How to get a divorce: tips for filing for divorce
You can get divorced in 3 ways:
- Do it on your own without help
- Hire a divorce attorney
- Use an online divorce service to complete the paperwork for you.
Get a divorce on your own
This is the cheapest method, but it also requires you to take the time to figure out the paperwork. You can make mistakes that can delay the divorce process. To divorce on your own, it is best if you and your spouse agree on all aspects. If you don’t, you can represent yourself in a contested divorce lawsuit, but if your spouse has an attorney, you will be at a significant disadvantage.
Get a divorce with a lawyer
I recommend this if you and your spouse cannot agree on the terms of the divorce or if your divorce is complex (involves a lot of property and / or complicated child custody issues). However, if your divorce is simple and all the terms of the divorce are agreed between you and your spouse, you can do it on your own, with or without the help of a divorce service.
Using an online divorce service
A divorce service does not give you legal advice. Instead, he answers questions about your divorce and then the divorce service completes the paperwork for you for a fee. This is generally much less expensive than hiring an attorney to complete your paperwork and saves you the hassle of solving the paperwork on your own.
If you are not comfortable processing your divorce without legal advice, you can complete the paperwork and then arrange a consultation with an attorney. You will pay for that time. Some divorce attorneys will review the documentation, have an idea of what your divorce entails, and then give you an opinion as to whether the terms are reasonable.
Legal requirements for divorce
File for divorce in a particular state or province. In other words, it is not done at the federal level.
Residence due to divorce
Each state and province requires that you or your spouse have resided for a stipulated period of time before you are eligible to file for divorce in that state or province. Six months is common, but could be shorter.
Waiting period
Most states / provinces have a waiting period from the filing date of the documentation to the issuance of the divorce order. Waiting periods are typically 6 to 12 months.
Legal grounds for divorce
More and more states and provinces are granting no-fault divorces. This means that you are filing for divorce on the basis that the breakdown of the marriage is permanent. The legal language is “irreconcilable differences.” This basis for divorce does not blame either party.
Some states and provinces still have fault-based grounds, such as substance abuse, cruelty, adultery, and other grounds.
Main problems of divorce
The main problems of divorce are:
- Property division
- Debt division
- Child / Spousal Support
- Child custody
Not all divorce situations will include all of these issues. Every divorce situation is different. However, when these issues arise, they must be resolved at some point in the divorce process. This can happen early in the process through an agreement between you and your spouse. Sometimes when an agreement cannot be reached, the issues must be taken to mediation and / or to Court.
How to file for divorce
Please note that this article is general. Divorce is legislated by each state and province and, therefore, there are specific laws for filing for divorce in each state and province.
That said, you generally file for divorce through a divorce petition (in some jurisdictions it may be called something else, but it’s the same). One of the spouses completes and files the divorce petition in court.
The petition states:
- the reasons (fault or not fault)
- Key information about the parties and the marriage, such as children, place and date of marriage, names of parties, property information, child custody information, and / or support information (child and / or spouse).
Once the petition has been successfully filed in court, the petitioning party must deliver a filed copy to the other spouse, who is called the defendant or defendant.
If the divorce is uncontested, which means that all the terms are agreed between the parties, then the defendant only needs to sign an acknowledgment of having received the service of the petition. If you cannot find the other spouse to serve the petition, you may need to hire a process server to handle the service.
It is important that you submit the petition according to the rules of your state or province. If the service is not performed properly, the divorce proceedings will be delayed. You may not receive your divorce order until the service is successful.
The waiting period
Most states and provinces have a waiting period until a divorce decree (also known as a decree or order) is issued. The length of the waiting period depends on the state and province. Once the petition is successfully served, this is usually when the waiting period begins. Service of a petition is an activation date in the sense that the spouses cannot remove the children from the jurisdiction, sell property, borrow against the property, or sell the insurance that the other spouse has until the divorce is final.
If you must take a step, such as removing the children from the jurisdiction, you must ask the Court for an order for what you want to do.
If the defendant challenges the divorce, you can file an answer to the petition. This would trigger a legal process in the courts that you will need to participate in in order for the issues of the divorce to be resolved.
If the defendant does not file an answer, then the petitioner can request a predetermined order within 30 days after the service (or as long as the defendant has to respond in the particular state or province).