Uncontested Divorce Process
These are the steps you will go through in an uncontested divorce proceeding:
FIRST: After you retain your attorney (usually involving the execution of an employment contract
and the payment of an initial fee deposit), your divorce petition will be prepared by your attorney
and filed at the courthouse. The divorce petition simply provides the court with general
information including your name, residence, date of marriage, date of separation, and requests
that the court grant a divorce.
SECOND; After filing the divorce petition we will receive a receipt which tells us the court in which
your case is filed and the cause number which is assigned to it. A file on your case is opened at
the courthouse.
If you and your spouse have reached agreements on every issue involved in your case and
you have provided this office with all the information we need, we will then prepare the following
paperwork:
Waiver of Service: Your spouse signs the Waiver acknowledging receipt of a copy of the
Petition for Divorce and agrees that the divorce can proceed without further notice to him/her.
This document eliminates the need to serve the spouse with citation. It must be signed in the
presence of a Notary Public. The Waiver of Service cannot be signed until after the divorce
petition is filed.
Agreed Final Decree of Divorce: The Decree is actually the court order. It sets out child
custody, support, visitation, and provides for medical insurance for the child/ren; what is currently
referred to as a parenting plan. The Decree also incorporates the property division and grants
the divorce. It must be signed by both spouses.
Wage Withholding Order and Medical Child Support Order: These documents will be
prepared if there are children involved in your case.
Special Warranty Deed, etc: Any real estate documents necessary to transfer title to real
estate.
Qualified Domestic Relations Orders: If retirement benefits are being divided in the divorce
a QDRO will be prepared.
Powers of Attorney to Transfer Motor Vehicles: Form necessary to transfer title to a car, etc.
to the person who is being awarded that particular vehicle.
THIRD: You will be provided with your final documents along with instructions telling you exactly
what to do with them.
FOURTH: After you return the signed papers to this office, we have done all the paperwork that
needs to be done. The law requires that the divorce petition be on file at least 60 days before
going to court. This means if your divorce is filed with the courthouse on January 1, the earliest
we can get your divorce is on or about March 2. We can take longer if we need to.
Note: Your divorce could be dismissed by the court if not finalized within the timeframe
prescribed by the court. You will be advised if we receive notice that your divorce is
up for dismissal. It is your responsibility to keep this office up to date on your address
and telephone number.
FIFTH: Once the 60 days are up and we have all the paperwork done, we can schedule a date to
go to the courthouse. The court does not schedule the hearing date; the attorney and client
simply appear in court on a mutually convenient day. Call or e-mail the office to schedule your
court date. All paperwork must have been signed and returned and the 60 days must have
elapsed before we go to court.
Our courts require that divorcing parents (those who have children of the marriage being
dissolved) attend a parenting class. Once attended you and your spouse will be given a
Certificate of Completion. Please provide me with those Certificates as we will need to give them
to the court on your court date.
Note: The Court could dismiss your case if it is not provided with these Certificates of
Completion of the parenting class. Names of parenting classes can be obtained
from the Resources page of this website.