Is there a Simplified Way to Get Divorced?

 Yes. The majority of people usually do NOT qualify for it, and both parties have to waive spousal support.  IF and only IF you have nothing to fight about, then you can just agree to settle your case. 

BE FOREWARNED:  A TOTAL AGREEEMENT IN ANY LONG TERM MARRIAGE SHOULD BE CAREFULLY REVIEWED BY AN ATTORNEY..............ATTORNEY HAS SEEN THESE CASES HAPPEN WHERE IT IS TOO LATE TO CHANGE SUCH AGREEMENT, AND RESULTS IN EXTREMELY DISPARATE RESULTS DUE TO THE AGREEMENT/LENGTH OF TIME BEFORE SOMEONE FIGURED OUT HOW BAD THE AGREEMENT ACTUALLY WAS???

See the Summary Dissolution Section below at ***

[However, we have seen cases where a couple with a house, vested pension and property, and kids-- where one party files the divorce docs, and tells the  other party to not respond because he/she hired a paralegal to draft an agreement and he/she could just sign it as a settlement document.  

Unbeknownst to the second party who was told to sign (and who had not worked outside the home) --- the entire agreement was pretty much worthless as the disclosures were never properly executed, which was just one of the problems, there were far more issues than just that.  Non disclosure is far more prevalent than most people realize.]

*** SUMMARY DISSOLUTION ***

California has a process called summary dissolution. If you qualify for a summary dissolution, you will have less paperwork to file and you will not have to appear in court. You may be eligible for such a process if you and your spouse have agreed in writing to a division of your assets and debts and if the following conditions exist:

• You have been married for five years or less.... and..
   
• You have no children from the relationship.....and....
   
• Neither of you own a home or other real estate......and..........
   
• The value of all community property amounts to less than $25,000, excluding automobiles....and.....
   
• The value of either party's separate property amounts to less than $25,000, excluding automobiles....and....
   
• Your combined debt does not exceed $4,000, except for an auto loan....and............
   
• Both of you waive spousal support.

Both spouses must agree to all of the terms of a summary dissolution. Also, either of you can cancel it for any reason before the dissolution is final. Further information on this simplified procedure may be available at your local court or on the California Courts website (courts.ca.gov).

NOTE:  In over 20 years, we have probably only ever seen 1-2 of these cases that qualify for this type of divorce. IF in fact, the parties actually do qualify for it, it can be done fairly inexpensively.

However, there can be a stipulation between parties from the beginning, but normally the Court will now charge a filing fee down the line, for the responding party,  if the stipulation was done in lieu of a Response being filed (as the Response incurs the first paper filing fee.) the current filing fee for Divorce is $435 so there would be two filing fees, one for each party. This is the case in Sacramento County.

If you do not qualify for summary dissolution--- make sure to consult an attorney as to whether you should engage in law and motion hearings (Request for Orders) in order to obtain help with support and visitation. SHARP in Butte County will help any client that seeks their help--they do not give legal advice, and they will not represent you of course.  They only help people fill out their paperwork, and have tutorials on how to do this.
Sometimes it is dangerous to do this if you have a situation where assets have been hidden, or illegal evidence is being used, or the other party simply has bamboozled you to the point of taking advantage of you. And if one party is a complete liar, then you may need more help than SHARP can provide. Further, if drugs or alcohol or illegal conduct is taking place, we do not recommend using SHARP on those issues because they cannot give any legal advice.

Because attorney herein also does Criminal Law cases, attorney is used to seeing a lot of turmoil overall, so is not usually shocked by most conduct of clients. Attorney does not babysit clients or look down upon any client.  Attorney understands how Family Law often can wreck a family unit, after having seen it over 20+ years.
If you really do need help, call an attorney and shop around for pricing.  Not all attorneys charge or operate in the same exact format.    Attorney also has a high success rate in litigating family law cases, and has done cases in larger cities such as San Diego, Sacramento, San Francisco.Attorney herein is provably the most affordable in the County and will meet any other attorney's quote.