Divorce is a court
process to legally end a marriage. In Arizona divorce is called "dissolution
of marriage" and court papers use the term dissolution of marriage
instead of divorce. Arizona uses a no-fault divorce standard that does
not require that one of the spouses prove blame or responsibility in
order to end the marriage. The only question for the court when a "standard"
marriage is involved is whether the marriage is "irretrievably
broken," meaning that there is no reasonable chance that the spouses
want to keep the marriage together.
Either you or your
spouse must be a resident of Arizona for at least 90 days before you
may file for a divorce. The divorce should be filed in the county in
which the person filing resides. The legal divorce process begins when
one spouse files a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage with the Superior
Court in the Arizona county where the spouse requesting the divorce
lives. If the parties are in agreement about property and debt division,
as well as child custody and child support matters, the divorce can
be finalized without a trial.
Under Arizona law,
a divorce cannot be granted by the court until at least 60 days after
the first court papers are delivered to the other spouse. If you and
your spouse are in agreement about getting a divorce and other issues,
the divorce can be finalized soon after the 60-day waiting period is
over. If you and your spouse are not in agreement on how to settle all
issues, the time it takes will depend on the complexity of your case
as well as the court's schedule.
A consent decree
can be obtained without even going to court if you and your spouse can
agree to all the terms of your divorce, including custody, parenting
time, child support, property issues, debt issues, spousal maintenance
and any other financial issues. The decree is the final order of the
court legally ending the marriage. Spouses are not "divorced"
until the court grants the divorce and the decree is signed by the judge.
Durational
residency requirements for all fifty states, and more.
All states require
a spouse to be a resident of the state -- often for at least six months
and sometimes for as long as one year -- before filing for a divorce
there. Someone who files for divorce must offer proof that he has resided
there for the required length of time. Only two states -- South Dakota
and Washington -- don't specify the period of time that qualifies you
for resident status. See the Durational Residency
by State chart, below.
If you think that
your spouse will file for divorce in another state, it may be prudent
to spend the money up front and file first -- in your home state. Rarely
is a divorce settled in one court appearance, and if your spouse files
elsewhere you could rack up a lot of traveling expenses. Also, any modifications
to the divorce decree, including the property settlement agreement and
arrangements for child custody and support -- must be filed in the original
state. This could keep you traveling out of state for years to come,
especially if you have children with your spouse.
Can one spouse move to a different state or country to get a divorce?
If one spouse meets
the residency requirement of a state or country, a divorce obtained
there is valid, even if the other spouse lives somewhere else. The courts
of all states will recognize the divorce.
Any decisions the
court makes regarding property division, alimony, custody and child
support, however, may not be valid unless the non-resident spouse consented
to the jurisdiction of the court or later acts as if the foreign divorce
was valid -- for example, by paying court-ordered child support.
Durational Residency
by State
Residency
Requirements and Grounds for Divorce