The Anatomy Of A Divorce Case

Even though divorce cases happen to be quite common these days, filing for a divorce is one long and very complicated legal procedure that is also quite painful to go through. Couples going through a divorce will often require legal representation from a family law attorney; it is important to hire divorce attorneys who are experienced in that particular rules that apply in a certain jurisdiction and especially the part of the country that you come from.

What is a Divorce: Divorce cases are all about the termination of a marriage which is referred to as dissolution of marriage in the legal lingo; what happens are actually legal proceedings that can also be done in a court. There are different categories of divorce cases namely contested and uncontested. In contested divorce cases, the parties are usually unable to agree on at least on the issue while in the uncontested divorce the parties are in agreement on all matters pertaining to the impending divorce. A legal separation, which is till offered in a number of states, will only terminate the parties’ right of cohabitation but not necessarily the legal status of their marriage.

Filing for Divorce: Once the parties have retained experienced divorce attorneys, the person who is seeking the divorce will be expected to prepare a petition for divorce and file it with the court within the state in which he or she is resident. Different states have their different residency requirements regarding how long a couple must have lived within that state before they can be legally eligible to file for divorce. You must, therefore, familiarize yourself with the laws operating in your state or ask a family law attorney to advise you accordingly.

Grounds for Divorce: Every state has its distinct set of family law which dictates the statutory grounds for filing divorce cases; the grounds for divorce are usually classified as either fault or no-fault. There are states that offer both as available grounds while there are a number of states that completely done away with the fault divorce cases altogether. For example, New York is the only state in the U.S that doesn’t offer the no-fault divorce option.

In fault divorce cases there is a requirement to prove some wrongdoing by either of the spouses which has to be followed by evidentiary proceedings that have to prove the wrongdoing. Every state has its own definition via statutes on grounds that constitute that basis by which a fault can be found; some of the most common grounds include abuse, cruel treatment, prolonged imprisonment, and adultery.

In no-fault divorce cases, none of the parties is under any obligation to prove that their spouse was engaged in any wrongdoing; a spouse can granted the no-fault divorce simply because the marriage may have become irretrievably broken or that both parties have some irreconcilable differences.