Finalizing a divorce case requires resolving issues related to spousal support, property division, and attorney’s fees. When the parties have children, they must also address issues related to allocation of parental responsibilities (formerly custody), parenting time (formerly visitation), child support, and payment of additional child-related expenses. Generally, a divorce case includes the following steps.
Initiating a Divorce Case
A divorce case is initiated by the filing of a petition for dissolution of marriage. The spouse who files the divorce case is considered the Petitioner and the other spouse is considered the Respondent. The Respondent must be served with the petition for dissolution of marriage by the Sheriff of by a special process server. The Respondent then has thirty (30) days to file an appearance and answer the petition for dissolution of marriage. The Respondent may also file a counter-petition for dissolution of marriage contemporaneously with the appearance and answer.
Exchanging Preliminary Disclosures
Once the Respondent’s appearance and answer are filed, the parties begin the preliminary financial disclosure process. In cases that involve children, parties also begin negotiating the terms of their allocation and parental responsibilities (decision-making) and parenting time (visitation), individually, through their attorneys, or by participating in mediation. The parenting terms are incorporated into a Judgment for Allocation Parental Responsibilities and Parenting Plan which can be entered at any stage of the proceeding.
The first step for financial disclosure includes exchanging financial affidavits and supporting documents. The financial affidavit requires the parties to disclose their income, expenses, assets, and liabilities, under the penalties of perjury. The financial affidavit must be accurate, as tendering a misleading financial affidavit may result in sanctions and prolong the case.
Apart from requiring disclosure of information that is necessary to resolve issues related to spousal support or maintenance, child support, property designation as marital or non-marital, and property division, financial affidavits must be produced before a party can request formal discovery from the other party.
Conducting and Complying with Discovery
Once a spouse tenders a financial affidavit, that spouse has the right to conduct more thorough discovery by issuing marital interrogatories, and requests for production of documents to the other party. The party who receives the discovery requests, has twenty-eight (28) days to formally respond to the requests. During the discovery process, parties may also issue subpoenas to obtain documents directly from third parties, retain experts to value real estate, businesses, retirement accounts including pensions, art, vehicles, and any other assets. They may also conduct depositions to obtain all the information that is necessary to resolve the issues in their case.
Negotiating and Finalizing the Marital Settlement Agreement
After the parties complete discovery, they begin to negotiate the terms of a marital settlement agreement which will outline the following financial issues without limitation: amount and duration of maintenance and/or waiver of maintenance for either or both parties; amount and duration of child support and contribution to any additional child related expenses(including, without limitation, health insurance premiums, unreimbursed medical, extracurricular, and educational expenses); designation of child dependency exemption and/or child tax credits; classification of property as marital or non-marital assets; allocation of property and liabilities between the parties; filing of tax returns and issues that may arise as a result of prior joint returns; and any contribution towards attorney’s fees.
Finalizing the Divorce
Upon finalizing the marital settlement agreement, the parties then schedule a prove up hearing before the Judge to finalize the divorce. At the prove up the Petitioner testifies regarding the allegations in the petition for dissolution of marriage, including, without limitation, the grounds for the divorce (irreconcilable difference have led to an irretrievable breakdown of marriage). The parties are asked to affirm their understanding and approval of the marital settlement agreement and to confirm some of the agreed upon terms. The Judge then enters the Judgment for Dissolution of Marriage which incorporates the marital settlement agreement, and the divorce is finalized.
Alternatively, if the parties cannot enter into a martial settlement agreement, or otherwise cannot resolve issues in a divorce case, the case must be scheduled for a hearing or trial. The Judge will then decide any and all issues and enter a Judgment for Dissolution of Marriage.
The divorce process may take months, or even years to complete. The duration of a divorce case depends largely on, 1) the complexity of the issues involved, 2) the availability of information necessary to resolve certain issues, 3) prompt and complete financial disclosure and compliance with discovery by both parties, 4) need for temporary relief, and 5) each party’s willingness to be reasonable in the negotiation of a divorce settlement.
Divorce can be an intimidating process, but it does not have to be. If you are considering filing for divorce or are already a party in a divorce case, retain an experienced divorce lawyer to help you through the process. Our attorneys are skilled at navigating the divorce and family law cases at any stage of litigation. Contact us today for a free consultation.
