When people decide to get a divorce, they usually don't know what to expect. Divorce is a complicated legal process, and it can be full of unpleasant surprises and frustrating delays. A general understanding of what's likely to happen can help you feel more comfortable at an uncomfortable time.
The following chronology gives a general idea of how the average divorce proceeds. Your divorce may be a different because of various facts of your case or because of specific issues between you and your spouse. For example, arguments over where your kids will live and how to split up your 401k can make the process more complex. I can help you understand exactly how your divorce will fit with this chronology. Remember, your attorney works for you, and should clearly explain every step of your divorce.
- To start off the divorce, one of the spouses gets a lawyer, who writes up a Petition (a fancy word for asking the Court to do something for you). This Petition says why the spouse wants a divorce and how he or she wants to settle financial, custody, and other issues.
- The lawyer files the Petition with the Court. The lawyer or the Court makes sure that the Petition is served on the other spouse, together with a citation that requires that spouse's response.
- The served spouse has to answer within a certain time (usually about 20 days). The Answer says whether or not the served spouse agrees with the Petition. If he or she doesn't answer the petition, the court assumes that he or she agrees to its terms. The Answer says how the served spouse would prefer to deal with divorce decisions.
- The couple exchanges documents and other information about issues such as property and income. By examining this information, the couple and the Court can decide how to divide up property and how to deal with child support and spousal maintenance.
- Sometimes the couple can voluntarily resolve all their issues through mediation or settlement. Most Courts require that divorcing couples go through this process.
- If a settlement is reached, the settlement agreement is shown to a Judge at an informal hearing called a "prove up." The client's attorney will ask a few basic factual questions to confirm that each party understands and chose to sign the agreement.
- If the Judge approves the agreement (which is the majority of the time), the Judge will require the agreement to be written in the form of a Final Decree of Divorce, and presented to the Court with all the attorneys and parties signatures on it. The Court will then sign the Final Decree of Divorce. On the other hand, if the Judge does not approve the agreement or if the couple does not reach an agreement, the case will go to trial.
- At trial, the attorneys present evidence and arguments for each side, and the Judge decides the unresolved issues, including child custody and visitation, child and spousal maintenance, and property division. Once the Judge has reached his or her decision, the Judge grants the divorce based on that decision.
- Either or both spouses can appeal a Judge's decision to a higher court. But it's unusual for an appeals court to overturn a Judge's decision. Also, remember that settlements usually cannot be appealed if both spouses agree to their terms.
It's hard to say how long all these steps will take in your case. The entire process can take from as little as a few months, to as long as several years. Generally speaking, the more the couple can cooperate and agree to reasonable compromises, the smoother and faster the divorce will go.
