California Summary Divorce - Challenging the Agreement

With a summary divorce, there is no trial or hearing. Couples who choose this method of getting a divorce do not have the right to ask for a new trial (since there is no trial) or the right to appeal the case to a higher court.

Challenging a Summary Divorce Agreement

There are, however, some cases in which a divorce agreement under a summary divorce can be challenged. You will have to see a lawyer about this. The court may have the power to set aside the divorce if you can show that one of the following things happened:

• You were treated unfairly in the property settlement agreement. This is possible if you find out the things you agreed to give to your spouse were much more valuable than you thought at the time of the divorce.
• You went through the divorce procedure against your will. This is possible if you can show that your spouse used threats or other kinds of unfair pressure to get you to go along with the divorce.
• There are serious mistakes in the original agreement. Some kinds of mistakes can make the divorce invalid, but you will have to go to court to prove the mistakes. It may be that one or both of you had a lot of property that you had forgotten about when you drew up the property settlement agreement. Or maybe a bank account mentioned in the agreement had much more money or much less money in it than your agreement states.
• You each did not complete the Income and Expense Declaration and property worksheets and give copies to your spouse. California law requires that you fully share all information about your property and debts as well as your income. You have to share this information before you sign your property settlement agreement.

Correcting mistakes in a summary divorce proceeding can be expensive, time-consuming, and difficult. It is very important for both of you to be honest, cooperative, and careful when you or your lawyers do the paperwork for the divorce.