Divorce

A divorce, or “dissolution of marriage,” (not including property division or custody orders) is a species of declaratory judgment to which most parties agree, and that being the case, is a pretty straightforward process.  It begins with the filing of an original petition for divorce in the county where one of the parties has lived for ninety days and can be formalized by decree of the court after the sixty-day waiting period, sometimes called the "reconciliation period."

The law requires grounds to be proved and there are several that can be pleaded.  Most folks file under no fault grounds, which requires a party to prove, usually on his or her own word, that the marriage has become insupportable due to conflict or discord of personalities that destroys the legitimate ends of the marriage relationship and that there is no reasonable expectation of reconciliation. This is the “I don’t like you anymore and I don’t want to live with you” grounds, which is generally sufficient for most purposes. Those seeking a divorce granted to him or her for fault of the other party have to prove that fault and may or may not see the disproportionate division they may be looking for if they do.

The end of the road for a divorce is a peace that passes understanding and a document called a Final Decree of Divorce.  The document can be short or long and will address as many aspects of your life as need be after your marriage is over, including property and parenting, as I’ll discuss in the pages that follow. You get that document because you negotiated its terms and everyone has signed it as agreed or you get it after the court hears evidence about the matters in dispute, makes those decisions for y’all, and has one of the lawyers draft the document and bring it back in for a signature.