Divorce with children can be tricky especially when the children live in another country. If one parent lives in California, he/she can file for Divorce in this state.
However, if the children live in another country, California will hold jurisdiction for child support, but not for custody & visitation. This means that child support can be addressed in California, but not custody or visitation. Here are the steps:
- file for Divorce in the county in California in which you live
- serve your spouse appropriately based on whether your spouse lives in a country that is a ‘Hague convention’ country or a ‘non-Hague convention’ country
- the Divorce can be finalized by agreement or if the parties are not in agreement then by default or trial
In most cases, when a parent and children live in another country, the Divorce is finalized in California by default (the respondent does not respond). This means that if child support becomes an issue, the spouse that wants it would need to file in the California county in which the Divorce was filed.
If you want more information about Divorce with Children in another Country, call Legal Action Workshop @ 1-800-HELP-444 (1-800-435-7444) or visit www.LegalActionWorkshopLAW.com .