1

Which Service Do You Need?

Pick the one that matches your situation. The rest of this form changes to match, so you will only be asked what applies to you. If JoHanna sent you a link set up for a service, it is already selected.

If there is no court case

Private Written Agreement

From $350

One or a few terms you have already agreed on, written down and signed. Nothing is filed with a court.

Choose this if: you have settled one or two specific things — a date, a bill, a vehicle — and just want it in writing.

Private Interim Agreement

From $550

Several temporary arrangements documented together, while the bigger issues wait. Nothing is filed with a court.

Choose this if: you have worked out a number of things for right now and want them all written down in one document.

If you already have an open court case

Stipulation & Order

From $600

You agree on the answer. Your agreed terms are written up, you both sign, and the judge signs them into a court order. No trial, no hearing on the merits.

Choose this if: the two of you have worked something out and you want it to be an enforceable court order instead of a handshake.

Request for Separate Trial — Agreed

From $600

You still disagree on the answer — but you both want the judge to decide that one issue before the rest of the case. The judge decides it; you are agreeing only on the order things happen in.

Choose this if: there is one thing you cannot settle, and you both think sorting it out first would make everything else easier.

Request for Separate Trial — Contested

From $650

You disagree on the answer, and the other side does not want it handled separately either. You are asking the court to take that issue first anyway.

Choose this if: you want one issue decided early and the other party is not on board with doing it that way.

Bifurcation of Marital Status

$950 – $1,250

Ends the marriage itself now, while property, support, and everything else stay open for later. Involves financial disclosures, retirement plan paperwork, and a judgment package.

Choose this if: you want to be legally single now and deal with dividing things later.

Not sure?

I am not sure which one fits

—

Tell JoHanna as much as you can and she will go through the options with you.

Choose this if: none of the above quite matches, or you want to talk it through first.

Telling the three open-case services apart. It comes down to two questions.

	Do you agree on the answer?	Do you agree it should be decided first?
Stipulation & Order	Yes	Not applicable — nothing to decide
Separate Trial — Agreed	No	Yes, you both do
Separate Trial — Contested	No	No — only you do

Not sure which one applies? Choose I am not sure which one fits above and fill out what you can. JoHanna can explain what each service includes and how the paperwork works, but she cannot recommend a strategy or tell you which option is best for your case. Questions about your legal rights, or how a choice would affect your property, taxes, benefits, or other interests, belong with a California attorney.

2

What Your Agreement Covers

Anything else it should cover? (optional)

Only the sections you check will appear below — you will not be asked about anything that does not apply to you.

About the price. A short agreement covering one or two of these starts at $350. Once several are involved it becomes an interim agreement, starting at $550. JoHanna will confirm your quote — checking more boxes does not commit you to anything.

These have to be your terms, not JoHanna’s. NewLeaf writes down what the two of you have already decided. She cannot tell you what your agreement should say, what is fair, or what any term would mean for you. Those are legal questions for an attorney.

3

Your Information

First name *

Middle name (optional)

Last name *

Date of birth

Phone number *

Email address *

Current mailing address *

County where you live

Best way to reach you

Do you have an attorney?

NoYes — limited-scope helpYes — full representation

4

The Other Party

Spouse or partner — full legal name *

Their mailing address (optional) (if you know it)

Their email (optional)

Do they have an attorney?

YesNoNot sure

Attorney name (optional)

Attorney firm or phone (optional)

5

Marriage Information

Date of marriage *

City and state where you married (optional)

Are there minor children of this marriage?

YesNo

Are you and your spouse living in the same home right now?

Yes — we still share a homeNo — we live in separate homesIt goes back and forth

6

Your Court Case

Copy the case number exactly as it appears on your paperwork, including letters and dashes.

Court case number *

County where the case is filed

Which of you filed the case?

I didMy spouse didWe filed together (joint petition)Not sure

Date the petition was filed (optional) (if known)

Date the other party was served (optional) (if known)

Has a response been filed?

YesNoNot sure

Is there already a judgment?

NoYes — partialYes — finalNot sure

Hearings already on calendar (optional)

Orders already in place (optional)

⚠️ You indicated the case was filed as a joint petition. A joint petition case cannot request orders from the judge while it stays a joint petition — asking for one revokes the joint process and converts the case. Please tell JoHanna about this at your appointment before anything is prepared.

