“Family Code sections 2100 et seq. govern the required disclosures of assets, liabilities, income and expenses, and they apply to all actions for dissolution, legal separation and nullity. Pursuant to Family Code section 2103, both parties are required to prepare and serve on the other party Declarations of Disclosure. The purpose of the statute is to compel full and accurate disclosure of all assets and liabilities, thereby achieving greater bargaining parity between the parties, who often do not have the same knowledge of their respective financial circumstances or ability to discover the relevant information. The law also represents an effort to make meaningful fiduciary responsibilities between spouses found in Family Code section 721.”
“In general, the parties are required to complete and serve both a Preliminary Declaration of Disclosure early on in the case, and a Final Declaration of Disclosure towards the end of a case. In a default case, the Preliminary Declaration of Disclosure must be personally served on the other party. . . The court cannot enter a Judgment for divorce unless the Disclosure requirements have been met or waived. Therefore, a failure to properly comply with the Declaration of Disclosure requirements can significantly delay a divorce case.”
[California Family Law Basics [certain citations omitted]]
