Rule 4.1.Process — Domestic relations actions

Group 2: Commencement of Action · Last amended September 1, 2026 · Last verified September 28, 2026

In one sentenceRule 4.1 adapts Rule 4's summons-and-service procedure to domestic relations actions under RCW 26.09, such as ending a marriage or domestic partnership, and supplies the summons form, which gives the respondent 20 days to respond, or 60 days if served outside Washington or in a jail, detention facility, or prison.

Full Text of Rule 4.1

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b)

(a) Summons--General. Actions authorized by RCW 26.09 shall be commenced by filing a petition or by service of a copy of a summons together with a copy of the petition on respondent as provided in rule 4. Upon written demand by the respondent, the petitioner shall pay the filing fee and file the summons and petition within 14 days after service of the demand or the service shall be void. No summons is necessary if both spouses sign a joint petition or if the respondent files a written joinder in the proceeding.

(b) Summons--Content, Form.

(1) Content. The summons shall contain the title of the action, the name of the county and the court in which the action is brought, the names of the parties, as petitioner and respondent, a direction to the respondent to serve a copy of his or her response on the person who has signed the summons, the time limit within which the copy of the response must be served, notice that failure to serve a copy of the response within the stated time may result in a judgment by default, the signature and address of the petitioner or petitioner's attorney, and the date.

(2) Form. The summons for personal service in the state in an action for dissolution of marriage or domestic partnership shall be substantially in the form below. The summons for personal service in the state in any other action authorized by chapter 26.09 RCW should be adapted from this form. The summons for personal service out of state should be adapted from this form and must include the modifications required by statute. See RCW 4.28.180.

Superior Court of Washington, County of ___________________

In re marriage/domestic partnership of

Petitioner (person who started this case):

____________________________________

And Respondent (other spouse/partner):

____________________________________

No. ________________________

Summons: Notice about a Marriage or Domestic Partnership

TO THE RESPONDENT: The petitioner has started an action in the above court requesting to end your marriage / domestic partnership.

Important! Petitioner must complete the address boxes below. If Petitioner does not give a service address and the court’s address, this Summons will be invalid.

[ ] Petitioner [ ] Petitioner’s Lawyer (name):

Petitioner’s Address for Service: (This does not have to be a home address.)

You may only serve Petitioner by email if an email address is provided below or Petitioner otherwise agrees in writing. See All Civil 006 Agreement re: Service by Email.

[ ] Email (optional) – Petitioner agrees to accept service of legal papers for this case by email at this address:_____________________________________________________________

Superior Court of Washington, County of ____________________________________________

Court’s Address for filing:

You must respond to this summons in writing for the court to consider your side.

Deadline! Your Response must be served on Petitioner within 20 days of the date you were served this Summons (60 days if you were served outside of Washington State or served in a jail, detention facility, or prison). If the case has been filed in court, you must also file your Response by the same deadline.

If you do not file and serve your Response or a Notice of Appearance by the deadline:

▪ No one has to notify you about other hearings in this case, and

▪ The court may approve the Petitioner’s requests without hearing your side. (This is called a default judgment.)

▪ The court may enter an order ending your marriage/domestic partnership 90 days after service and filing of the petition is complete.

Lawyer not required. It is a good idea to talk to a lawyer, but you may file and serve your Response without one.

Follow these steps:

1. Read the Petition and any other documents you receive with this Summons. These documents explain what Petitioner is asking for.

2. Fill out the Response on one of these forms:

▪ Response to Petition about a Marriage (FL Divorce 211) if you are married, or

▪ Response to Petition about a Registered Domestic Partnership (FL Divorce 212) if you are a domestic partner.

You can get the Response and other forms at:

▪ The Washington State Courts website: www.courts.wa.gov/forms

▪ Washington Law Help: www.washingtonlawhelp.org, or

▪ The Superior Court Clerk’s office or county law library (for a fee).

3. Serve (give) a copy of your Response to Petitioner at the petitioner’s address for service listed on page 1.

4. File your original Response with the clerk of the court at the court’s address for filing listed on page 1.

_______________________________________________ ________________________

Signature of Petitioner or lawyer Date

______________________________________________________________________________

Print name of Petitioner or lawyer and WSBA No.

