12. 'Shall' is mandatory and 'may' is permissive. 'Shall not' and 'may not' are prohibitory.(Enacted by Stats. 1992, Ch. 162, Sec. 10. Operative January 1, 1994.)
California Legal Code
§ 12
Source: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displayText.xhtml?lawCode=FAM&division=1.&title=&part=1.&chapter=&article=· Version 2026