7

The Date of Separation

Under California Family Code section 70, a date of separation is a question of fact. Give the date you believe is correct and the facts behind it. What that date means legally is a question for an attorney.

The date of separation you are giving *

If you cannot pin down an exact day, give the closest month and year (optional)

In your own words, what happened around that date? *

This is the part JoHanna uses most. The more specific you are about dates, places, and who did what, the less back-and-forth later.

8

The Children — Right Now

These are your current arrangements, not a permanent parenting plan.

Where are the children living right now?

With meWith my spouseBack and forth between usAll of us are still in the same home

Do you have a schedule you are following?

Yes — a written oneYes — an informal oneNoNot sure

Describe the schedule you want written down (optional)

Who pays for the children’s expenses right now? (optional)

Is anyone paying the other person child support right now?

YesNoNot sure

If yes, how much and how often? (optional)

If you want a formal custody, parenting plan, or child support order, that is a separate service. Tell JoHanna and she will go over it with you.

9

The Home

Is the home owned or rented?

OwnedRentedNot sure

Whose name is on the deed or lease?

MineMy spouse’sBoth of oursNot sure

Home address (optional)

Is this arrangement meant to last a set amount of time?

Until the case is finishedUntil a specific dateUntil we agree otherwiseNot sure

If a specific date, which one? (optional)

Does the person not living there need access to the home?

Yes — to get belongingsYes — regularly, for the childrenNoNot sure

Anything about access or belongings you want written down? (optional)

10

Bills, Expenses & Accounts

Be as specific as you can. Amounts, due dates, and who pays which bill are exactly what makes an agreement work later.

Now say who pays which one *

Is either of you paying the other person money directly?

YesNoNot sure

If yes, how much, how often, and starting when? (optional)

If you want spousal or child support as a formal court order, that is a separate service — this is only about what the two of you have agreed to do right now.

Anything else about money you want written down? (optional)

What if someone stops paying what they agreed to?

We have not talked about itWe want the agreement to say what happensI would want to go to court at that pointNot sure

If you want the agreement to address it, what did the two of you decide? (optional)

11

Vehicles & Personal Property

Only the parts you checked in the earlier section will appear here.

What personal property or household items does this cover? (optional)

Who keeps what? (optional)

Is anything still to be picked up or exchanged?

YesNoNot sure

If yes, when and how? (optional)

12

Insurance

Please read before answering. An employer health plan or an insurance company decides who is eligible for coverage — an agreement between the two of you does not. Filing for legal separation may or may not affect eligibility depending on the specific plan. Call the plan administrator and ask before you rely on staying covered. Whether coverage continues is a question for the plan and for an attorney, not something NewLeaf can answer or promise.

Health insurance — who is covered on whose plan?

Whose employer provides the plan? (optional)

Have you contacted the plan administrator to ask how a separation affects eligibility? *

Yes — coverage continuesYes — coverage would endYes — waiting to hear backNo, not yet

What do you want the agreement to say about health coverage? (optional)

Dental and vision

Same as healthSeparate — described belowNot applicableNot sure

Life insurance — is either of you a beneficiary on the other’s policy?

YesNoNot sure

What do you want to happen with life insurance for now? (optional)

Car insurance

We stay on one policyWe are separating policiesAlready separateNot sure

13

Money Paid After Separation

This section matters more than it looks, and it is the one most people skip.

When one spouse pays the mortgage or other shared bills after the date of separation — especially while the other spouse is living in the home — California law recognizes claims that can run in both directions when property is finally divided. One spouse may be able to ask to be paid back for what they covered. The other may be asked to account for the value of living in the home.

If your agreement says nothing about this, those claims can quietly build up for years and land in the middle of the property division you were trying to avoid. If your agreement gives them up without you realizing it, that can cost you real money.

JoHanna cannot advise you on this and cannot tell you which choice is right. It is a legal question. But your document has to say something, so you need to decide — ideally after talking to an attorney.

What do you want your agreement to say? *

Both of us give up any claim to be paid back — a clean slate from the date of separationBoth of us keep our claims — we will sort them out when property is dividedSomething specific we have agreed to — described belowWe have not discussed this yetI do not understand this and want to talk to an attorney before deciding

If you have agreed on something specific, what is it? (optional)

Have you spoken with an attorney about this?

