California Form FL-319, the Request for Attorney’s Fees and Costs Attachment, is a two-page Judicial Council form you attach to a Request for Order (Form FL-300) when you want the court to order the other party in your family law case to pay some or all of your attorney’s fees and litigation costs. To fill out California Form FL-319, you work through four substantive sections: why you’re asking (need and the other party’s ability to pay), who should pay and how much, how that amount breaks down between retainer, past fees, future fees, and limited-scope work, and any prior fee orders already in the case. The form only works when filed as part of a packet, so the sections you complete have to line up with the numbers in your Income and Expense Declaration and your supporting declaration.
What You File With FL-319
FL-319 does not stand alone. California Rules of Court, Rule 5.427, sets the full packet:1Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 2026 – Rule 5.427
- Form FL-300, Request for Order, the main motion that FL-319 attaches to.
- Form FL-319 itself.
- Form FL-150, Income and Expense Declaration, fully completed. The simplified version (FL-155) is not accepted for fee requests.
- Form FL-158, Supporting Declaration for Attorney’s Fees and Costs Attachment, explaining the work done, the work ahead, and why the amount is reasonable.2California Courts. Supporting Declaration for Attorney’s Fees and Costs Attachment (FL-158)
- Billing statements, engagement letters, or retainer agreements that back up the dollar figures.
You may substitute a personal declaration for FL-319 or FL-158, but it has to address every factor the official form covers. Using the Judicial Council forms is simpler and less likely to miss something. Download the current FL-319 from the California Courts website or pick one up at the clerk’s office.3Judicial Council of California. California Form FL-319 – Request for Attorney’s Fees and Costs Attachment
Filling Out FL-319 Section by Section
Section 1: Why You Are Filing
Section 1 has three checkboxes, and in most cases all three apply. You check that you need money for fees and costs to present your case adequately, that you have less access to funds for an attorney than the other party, and that the other party has or is likely to have the ability to pay for both sides’ representation. If you are receiving free legal services from a nonprofit legal aid organization or a volunteer attorney, there is an additional checkbox inside the first item to mark. This section establishes the need-and-ability framework the court requires under Family Code Section 2030.4California Legislative Information. California Code FAM 2030 Having some money of your own does not automatically disqualify you; Family Code Section 2032 directs the court to weigh the relative circumstances of both parties.5California Legislative Information. California Code, Family Code – FAM 2032
If your case is a parentage action rather than a divorce, the same framework applies under Family Code Section 7605.6California Legislative Information. California Code FAM 7605
Section 2: Who Pays and How Much
Check whether the petitioner, the respondent, or another party should pay. Then enter two dollar amounts: total fees and total costs. Fees are what your attorney charges for legal work. Costs are everything else: filing fees, deposition costs, expert fees, copying, and similar expenses. These numbers have to match what appears in your FL-158 declaration and attached billing records.
Section 3: Breakdown of the Request
Section 3 asks you to categorize the amount from Section 2. Check every box that applies and enter the matching dollar figure:
- A retainer fee to hire an attorney, if you need money upfront before the case can move forward.
- Fees and costs already incurred, meaning the total billed from the start of representation through today.
- Estimated future fees and costs, meaning what your attorney projects the rest of the case will cost.
- Limited-scope representation fees, if your attorney is handling only specific parts of the case rather than everything.
If your attorney has prepared a written estimate of future costs, attach it.
Section 4: Prior Fee Orders
If the court has already ordered attorney’s fees at an earlier point, describe that order here: the amount, the date, and whether the other party has actually paid. If there are no prior orders, check “No” and move on. This gives the judge the full history of fee-shifting in the case.
