Marital Settlement Agreement (No Children) - California

MARITAL SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT (NO CHILDREN)

State of California

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Parties and Recitals
2. Jurisdiction and Venue
3. Division of Community Property — Real Property
4. Division of Community Property — Personal Property
5. Division of Community Property — Vehicles
6. Division of Community Property — Financial Accounts
7. Division of Community Property — Retirement and Pension
8. Confirmation of Separate Property
9. Division of Community Debts and Obligations
10. Spousal Support
11. Insurance Provisions
12. Tax Filing and Obligations
13. Mutual Releases and Waivers
14. Integration and Merger
15. General Provisions
16. Execution and Acknowledgment
17. California-Specific Notes

1. PARTIES AND RECITALS

Petitioner: [FULL LEGAL NAME] ("Petitioner")
Respondent: [FULL LEGAL NAME] ("Respondent")

Case Number: [________________________________]
Court: Superior Court of California, County of [________________________________]

The parties state and agree as follows:

a. The parties were lawfully married on [__/__/____] in [CITY, COUNTY, STATE/COUNTRY].

b. The parties separated on [__/__/____].

c. The parties have no minor children together, and neither party knows of a pregnancy that would require child-related orders in this case.

d. Petitioner has served the preliminary declaration of disclosure required by Cal. Fam. Code § 2104, unless an exception applies. Respondent ☐ has served a preliminary declaration ☐ has not filed a Response and has not served one. Each party signing this Agreement confirms receiving the financial information identified in this Agreement and its attachments.

e. Both parties have had the opportunity to consult with independent legal counsel.

f. This agreement is entered into voluntarily, without fraud, duress, or undue influence.

g. Before or when signing this Agreement, the parties ☐ exchanged final declarations of disclosure and current income and expense declarations ☐ signed a valid mutual waiver of the final declarations after exchanging current income and expense declarations ☐ are proceeding by default and Petitioner invokes the final-disclosure exception in Fam. Code § 2110. Check the applicable judgment forms for the chosen route.

2. JURISDICTION AND VENUE

a. ☐ Petitioner / ☐ Respondent met the general residence periods in Cal. Fam. Code § 2320(a) before the Petition for Dissolution was filed: six months in California and three months in the filing county. Section 2320(b) provides a limited exception for certain same-sex marriages.

b. The parties submit this Agreement to the Superior Court in the case identified above and request its approval as part of the judgment.

3. DIVISION OF COMMUNITY PROPERTY — REAL PROPERTY

a. The following real property shall be awarded to Petitioner:

b. The following real property shall be awarded to Respondent:

c. ☐ The parties shall sell the following property and divide net proceeds equally:
Property: [________________________________]

d. The party receiving real property shall execute or cause to be executed all documents necessary to effectuate the transfer, including interspousal transfer deeds, within [____] days of the entry of judgment.

4. DIVISION OF COMMUNITY PROPERTY — PERSONAL PROPERTY

a. Each party shall retain the personal property in their possession that is identified in the inventory attached as Exhibit [____]. Property omitted from that inventory is not allocated by this paragraph.

b. The following items are specifically awarded to Petitioner:
[________________________________]

c. The following items are specifically awarded to Respondent:
[________________________________]

d. ☐ An equalizing payment of $[________] shall be paid by ☐ Petitioner / ☐ Respondent to the other party on or before [__/__/____].

5. DIVISION OF COMMUNITY PROPERTY — VEHICLES

As between the parties, the person receiving each vehicle shall pay its loan, insurance, registration, and other costs and indemnify the other party for those amounts. The parties shall complete any title and lender requirements separately.

6. DIVISION OF COMMUNITY PROPERTY — FINANCIAL ACCOUNTS

7. DIVISION OF COMMUNITY PROPERTY — RETIREMENT AND PENSION

a. The community property interest in the following retirement/pension accounts shall be divided:

b. The community property interest shall be calculated using the ☐ time rule / ☐ direct tracing / ☐ other method: [________________________________].

c. Each party shall retain any proven separate-property portion of a retirement account, subject to tracing and the community interest identified above (Fam. Code §§ 760, 770, 771).

d. The parties shall cooperate in the preparation and filing of any QDRO or DRO necessary to effectuate this division.

8. CONFIRMATION OF SEPARATE PROPERTY

The parties identify the following property as separately owned based on the facts and supporting records they have exchanged. An item listed here that includes a community interest must instead be allocated expressly under this Agreement:

Petitioner's Separate Property: [________________________________]

Respondent's Separate Property: [________________________________]

9. DIVISION OF COMMUNITY DEBTS AND OBLIGATIONS

As between the parties, each shall indemnify the other for a debt allocated to that party. This allocation does not itself release either party from liability to a creditor.

10. SPOUSAL SUPPORT

Select one:

☐ a. No Spousal Support; Termination Requested. Neither party requests support. The parties ask the court to terminate support jurisdiction as to both parties in the judgment. They have considered the circumstances in Fam. Code § 4320 and understand that Fam. Code § 4336 otherwise provides indefinite retention of jurisdiction in a marriage of long duration unless the parties agree otherwise in writing or the court terminates support.

☐ b. Spousal Support Shall Be Paid.

