If you’re looking for help with your divorce, there are plenty of divorce services out there to choose from. But it’s important to know what to look for before deciding on one.
A good service should offer easy-to-use forms, a money-back guarantee and excellent customer support. This will ensure that you’re getting the best service possible.
Table of Contents
Filing for a divorce
A divorce can be a life-changing event. Filing for one is a major step in reclaiming your life and taking control of your future.
Depending on your state, you will need to fill out several forms. You can find them on the court’s website or at your local Family Law Facilitator or Self-Help Center.
The forms ask for your legal name and address, the date you were married, and any children you have together. You also need to list the reason you want a divorce.
You can file for a divorce on any grounds you choose, but some common ones include adultery, abandonment, drug or alcohol addiction, mental illness, irreconcilable differences, insanity, and conviction of a crime.
You can ask the court for temporary orders while your divorce is pending, which will help you deal with the immediate issues you have. The court will hold a hearing, gather information from both parties, and rule on the request. Usually, the judge will grant a temporary order quickly.
Service of process
Service of process is the legal way to deliver court papers to a party and notify them that there is a lawsuit against them. This can be a crucial step in any divorce case because it ensures that both spouses know about the litigation and have a chance to respond or participate in the proceedings.
Whether you’re serving someone with a divorce petition or other documents, there are several ways to go about it. Personal service is the most commonly used method, but you can also serve the papers by mail.
In order to serve the papers by mail, you must send them with a notice and acknowledgment form that your spouse must date and sign, then return. You can also serve the papers by certified mail, which requires your spouse to sign a piece of paper directly attached to the envelope that he or she receives and then mail it back to you as proof of service.
Filing a response to a divorce petition
After you receive the divorce petition, it’s important to file your response as quickly as possible. This will ensure that the case doesn’t move forward without you, and you can protect your rights in the process.
A response to a divorce petition is important because it gives you the chance to let the court know that you disagree with some of the statements made in the papers served on you. This will help the court determine if you have grounds for a divorce and how to handle any issues you may have regarding child custody, support, property rights, or other aspects of your situation.
You must file your answer within 20 days of the date you received the papers. You can extend this time frame if you submit a Stipulation and Order to Extend the Time to Answer with the court, but it’s not mandatory.
Getting a divorce
If you and your spouse agree on all the major issues (such as child custody, visitation, spousal support, and property division), you can usually get a divorce relatively quickly. However, if you and your spouse cannot agree on some or all issues, your divorce will take longer.
In a contested divorce, you and your spouse must negotiate and reach agreement on all issues in your case. This can be done on your own or with the help of a divorce mediator.
Generally, mediation is a faster and less expensive way to resolve disputes between divorcing couples. During mediation, a neutral third party helps you and your spouse work through the difficult aspects of your case, such as how to divide property and how much money you will need to pay spousal support.
Alternatively, you and your spouse can go to trial and have a judge make the final decisions for you. At trial, you and your spouse present evidence and call witnesses to support their claims about custody, child support, spousal support, and property distribution.