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Question 1

What is the difference between an annulment and a divorce in California?

Accepted Answer

A divorce ends a marriage that was legally valid; an annulment is a court judgment that the marriage was never valid. A divorce requires no proof beyond irreconcilable differences but carries a six-month waiting period and a residency requirement. An annulment has no waiting period and no residency requirement, but the petitioner must prove one of eight statutory grounds at a court hearing, and most of those grounds carry a filing deadline.

Question 2

What are the grounds for annulment in California?

Accepted Answer

Two grounds make a marriage void from the start: incest (Family Code § 2200) and bigamy (§ 2201). Six grounds make a marriage voidable under § 2210: a spouse was under 18 without the required consent, a spouse's prior spouse was absent five years or believed dead, unsound mind, fraud, force, and incurable physical incapacity. The ground must have existed at the time of the wedding.

Question 3

How long do you have to get an annulment in California?

Accepted Answer

It depends on the ground. Fraud must be filed within four years of discovering the fraud. Force and physical incapacity must be filed within four years of the marriage. A spouse married under 18 has until four years after turning 18. Unsound mind can be raised any time before either spouse dies, and the absent-prior-spouse ground any time during the other spouse's life. Void marriages — incest and bigamy — have no deadline.

Question 4

Is there a time limit after the wedding to file for annulment in California?

Accepted Answer

Only for certain grounds. Force and physical incapacity must be filed within four years of the wedding date. Fraud is measured from the date of discovery rather than the wedding, so a fraud annulment can be filed many years into a marriage. There is no rule limiting annulments to short marriages.

Question 5

Can you get an annulment without a hearing in California?

Accepted Answer

No. Unlike a divorce, which can be finalized on paperwork if it is uncontested or the other spouse defaults, a judgment of nullity requires the petitioner to appear before a judge and present evidence of the ground, even when the other spouse does not respond.

Question 6

Does an annulment take less time than a divorce in California?

Accepted Answer

Usually. A divorce cannot become final until at least six months after the respondent is served, under Family Code § 2339. An annulment has no statutory waiting period; the timeline is set by how quickly the court can schedule the required hearing, which in Los Angeles County is typically a few months.

Question 7

Do you have to live in California to get an annulment there?

Accepted Answer

No. The six-month state and three-month county residency rules in Family Code § 2320 apply to divorce, not to annulment or legal separation. A nullity petition can be filed in California as soon as a spouse is physically present.

Question 8

Does an annulment divide property in California?

Accepted Answer

Not automatically. Because the marriage is treated as never having existed, there is no community property. However, a spouse who believed in good faith that the marriage was valid can be declared a putative spouse under Family Code § 2251, and property acquired during the marriage is then divided as it would be in a divorce. A putative spouse may also be awarded spousal support and attorney's fees.

Question 9

What happens to children after an annulment in California?

Accepted Answer

Nothing changes for the children. They remain the legal children of both parents, and the court in a nullity case has the same authority to issue custody, visitation, and child support orders that it has in a divorce.

Question 10

Is lying about money grounds for annulment in California?

Accepted Answer

Generally no. California courts require that fraud go to the essence of the marriage — matters such as intent to have children, intent to live together as spouses, or marrying only to obtain immigration status. Misrepresentations about wealth, debts, employment, or business dealings have been held insufficient, most notably in In re Marriage of Meagher & Maleki (2005).

Question 11

How much does an annulment cost in California?

Accepted Answer

The court filing fee is $435 in most counties, the same as a divorce; a small number of counties add a local surcharge. Fee waivers are available through form FW-001. Attorney's fees vary with whether the annulment is contested, since a contested annulment requires an evidentiary hearing that an uncontested divorce does not.

Question 12

What if the judge denies my annulment?

Accepted Answer

The case does not have to start over. A petition for nullity can be amended to request a dissolution of marriage instead, and many attorneys plead both from the beginning so that the court can grant a divorce if it finds the annulment ground was not proven.

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