• Payor: ☐ Petitioner / ☐ Respondent
• Amount: $[________] per month
• Intended duration and purpose (if any): [________________________________]
• Commencement Date: [__/__/____]
• Agreed Termination Date, if any: [__/__/____]. Unless the parties agree otherwise in writing, an order for support terminates on death of either party or remarriage of the supported party (Fam. Code § 4337), and may be subject to further court order.
• Payment Method: [________________________________]

☐ c. Reservation of Jurisdiction. The parties ask the court to reserve jurisdiction over spousal support for ☐ Petitioner ☐ Respondent ☐ both parties, without a present payment order.

11. INSURANCE PROVISIONS

a. Health Insurance: ☐ Petitioner / ☐ Respondent shall pay $[________] toward any continuation coverage available to the other party through [__/__/____]; or ☐ each party shall arrange and pay for their own coverage after judgment.

b. Life Insurance: ☐ Petitioner / ☐ Respondent shall maintain a life insurance policy with a death benefit of at least $[________] naming the other party as beneficiary to secure spousal support obligations through [__/__/____].

12. TAX FILING AND OBLIGATIONS

a. For tax year [____], the parties will consult their tax advisers and, if legally eligible, ☐ file jointly ☐ file separately. Nothing here requires a filing status unavailable under tax law.

b. Any tax refund for jointly filed returns shall be divided as follows: [________________________________].

c. Any tax liability for jointly filed returns shall be allocated as follows: [________________________________].

d. Each party shall indemnify the other for any tax liability arising from their individual income or deductions.

13. MUTUAL RELEASES AND WAIVERS

a. Except for obligations under this Agreement and rights expressly reserved, each party releases the other from claims to the property and debts specifically allocated in this Agreement.

b. Claims concerning an asset or debt that was not disclosed and expressly allocated are not released by this section.

c. This Agreement does not waive either party's rights as a surviving spouse. Any intended estate-rights waiver must be stated separately.

14. INTEGRATION AND MERGER

a. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between the parties and supersedes all prior negotiations, representations, and agreements.

b. The parties request that this Agreement be incorporated into the Judgment of Dissolution without merger, so that its contractual obligations remain enforceable to the extent the court permits.

c. Any consensual modification must be in writing and signed by both parties, subject to any necessary court approval or order.

15. GENERAL PROVISIONS

a. Governing Law: This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of California.

b. Severability: If any provision is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall continue in full force.

c. Attorney's Fees: In any action to enforce this Agreement, the prevailing party shall be entitled to reasonable attorney's fees and costs.

d. Cooperation: Each party shall execute all documents necessary to carry out the terms of this Agreement.

e. Fiduciary Duties: Both parties acknowledge their fiduciary duties under Cal. Fam. Code §§ 721 and 1100 and represent full and complete disclosure.

16. EXECUTION AND ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Each party represents that they have read this Agreement, understand its terms, and sign it voluntarily.

PETITIONER:

Signature: ________________________________
Printed Name: [________________________________]
Date: [__/__/____]

RESPONDENT:

Signature: ________________________________
Printed Name: [________________________________]
Date: [__/__/____]

Acknowledgment, if required by the chosen judgment route: A stipulated agreement with an appearance uses different signature requirements from a default with agreement. The California Courts guides below state that an uncontested agreement with an appearance need not be notarized, while the respondent's signature on a default agreement must be notarized. Have a notary complete the current acknowledgment certificate if that route applies. Prepare any needed real-property transfer deed separately.

17. CALIFORNIA-SPECIFIC NOTES

• Waiting Period: A dissolution cannot terminate the marriage until six months after service of the summons and petition or the respondent's appearance, whichever occurs first, subject to Fam. Code § 2339(b). The parties may sign and submit an agreement before that date.
• Residence: Fam. Code § 2320(a) generally requires six months of California residence and three months in the filing county before the petition; subdivision (b) has a limited exception.
• Disclosure: Fam. Code § 2104 generally requires preliminary declarations and exchange of a current income and expense declaration, subject to its stated exceptions. Under § 2105, final disclosures are due before or when a property or support agreement is made unless properly waived; § 2110 allows a petitioner in a default judgment to waive final disclosures. FL-141 is the declaration regarding service, not the final disclosure itself; FL-144 is the mutual final-disclosure waiver form.
• Community Property: Fam. Code § 760 presumptively treats property acquired during marriage while domiciled in California as community property, subject to statutory exceptions. Fam. Code § 2550 permits written agreement on division of the community estate.
• Retirement Accounts: Identify and allocate community interests in each plan. Fam. Code § 2610 directs the court to make appropriate orders protecting each party's community share; obtain the plan-specific order needed to implement the agreed division.
• Filing: Attach the signed Agreement to the official FL-180. Use the court's current instructions for the chosen uncontested route and check FL-182 for any additional forms; file FL-141 and either complete final disclosure or a valid FL-144 waiver as applicable.

SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• California Family Code §§ 721, 760, 770, 771, 1100, 2104, 2105, 2110, 2320, 2339, 2550, 2610, 4320, 4336, 4337 — official current code from https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zip
• California Courts, written agreement (no minor children): https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/divorce/finalize-divorce/written-agreement
• California Courts, default with agreement: https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/divorce/finalize-divorce/default-agreement
• California Courts, Judgment Checklist FL-182: https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/fl182.pdf

This template is provided by ezel.ai for informational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice. Consult a licensed California attorney before use.