2014: How do You Know if a Judicial Council Form is Mandatory or Optional in a Divorce, Paternity or Legal Separation Case and why Does it Matter?

As many parents and spouses are filling out their own forms for their San Diego legal separation, divorce or paternity for their pending cases, it is very important to understand the forms. One of the best ways to state, if you will be representing yourself and preparing your case for your paternity, divorce or legal separation in San Diego, is to go on the San Diego Superior Court Website. This is an excellent resource for family law litigants in San Diego court. The forms which are being referred to are Judicial Council forms and you can find templates for forms on the San Diego Superior Court Website. For your ease of use, the internet address is http://www.sdcourt.ca.gov/ and there is a family law section. There a local family and children forms as well as federal child support forms. There is no charge to use the San Diego Superior Court website to the general public whether you are located in San Diego or not.

Some of the judicial council forms are mandatory and some are optional. For example, the petition and summons for a divorce, legal separation or paternity are mandatory judicial council forms and you must use the approved form or the filing will be rejected by the San Diego Superior Court Clerk. Many of the forms are mandatory and, as time is of the essence in many filings, it is important to make sure that the pleadings will be accepted. You want to prevail and do not want to jeopardize your case by a late filing or rejection notice which is procedural and not substantive.

How do you tell if a form is mandatory or optional? Look to the lower left hand corner of the form and it will indicate whether optional or mandatory. For example, Judicial Council Form FL-150 [Income and Expense Declaration] is a mandatory form. Judicial Council Form FL-319 [Request for Attorney Fees] is optional. On many of the optional forms, if not used, the information detailed by the form must be included in a declaration. The general rule is to always use the mandatory forms and optional forms when available and do not create your own pleadings. By using the optional and mandatory forms, this will assist you in making sure you are providing the information needed to argue your case before the San Diego Superior Court Judge.

The law office of Doppelt and Forney, APLC uses a program called Essential Forms. This is a fillable form program which has all of the Judicial Council forms for family law. The law office of Doppelt and Forney, APLC has the most recent updates for Essential Forms and this results in less rejected pleadings. If you have a family law case in San Diego and are seeking legal representation, feel free to contact for a free in-person or virtual consultation.