DO I NEED MY SPOUSE’S AGREEMENT TO GET A DIVORCE?
I think this notion comes from old Humphrey Bogart movies “I’ll NEVER give you a divorce!” You do not need a signature of the agreement of your spouse to file for divorce. You don’t need the other person’s agreement to file any kind of lawsuit including suits for child support when the parties are not married.
HOW DOES A DIVORCE OR SUPPORT/PARENTING MATTER BEGIN?
This is a good question. All lawsuits begin with a pleading being filed with the court in which the client asks the court for something. In a divorce it is a PETITION FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE. In a support/parenting matter where the parties are not married, it begins with a PETITION FOR DECLARATION OF PATERNITY. The pleading needs to be served by the Sheriff on the other party along with a summons. There are filing fees involved but at that point the matter has begun.
WHAT WILL THE TOTAL COST OF MY DIVORCE BE?
Well, that is a tricky question. Family law attorneys charge by the hour for our time. The more time that needs to be dedicated to a matter, the more it will cost. Think of it in terms of what is disputed. If the parties have agreements on parenting time, division of property and child support or maintenance, the cost is less because there are no disputed hearings or long negotiations on these issues. If however there is violence involved and an order of protection needs to be obtained through the court and /or the parties are hiding assets and refusing to enter into negotiations, the divorce is greater. I always try to be as economical as possible in dealing with my cases.
HOW LONG WILL MY DIVORCE TAKE?
I hear this a lot and usually respond with “let’s get it started first.” The same standards are used to determine the duration of time to finalize your divorce as you read above regarding the total cost of the divorce. If the parties have agreements on the big issues (parenting, division of assets and support issues) the time to finalize your divorce is shorter. If however assets are being hidden or there are disputes on parenting time, the divorce takes longer. The good thing is that the judges have rules about the duration of divorce matters, and they move the manners forward to either a final settlement or a trial with more speed than years ago.
WHAT ARE THE MAJOR ISSUES TO BE RESOLVED IN A DIVORCE MATTER?
When the court grants a dissolution of marriage, it has to be certain that child related issues are addressed (support, parenting, formerly custody, medical and life insurance costs are assigned). Further the assets acquired during the marriage (MARITAL PROPERTY) has to be divided fairly and nonmarital property (acquired outside the marriage) has to be assigned appropriately . If the incomes of the parties are sufficiently different , maintenance (formerly know as alimony) has to be calculated using the new statute. Debts are divided fairly.