Introduction
Divorce is a common legal phenomenon in the US and it depends on the couple’s socio-economic situation. Typically, childless short-term marriages result in a less complex time-consuming divorce than long-term marriages with weighty property entanglements, marital debts and kids below the consent age. Divorcing couples who negotiate the terms of divorce experience a less expensive and less stressful divorce than those who cannot work together. Analytically, divorce is a legal process that involves filing the petition, serving the spouse with the petition, response to the petition, the trial process, and the concluding judgment.
Analysis of Legal Process
Legally, divorce process begins with a divorce petition that is written by either of the spouses and served on to the other spouse. The law recognizes the one that has created the petition as a petitioner. Then, the petition is filed in a state court in the county where one of the spouses lives. The petition incorporates the important information concerning the marriage. Specifically the data include names of the wife, husband and children, properties and their types of ownership, child custody and spousal support. Therefore, petition document serves in providing the details that are important in initiating the divorce process.
Once the petition formulation is complete, the divorce papers must be served on to the other spouse. If both the spouses agree to the divorce, the receiving party only needs to sign the receipt of service. Nevertheless, if the respondent refuses to sign the papers or there is a difficulty location tracing, a professional server is engage to deliver the papers to the spouse. Completion of the service process ushers a state’s waiting period. Categorically, restraining orders are imposed on the spouses and this enables them to establish the separation date. The spouses are barred from taking any children out of the state, selling the properties, transacting against the property, borrowing or selling of the insurance cover held for the other spouse. Notably, the respondent also has a right of response to the petition filed.
It is not a legal requirement for a respondent to file a disagreeing or an agreement response to the divorce petition. However, doing that affirms both parties’ agreement to the divorce. Also responding to a petition increases the possibility of the case proceeding without court hearing that can delay the process and make it costly. If a response is not filed within a month, the petitioner can ask that a default be entered by the court. Remarkably, response to the petition can be used by the respondent to disagree with the information presented in the petition.
The final steps in a divorce process are the trial and the final judgment. Before the settlement of the divorce case, the couples are required to disclose the information regarding their assets, liabilities, and expenses. If the divorce is uncontested, the couple can formulate the terms of the divorce with the help of a family attorney. Nevertheless, the marriage is not formally dissolved until the end of the state’s waiting period, therefore they cannot remarry. If there exist are issues that cannot be resolved, court hearings are scheduled before final decision is reached. Clearly, courts act as the arbiters to marital issues pertaining to divorce and their decisions affect the outcomes in a divorce process.
Conclusion
In summary, divorce is an elaborate legal process that involves petitioning, service process and responding to the petition, a trial process if there are issues and the final court judgment. Either of the spouses can formulate a petition which is then served to a respondent. On receiving the divorce papers, the respondent may choose to agree or disagree by filing a response to the petition. If there is no response filed then the petitioner asks the court a default to be entered by the court hence authorizing the divorce to proceed. Response in disagreement with the petition instigates a court process to resolve the underlying issues before judgment is delivered.