Rule 23.Pleadings: Petition and Response

Part II. Pleadings and Motions · Last amended January 1, 2019 · Last verified September 4, 2026

In one sentenceRule 23 lists the eleven petitions that can start a family law case and sorts them into two tracks: those served with a summons, which require a response, and those served with an order to appear, where responding is optional.

Full Text of Rule 23

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f)

(a) Petition. A “petition” is the initial pleading that begins a family law case or a post-decree matter. A party begins an action by filing a verified petition seeking:

(1) annulment (A.R.S. § 25-301);

(2) dissolution of a marriage (A.R.S. § 25-312);

(3) legal separation (A.R.S. § 25-313);

(4) dissolution of a covenant marriage (A.R.S. § 25-903);

(5) legal separation in a covenant marriage (A.R.S. § 25-904);

(6) to establish paternity or maternity (A.R.S. § 25-806);

(7) to establish legal decision-making or parenting time (A.R.S. §§ 25-403, -803(C), and -1001 et seq.);

(8) third party rights (A.R.S. § 25-409);

(9) to enforce, register, or modify legal decision-making or parenting time (A.R.S. §§ 25-403, -411, and -1001 et seq.);

(10) to establish, enforce, register or modify support (A.R.S. §§ 25-320, -503, -1201 et seq.); or

(11) relief otherwise authorized by statute.

(b) Summons and Order to Appear.

(1) Summons. A petition under subparts (a)(1 through 7) must be served with a summons, as described in Rule 40. A petition in a new action under subpart (a)(8) also must be served with a summons; but see subpart (b)(2) below for an existing action under subpart (a)(8).

(2) Order to Appear. A petition under subparts (a)(9 through 11), or in sections (c), (d), and (e), must be served with an order to appear, as described in Rule 25(f). A petition in an existing action under subpart (a)(8) also must be served with an order to appear.

(1) A party may file a foreign judgment or decree pertaining to the disposition of marital property or debt under A.R.S. §§ 12-1701 to -1708.

(2) A party may begin an action for disposition of property ( A.R.S. § 25-318(A)) or maintenance (A.R.S. § 25-319(A)) under a foreign court's decree by filing the foreign judgment under A.R.S. §§ 12-1701 to -1708. Once the party has filed the foreign judgment, the party may file a petition for an order to appear specifying the relief sought.

(d) Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity. A party seeking to voluntarily acknowledge paternity may file any of the documents listed in A.R.S. § 25-812.

(e) Appearance of Parties and Child; Warrant to Take Physical Custody of a Child. A party may request a court order under A.R.S. § 25-1040 for the appearance of parties and children or may request the court under A.R.S. § 25-1061 to issue a warrant to take physical custody of a child.

(f) Response. A response is a document that substantially answers a petition.

(1) Required Response. A party who is served with a petition described in subparts (a)(1 through 7) must file a response. A party is also required to file a response in a new action to establish third-party rights under subpart (a)(8). If a party does not file a response, the petitioner has the right to request a default and obtain a default judgment against that party.

(2) Permissive Response. A party who is served with a petition described in subparts (a)(9 through 11), an existing action under subpart (a)(8), and sections (c), (d), or (e) may file a response.

End

Rule History

Added Aug. 30, 2018, effective Jan. 1, 2019.

Plain-English Summary

Rule 23 is the doorway to the whole ruleset. It names what a petition can ask for, decides which charging document goes out with it, and decides whether the other side has to answer.

The eleven petitions

A case begins with a verified petition seeking annulment, dissolution of a marriage, legal separation, dissolution of a covenant marriage, legal separation in a covenant marriage, paternity or maternity, legal decision-making or parenting time, third party rights, enforcement or registration or modification of legal decision-making or parenting time, establishment or enforcement or registration or modification of support, or any other relief a statute allows. Each is tied to its own Title 25 section, so the statute supplies the substance and the rule supplies the procedure.

Note the word verified. A family law petition is sworn. That is a departure from ordinary civil pleading, where a complaint is signed but not verified.

Summons or order to appear -- the split that matters

Subsections (a)(1) through (a)(7) -- the petitions that open a status: annulment through legal decision-making and parenting time -- go out with a summons under Rule 40. Subsections (a)(9) through (a)(11) -- enforcing, registering or modifying something that already exists -- go out with an order to appear under Rule 25(f), which is the court's own scheduling document rather than a command to answer.

Third party rights under (a)(8) sit on both sides of the line. A new action gets a summons; the same request filed in an existing action gets an order to appear.

Who has to respond

The two tracks carry different consequences. A party served under (a)(1) through (a)(7), or in a new third-party-rights action, must file a response, and failing to do so lets the petitioner take a default under Rule 44. A party served under (a)(9) through (a)(11), in an existing third-party action, or under sections (c), (d) or (e), may respond. Silence there is not default; the hearing already on the calendar goes forward.

Three side doors

Section (c) lets a party register a foreign judgment about marital property or debt, and then -- once it is filed -- petition for an order to appear on the relief sought. Section (d) allows the documents for a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity. Section (e) covers requests for the appearance of parties and children, and warrants to take physical custody of a child.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a family law petition have to be sworn?

Yes. Rule 23(a) says a party begins an action by filing a verified petition. That is different from an ordinary civil complaint, which is signed but not verified.

What is the difference between a summons and an order to appear?

A summons commands a response within a set time and exposes the party to default if none is filed. An order to appear, described in Rule 25(f), sets a hearing date instead. Rule 23(b) assigns each petition to one or the other.

If I am served with a petition to modify child support, must I file a response?

No. Modification of support falls under Rule 23(a)(10), which is served with an order to appear, and Rule 23(f)(2) makes a response permissive. The hearing goes forward either way.

Can a petition to establish third party rights be served either way?

It depends on whether the case already exists. Rule 23(b)(1) requires a summons for a new action under (a)(8); Rule 23(b)(2) requires an order to appear when the same request is filed in an existing action.

What happens if I do not respond to a dissolution petition?

Rule 23(f)(1) says the petitioner has the right to request a default and obtain a default judgment. Rule 44 sets out the application, the notice, and the ten-day window in which a late response still stops the default from taking effect.

Can a foreign decree be used to divide property in Arizona?

Rule 23(c)(2) allows a party to begin an action for disposition of property or maintenance under a foreign court's decree by filing the foreign judgment under A.R.S. sections 12-1701 to -1708, and then filing a petition for an order to appear specifying the relief sought.

Source & verification. Rule text and Rule History reproduced verbatim from the Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure as published by the Arizona Supreme Court, current through amendments effective January 1, 2026. Promulgated by the Supreme Court of Arizona (Ariz. Const. art. 6, § 5). Last verified September 4, 2026. · Official text

Also known as: petitionstarting a casedivorcedissolutionannulmentlegal separationcovenant marriagepaternitymaternityorder to appearresponse requiredforeign judgmentacknowledgment of paternitythird party rights