Amended in Assembly April 21, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 15, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1735

Introduced by Assembly Member Waldron

February 1, 2016

An act to amend Section 215 of the Family Code, relating to dissolution of marriage.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1735, as amended, Waldron. Dissolution of marriage: bifurcated judgment: service.

Existing law, begin delete when end delete begin insert if end insert there is a modification of a judgment or order or a subsequent order in a specified proceeding relating to marriage, including dissolution of marriage, begin insert or in any other proceeding in which there was at issue the visitation, custody, or support of a child, end insert requires that service for the new order or proceeding be made begin delete to end delete begin insert upon end insert the party in the same manner as the notice is otherwise permitted to be served. Existing law specifies that service upon the attorney of record is not sufficient.

This bill would require service begin insert to be end insert upon the attorney of begin delete record, and not the party, in the case of a bifurcated judgment of dissolution. end delete begin insert record for represented parties or upon the parties themselves if unrepresented when the court has ordered an issue or issues bifurcated for separate trial in advance of the disposition of the entire case. The bill, however, would require service to be upon both the party and the attorney of record if a pleading has not been filed in the action for a period of 6 months after the entry of the bifurcated judgment. end insert

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 215 of the Family Code is amended to
read:

215.  

(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b) or (c), after
entry of a judgment of dissolution of marriage, nullity of marriage,
legal separation of the parties, or paternity, or after a permanent
order in any other proceeding in which there was at issue the
visitation, custody, or support of a child, no modification of the
judgment or order, and no subsequent order in the proceedings, is
valid unless any prior notice otherwise required to be given to a
party to the proceeding is served, in the same manner as the notice
is otherwise permitted by law to be served, upon the party. For the
purposes of this section, service upon the attorney of record is not
sufficient.

(b) A postjudgment motion to modify a custody, visitation, or
child support order may be served on the other party or parties by
first-class mail or airmail, postage prepaid, to the persons to be
served. For any party served by mail, the proof of service begin delete must end delete
begin insert shall end insert include an address verification.

(c) This section does not apply begin delete to a bifurcated judgment of
dissolution pursuant to Section 2337, service for which shall be
upon the attorney of record. end delete begin insert if the court has ordered an issue or
issues bifurcated for separate trial in advance of the disposition
of the entire case. In those cases, service of a motion on any
outstanding matter shall be served either upon the attorney of
record, if the parties are represented, or upon the parties, if
unrepresented. However, if there has been no pleading filed in the
action for a period of six months after the entry of the bifurcated
judgment, service shall be upon both the party, at the party’s last
known address, and the attorney of record. end insert