Not every divorce needs to become a courtroom fight. If you and your spouse have already worked out custody, support, and property, our job is turning that understanding into a judgment the court will actually enter, with paperwork that holds up years later. Plenty of couples try to handle it themselves and discover that LA Superior Court rejects judgments over small drafting errors, or that the agreement they signed left out a retirement account or a tax consequence nobody considered. Spodek Law Group P.C. handles uncontested divorces through a fully online client portal, we're available 24/7 when questions come up, and we make sure the deal you agreed to is the deal the judgment actually says.
What qualifies as uncontested, and the new FL-700 joint petition.
An uncontested divorce means you agree on every issue the judgment has to cover, including custody, support, property, and debt. Traditionally one spouse filed the FL-100 petition, paid the $435 filing fee, and served the other spouse, who either responded or let the case proceed by agreement. As of January 1, 2026, California's new FL-700 joint petition lets agreeing couples file together, so nobody gets served with a summons and only one $435 fee is paid. We prepare the petition, the financial disclosures, and the marital settlement agreement, then walk the judgment through the clerk's office until it is entered.
Summary dissolution for short, simple marriages.
California offers an even simpler track called summary dissolution for couples married under five years who have no children together, own no real estate, carry limited property and debt, and are both willing to waive spousal support and sign an agreement dividing what they have. If you qualify, the paperwork is lighter and there is no court appearance, though you still cannot be restored to single status until six months and a day have passed under Family Code §2339. We will tell you honestly whether summary dissolution fits your situation or whether the standard uncontested route protects you better.
Why agreed divorces still go wrong without a lawyer.
The most common problems we fix started as do-it-yourself divorces. California requires complete financial disclosures before a judgment can be entered, and an agreement built on incomplete disclosures can be set aside later, which means the divorce you thought was finished gets reopened. We also see judgments bounced by the LA clerk's office for missing forms, retirement accounts divided without the QDRO needed to avoid tax penalties, and residency mistakes, since you need six months in California and three months in LA County under Family Code §2320 before filing. Getting it right once costs far less than fixing it.
