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California Community Property Keyed to Carrillo, 11th Ed.
Gionis v. Superior Court
Citation:
248 Cal. Rptr. 741 (1988)Facts
Thomas A. Gionis and Aissa Wayne Gionis were married on February 14, 1986, and had one infant daughter. In June 1987, Aissa filed both a petition for legal separation and a separate petition for dissolution of marriage, requesting sole custody of their daughter as well as child and spousal support. The parties’ declarations revealed deep bitterness over child custody issues. They stipulated to proceed with the dissolution petition, and the court acquired jurisdiction in June 1987. On January 29, 1988, approximately seven months after filing, Thomas moved to bifurcate the marital status issue from custody, support, and property division. His declaration stated the marriage had irrevocably failed, reconciliation was impossible, and while dissolution would be brief, remaining issues would require extensive discovery and lengthy trial. He wanted his marital status resolved to make investments and obtain credit without seeking quitclaim deeds from Aissa or worrying about community versus separate credit issues. Aissa opposed the motion on procedural grounds but presented no substantive reasons why bifurcation would harm her interests.
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