In California, you typically have 30 days to file your response to a divorce petition. If your spouse is the one who filed for divorce, they need to serve you with the petition, which starts the countdown on your end. You do not have to respond immediately, but it is important to work quickly so that you submit your response within the appropriate timeframe.
If you have exceeded the timeline, then you can check with the court to see if a default has been entered. This means that the divorce case is moving ahead without your involvement. If it has not, then you can look into options to submit your paperwork. But if a default has been entered, this can complicate the case.
What is a default judgment?
A default divorce judgment just means that the court can still rule to end the marriage, even without your cooperation or response. Your spouse will propose certain terms when it comes to things like child custody rights or division of marital assets. They can present evidence to the court and make financial disclosures.
The law is set up this way because it keeps people from being trapped in a marriage. You may have just accidentally missed the deadline, but there are people who intentionally refuse to respond to the divorce petition, thinking it will get their spouse to drop the case. But by using a default judgment, they can simply continue the divorce process on their own.
Submitting the divorce petition and a response is just one of the first steps to take. As you and your spouse move through the court system, be sure you know exactly what legal rights you have.