a dissolution cannot occur until 6 months after the petition and summons are served on the responding party. This is true even if all the paperwork is completed, a marital settlement agreement is done, and the judgment is filed in court within weeks of the start of a case. For those involved in a legal separation matter, this is not the case and a judgment can be filed and effective fairly quickly, keeping in mind both types of cases require the exchange of financial disclosures and the preparation of many different kinds of forms to make the judgment effective.
Another important difference is the issue of whether the court has jurisdiction to order a dissolution of marriage. In order to file for dissolution in California a person must be a resident of the state for at least six months and of the county in which they want to file for at least three months prior to filing the petition and summons. On the other hand, there is no residency requirement for a legal separation in California.
Often, a legal separation case is converted to a dissolution case after residency is established by filing and serving an amended petition. Additionally, the responding party in a legal separation matter may request a dissolution in their response automatically converting the case to a dissolution instead of a legal separation. As you can see, this is a very complicated area of law and you definitely should not go into any type of family court proceeding without the advice and assistance of an experienced attorney.