YesNoNot yet, but I plan to

14

Taxes

The IRS decides filing status by your marital status on the last day of the year, not by what the two of you agree. How you file is a question for a tax professional or an attorney.

How do the two of you plan to file this year?

JointlySeparatelyWe have not decidedNot sure

What happens with a refund, or with taxes owed? (optional)

15

What You Are Leaving for Later

Check everything the two of you are not deciding right now. These will be expressly left open in your paperwork.

Anything else you want left open? (optional)

Leaving something open means you are not giving it up — you are saying it gets decided another day.

16

Which Issue Should Be Decided Separately?

This choice is yours to make. California Rule of Court 5.390 lets a court decide one issue separately and early, before the rest of a case. It is not limited to any one subject. Which issue you ask to have separated — and whether separating it helps your case — is a legal decision. JoHanna cannot make it for you or advise you on it. If you are not sure, leave this blank and talk to an attorney first.

A separate trial is for something you disagree about. If the two of you already agree on the answer, you may not need a trial at all — an agreed term can usually be submitted as a stipulation instead. Go back to Section 1 if that sounds closer to your situation.

Describe the issue in your own words *

Why should this issue go first?

Deciding it would help us settle the restDeciding it changes how everything else is calculatedWe need it resolved before a deadlineNot sure

If the issue you want separated is ending the marriage itself, that is a different service with extra steps — go back to Section 1 and choose bifurcation of marital status instead.

17

Your Agreement & Signing

Has your spouse actually agreed to all of this? *

Yes — we have gone through it togetherMostly — a few things still to settleNot yet — I have not askedNot sure

Will your spouse sign?

YesProbablyNot sureNo

How should the signature packet reach your spouse?

Do you both plan to sign in front of a notary?

YesNoNot sure

A notary is not always needed for a private agreement, but many people want one. If a defaulted party signs paperwork in a Sacramento County case, a notarized signature may be needed — JoHanna will confirm what applies to you.

Anything else the written agreement should say? (optional)

What this document does and does not do. A private agreement is between the two of you. It is not filed with a court, it is not a court order, and it does not bind a lender, an insurance company, the IRS, or the Social Security Administration. It does not decide how a court will treat any of it later. What these terms mean for your property, your taxes, or your benefits is a legal question for an attorney.

18

Filing the Stipulation

Will your spouse sign the stipulation?

YesProbablyNot sureNo

Who is preparing the other side’s signature?

NewLeaf prepares the document for both signaturesTheir attorney will prepare their sideNot sure

Do you want a hearing date reserved as a backup?

YesNoNot sure

How soon do you need this submitted?

If there is a deadline, what and when? (optional)

Placer and Sacramento each have their own stipulation forms and their own filing steps, and Sacramento family law is filed on paper rather than electronically. JoHanna will confirm what your county needs before anything is prepared.

19

Where You Disagree

This section is the heart of a contested request. Take your time with it.

What is the other side’s position on this issue? *

Why do you disagree? *

If the issue is a date, what date do they give? (optional)

Describe anything else you have (optional)

Have you tried to work this out with the other side?

YesNoNot sure

If yes, what happened? (optional)

Roughly how much supporting detail do you expect to provide?

This is only so JoHanna can give you an accurate quote. It does not lock you into anything.

20

Ending Marital Status

Read this part carefully. Ending marital status early is the heaviest service on this page and the one where a mistake does lasting damage. Two things in particular are decisions for you or an attorney, not for NewLeaf: which retirement or pension plans need to be joined to the case, and which conditions should be entered to protect each of you. NewLeaf prepares what you direct.

Date the petition was served on the responding party *

California Family Code section 2339 sets a six-month period running from the date of service. JoHanna will check the date against the calendar before anything is prepared.

Have preliminary declarations of disclosure been completed and served? *

Yes — both sides have served theirsYes — I served mine, the other side has notNo — neither side hasNot sure

Under Family Code section 2337(b), the party asking to end marital status serves a preliminary declaration of disclosure with or before that request. If yours is not done yet, that is part of the work — say so here and JoHanna will include it in your quote.

Are there any retirement, pension, 401(k), IRA, or deferred compensation accounts in either name? *

YesNoNot sure

Is either of you covered by the other’s health insurance?

Yes — I am on their planYes — they are on my planNoNot sure

Is either of you named as a beneficiary on the other’s life insurance?