If there is no “Case No.” listed on page 1, this case may not have been filed and you will not be able to file a Response. Contact the Superior Court Clerk or check www.courts.wa.gov to find out.

If the case was not filed, you must still serve your Response, and you may demand that the Petitioner file this case with the court. Your demand must be in writing and must be served on the Petitioner or their lawyer (whoever signed this Summons). If the Petitioner does not file papers for this case within 14 days of being served with your demand, this service on you of the Summons and Petition will not be valid. If the Petitioner does file, then you must file your original Response with the court clerk at the address above.

If you serve a Notice of Appearance on the Petitioner, you are entitled to notice before an order of default or a decree may be entered.

This summons is issued pursuant to RCW 4.28.180 and Superior Court Civil Rule 4.1 of the State of Washington.

End

Amendment History

[Adopted effective July 1, 1967; Amended effective September 1, 1978; July 1, 1980; September 1, 1989; September 1, 2026.]

Plain-English Summary

Family law cases under RCW 26.09 — ending a marriage or a domestic partnership, and related actions — start much like any other civil case: by filing a petition, or by serving the respondent with a summons and a copy of the petition under Rule 4’s service methods. Rule 4.1 exists because these cases need summons language written for a respondent who is often a self-represented spouse or partner rather than a represented business.

A respondent can serve a written demand that the petitioner file the case. The petitioner then has 14 days to pay the filing fee and file the summons and petition, or the service is void. No summons is needed at all when both spouses sign a joint petition or the respondent files a written joinder in the proceeding.

The rule sets out the summons form itself, and the current form took effect September 1, 2026. The respondent must serve a Response on the petitioner within 20 days of being served, or within 60 days if served outside Washington or in a jail, detention facility, or prison, and must also file it by the same deadline if the case has been filed in court. A respondent who files and serves neither a Response nor a Notice of Appearance in time gets no notice of later hearings, and the court may approve the petitioner’s requests without hearing the respondent’s side and may enter an order ending the marriage or domestic partnership 90 days after service and filing of the petition is complete.

The form also does some housekeeping. The petitioner must fill in a service address and the court’s filing address, or the summons is invalid. The respondent may serve the petitioner by email only if the petitioner lists an email address or otherwise agrees in writing. And the form tells the respondent where to get the response forms and how to serve and file them.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is a case to end a marriage or domestic partnership started in Washington?

By filing a petition with the court, or by serving the respondent with a copy of a summons together with a copy of the petition, following the service methods in Rule 4.

Do both spouses need to be served with a summons in a dissolution case?

No. Rule 4.1 states that no summons is necessary if both spouses sign a joint petition or if the respondent files a written joinder in the proceeding.

How long does a respondent have to respond to the petition?

Twenty days from the date the respondent was served with the summons, or 60 days if the respondent was served outside Washington State or in a jail, detention facility, or prison. The Response must be served on the petitioner by that deadline and, if the case has been filed in court, filed by the same deadline.

What happens if the respondent does not respond in time?

If the respondent files and serves neither a Response nor a Notice of Appearance by the deadline, no one has to notify the respondent about other hearings, the court may approve the petitioner’s requests without hearing the respondent’s side (a default judgment), and the court may enter an order ending the marriage or domestic partnership 90 days after service and filing of the petition is complete.

What if the respondent wants the petitioner to file the case with the court?

The respondent may serve a written demand on the petitioner or the petitioner’s lawyer. If the petitioner does not file within 14 days after being served with the demand, the service of the summons and petition is void.

Can the respondent serve papers on the petitioner by email?

Only if the petitioner gives an email address on the summons or otherwise agrees in writing to accept service by email.

Is service handled differently in a dissolution case than in other civil cases?

Service still follows the methods set out in Rule 4; Rule 4.1 mainly supplies a summons form and content requirements tailored to actions under RCW 26.09.

Source & verification. Rule text and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Washington Superior Court Civil Rules, adopted by the Supreme Court of Washington. Last verified September 28, 2026. · Official source

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