This is not an easy question to answer because everyone’s case is different. The general rule is that parties cannot obtain a judgment of divorce until at least 6 months plus 1 day have passed from the start of the legal process. In practice, many divorce cases take longer than 6 months to resolve. There are child custody and visitation issues to resolve. There are disagreements over child support and spousal support to handle. And the marital debts and assets have be categorized, valued and disclosed so that they can ultimately be divided. In particularly contested cases, disagreements over these areas of law can result in over a year of litigation.
In Sacramento divorce cases where the parties are more amicable or have reached agreements on their own or with the help of their attorneys, the divorce can usually be wrapped up in around 6 months. This also assumes that each spouse has timely filed all documents and provided their attorneys and the court with all the required paperwork. Any delay by either spouse will just delay the process of wrapping up the Sacramento divorce.
If you are in a Sacramento divorce case and are having difficulty getting your case to completion, please give our office a call. It is important that you have an attorney help you understand your legal rights and obligations and lay out a plan to get your divorce and related issues finalized.