A no-fault divorce is one in which the filing spouse is not required to prove fault on the other person’s part. All the filing spouse must do is provide a legitimate reason for a divorce, such as an irreparable breakdown or irreconcilable differences. The other spouse cannot object to a no-fault divorce, as the court may regard the objection as one of those differences. All jurisdictions recognize a no-fault divorce, but some require spouses to live separately for a certain period before filing for divorce.
Fault-Based Divorces
These aren’t as common as no-fault divorces and are no longer recognized in many areas. In the limited areas recognizing fault-based divorces, a spouse and their divorce attorney in Temecula, request a dissolution based on the other person’s wrongdoing. The most common reasons for a fault-based divorce are:
• Infidelity
• Abandonment
• Incarceration
• Physical inability to consummate a marriage
• Mental or physical abuse
No jurisdiction requires spouses in a fault-based divorce to separate for a certain period. Proving a spouse’s fault often provides the other person with a larger share of the marital assets. These characteristics make fault-based divorces an attractive option in some cases.
Fault Divorce Defenses
Unlike no-fault divorces, spouses can object by presenting a defense or disproving the fault. The following defenses are commonly used in fault-based divorce cases.
Connivance: This absolute adultery defense argues that the complainant participated in or agreed to the adulterous conduct.
• Condonation: Here, a spouse claims that the other party was aware of the conduct, forgave it and continued marital relations.
• Recrimination: This occurs when a complainant is engaging in similar behavior, such as when both spouses have been unfaithful.
• Provocation: It occurs when either spouse is enticed to behave in a particular way. For instance, if one spouse abuses another, and the abused person leaves the marital home, the abuser cannot claim abandonment as grounds for a divorce.
It is in the spouse’s best interests to visit the website or call the Law Office of Michelle Penna if he or she receives divorce papers. There may be jurisdictional issues at play, such as the states in which spouses live, and where children live. A divorce attorney in Temecula is equipped to help couples sort through all these issues, and they can advise a client on what they should do.