YesNoNot sure

Does your spouse agree to ending marital status now?

Yes — they agreeNo — they objectI have not askedNot sure

Family Code section 2337(c) lists conditions a court may enter when it ends marital status early. Check the ones you are directing NewLeaf to include. If you are not sure what any of these mean or which you need, that is a legal question — leave them blank and talk to an attorney first.

Conditions you are directing NewLeaf to include

Keep health insurance in place for the other spouse until the case is fully finished

Preserve retirement survivor benefits until the retirement accounts are divided

Keep the other spouse’s probate rights in place if a party dies before the property is divided

Keep the other spouse named on life insurance until the case is fully finished

Take responsibility for any extra taxes caused by the change in filing status

Post security — a bond or a deposit — to protect the other spouse’s share

Preserve the other spouse’s rights under an employee benefit plan

Finish dividing the property by a specific date

Something else — described below

Describe any other condition you want included (optional)

Have you spoken with an attorney about this request?

YesNoNot yet, but I plan to

21

Retirement Plans and Benefits

List everything you can think of, even if you are not sure it counts.

The single most important section on this page. Under California Rule of Court 5.390, an undivided pension plan that needs to be joined must be joined to the case before a request to end marital status is filed. Working out which plans those are takes legal judgment — the Judicial Council publishes form FL-318-INFO precisely because it is not obvious. List every plan you know of below. Deciding which need joinder is a legal question for an attorney, and getting it wrong can leave a surviving spouse without benefits.

Plan 1

Plan or account name (optional)

Employer or plan administrator (optional)

Whose name is it in?

Has this plan already been joined to the case?

Plan 2

Plan or account name (optional)

Employer or plan administrator (optional)

Whose name is it in?

Has this plan already been joined to the case?

Plan 3

Plan or account name (optional)

Employer or plan administrator (optional)

Whose name is it in?

Has this plan already been joined to the case?

Plan 4

Plan or account name (optional)

Employer or plan administrator (optional)

Whose name is it in?

Has this plan already been joined to the case?

Any other plans, or anything you are unsure about (optional)

22

One Safety Question

JoHanna asks everyone this. There are no wrong answers, and it does not stop you from using any service.

Is there any restraining order, domestic violence case, or safety concern between you and the other party? *

Anything you want JoHanna to know about it? (optional)

If you are in immediate danger, call 911. For confidential support any time, the National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-7233.

Agreements and stipulations assume two people negotiating freely. If that is not your situation, please tell JoHanna before anything is prepared — and it may be worth speaking with an attorney first.

23

Documents

Check what you are sending, then attach below. You can also bring them to your appointment instead.

Attach files (optional) (PDF, photos, or scans)

If a file will not upload, do not worry — email it to JoHanna or bring it with you.

24

Last Few Things

Anything else JoHanna should know? (optional)

Please read and check each one.

Acknowledgments

The information I have given here is true and complete to the best of my knowledge.

I understand JoHanna C. Cody is a registered Legal Document Assistant and not an attorney, and that she cannot give me legal advice, choose forms for me, or tell me what to ask the court for.

I chose the service in Section 1 myself. Nobody at NewLeaf chose it for me.

I understand my documents are prepared from the information I provide, and that reviewing them before I sign or file them is my responsibility.

I understand that any term I have described will be written the way I described it, and that NewLeaf does not decide what my agreement should say.

Private agreement — acknowledgment

I understand this agreement is not filed with a court, is not a court order, and does not bind a lender, an insurance company, the IRS, or the Social Security Administration.

Money paid after separation — acknowledgment

I understand that claims about money paid after separation are a legal question, that JoHanna cannot advise me on them, and that the choice I made about them is my own.

Marital status — acknowledgments

I understand the six-month period running from the date the petition was served still applies.

I understand that identifying any retirement or pension plan that needs to be joined is my responsibility, that NewLeaf cannot make that decision for me, and that it is a legal question for an attorney.

I understand the court may enter conditions when it ends marital status early, and that some continue to apply after a party dies.

Something went wrong sending this. Please try again, or email JoHanna directly at johannaldaservices@gmail.com.

Thank you — it came through.

JoHanna has your answers and will be in touch to set up your appointment. If anything urgent comes up before then, call or text (916) 751-6498.

Agreements, Stipulations & Bifurcation

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Plan 3

Plan 4

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