Q: Can I file for both annulment and divorce in California using form FL-100, after failed annulment in Nevada?

A: You already have an open case in Nevada with a default pending. Why would you file another case in California? Why would you file for divorce when you believe your marriage is void and thus filed for nullity in Nevada? Your marriage was either valid or it was not. If your spouse was married to someone else at the time of your marriage to each other, then your marriage is void; period. If your Nevada case gets dismissed, it's only under that circumstance that you'd be able to then file for nullity (or divorce) here in CA.

A: In California, you can petition for nullity or dissolution in the alternative using a pleading-style petition rather than a mandatory form. However, family law petitions must still use the Judicial Council Form FL-100, as required by Rule 5.20. This rule states that though the form must be used, you are allowed to modify it or combine it with attachments. So, you could check the nullity box on FL-100 and then attach an alternative prayer for dissolution.

In California, if a marriage took place in Nevada, it can still be annulled here if both parties are residents. However, you cannot have simultaneous actions in two states; only one judgment is valid. If Nevada denies annulment, divorce may be filed in California, or you can attempt annulment again, provided grounds exist. Be mindful of potential res judicata issues. Annulment petitions in California are allowed, and attachments can provide alternative relief, per relevant statutes.

In California, if a marriage was performed in Nevada, it can still be annulled in California if both parties reside there. However, only one legal process can be pursued at a time—you cannot have simultaneous actions for marital status in both states. This means that only one judgment will be recognized as valid, whether it is an annulment, divorce, or other legal status change.

You can plead annulment and in the alternative divorce in one California petition because procedural rules allow multiple forms of relief in a single pleading. On Judicial Council form FL-100 you check Nullity to assert the annulment grounds and attach a short declaration requesting dissolution in the alternative if the court finds the marriage valid; this leaves the mandatory form intact while giving the judge both options. California courts accept this practice, so you do not need a separate complaint like Nevada’s.

If Nevada ultimately denies your annulment, you may still pursue annulment in California because the only filing requirement here is that you reside in the state when you file. California decides the issue under its own Family Code standards, not Nevada’s. A Nevada denial is not automatically binding unless its decree expressly adjudicates the marriage’s validity—so you can still seek a California divorce if annulment fails. For a divorce, be sure that at least one spouse has lived in California six months and in the relevant county three months before filing.

Practically, many petitioners file now in California for annulment with a fallback request for divorce so time is not lost if the court rejects the nullity claim. This preserves the earliest possible filing date for property, support, and status issues and avoids running two separate cases. Because annulment requires proof of fraud, bigamy, or other exacting grounds, having divorce as an alternate path guarantees that the marriage will still end even if the court refuses to declare it void.