Section 6: Factors the Court Must Consider
Section 6 lists what the court needs to evaluate your request. You or your attorney should cover each item across the combined filings (FL-319, FL-158, and any attached declarations): your attorney’s hourly rate, the nature and difficulty of the litigation, your attorney’s experience with this type of case, the fees already incurred or expected, and why the requested amount is reasonable and necessary.3Judicial Council of California. California Form FL-319 – Request for Attorney’s Fees and Costs Attachment
The FL-150 That Backs It Up
Your Income and Expense Declaration is the financial backbone of the request. The judge uses it to compare both parties’ positions and decide whether a fee award is warranted. For attorney fee hearings, Rule 5.427 requires that you fully complete the sections covering savings, bank accounts, certificates of deposit, and money market accounts, as well as the section about attorney’s fees already incurred, currently owed, and where the money to pay them came from.1Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 2026 – Rule 5.427
An FL-150 counts as current only if you completed it within the past three months and nothing has changed since then.7Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 2026 – Rule 5.260 If your income or expenses have shifted, prepare a new one. Everything on this form is signed under penalty of perjury. Discrepancies between what you declare and what your bank statements or tax returns show can lead to sanctions or denial of the fee request.
Filing and Fees
Once the packet is complete, file everything with the clerk of the superior court in the county where your case is pending. The filing fee for a motion requiring a hearing is $60.8Superior Court of California. Statewide Civil Fee Schedule If you can’t afford it, file a Request to Waive Court Fees (Form FW-001) at the same time. You qualify if you receive certain public benefits, have low income, or lack enough income to cover basic needs and court costs.9California Courts | Self Help Guide. Request to Waive Court Fees FW-001
Many counties now offer or require electronic filing for family law cases. Check your local court’s website. If you file in person, bring an extra copy of everything so the clerk can stamp it for your records. The clerk then assigns a hearing date.
Serving the Other Party
After filing, you have to formally deliver the papers to the other side. Someone at least 18 years old who is not a party to the case must do this. You can’t serve the papers yourself.10California Courts. Serving Court Papers A friend, an uninvolved relative, or a professional process server all work.
The deadlines depend on the method:11California Courts | Self Help Guide. Serve Your Request for Order by Mail
- Personal service (hand delivery): at least 16 court days before the hearing.
- Service by mail within California: at least 16 court days plus 5 calendar days before the hearing.
- Service by mail out of state: at least 16 court days plus 10 calendar days.
- Service by mail outside the United States: at least 16 court days plus 20 calendar days.
Court days exclude weekends and court holidays, so count carefully. After service is complete, the server fills out a Proof of Service, Form FL-330 for personal service or FL-335 for mail, and you file that proof with the court.12Judicial Council of California. California Form FL-330 – Proof of Personal Service Without a filed proof of service, the court may not proceed with the hearing.
Mistakes That Get Fee Requests Denied
The most common problem is inconsistent numbers. If the dollar amount on FL-319 doesn’t match the total on FL-158 or the billing records attached, the court may deny the request outright or continue the hearing until you fix it. Cross-check every figure before filing.
An outdated FL-150 is another frequent error. If yours is more than three months old or your financial picture has changed, the court may refuse to consider it. Incomplete sections cause the same problem. Rule 5.427 specifically requires that the savings and bank account sections and the attorney fee sections of FL-150 be fully filled out for fee requests.1Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 2026 – Rule 5.427
Missing a service deadline wastes weeks. Serve too late and the other side can object; the court will likely reschedule. Count court days carefully and, when in doubt, serve early.
Vague declarations hurt more than people expect. “I need help paying my lawyer” is not enough. The court wants specifics: what work has been done, what remains, why the hourly rate is reasonable for your area, and why the other party can afford to contribute. The more detail you provide in FL-158, the less the judge has to guess.
A Note on Behavior-Based Fee Awards
FL-319 is the vehicle for need-based fee requests. If you want fees because the other party’s conduct has driven up litigation costs rather than because of a financial gap, that’s a separate request under Family Code Section 271, which does not use FL-319. Section 271 sanctions focus on behavior like refusing reasonable settlement offers, hiding financial information, filing frivolous motions, or ignoring court orders, and no showing of financial need is required.13California Legislative Information. California Code FAM – Section 271 You can pursue both tracks in the same case, but they travel on different paperwork.