Filing a Divorce Complaint

After drafting the divorce complaint, it must be filed at the appropriate court division. Many jurisdictions have a special division that handles family law cases, such as a divorce action. A divorce complaint form may be ordered online or obtained at the courthouse. The plaintiff must ensure that all necessary accompanying documents are included, such as a marriage certificate. The court clerk will then review the divorce complaint to ensure it has been filled out adequately. Filing for a divorce can usually be done either in person or by mail (1).

Docket Number for Divorce Case

Once the court clerk has accepted the divorce complaint, he or she will assign the divorce case a docket number. It is important to record this docket number for future reference. The docket number will be used on all later divorce case documents. You may also need your docket number in the future if you need to contact the court for additional questions regarding your divorce case (1).

Venue for Divorce Case

When filing a divorce complaint, you must ensure you are filing with the correct court division. The proper venue for filing will be a court which has subject matter jurisdiction over divorce actions. Venue rules will vary from state to state, therefore it may be beneficial to consult a divorce lawyer to determine which court division is the correct venue. Usually, a divorce action should be filed where either the plaintiff or defendant lives or where the cause of action arose. Various other factors, such as where the children reside or where the spouses last lived together can play a role in determining the proper divorce venue (1).

Filing Fees and Fee Waivers for a Divorce Complaint

The court will charge a filing fee for a divorce action in most states. These filing fees help cover court administrative costs related to processing your divorce. However, states are required to allow low-income divorce plaintiffs to apply for a waiver of the filing fee. This ensures everybody has access to divorce courts. Some qualified plaintiffs may be eligible for the state to pay for costs related to service of process and even costs related to discovery. You may need to consult a divorce lawyer in order to determine if you qualify for fee and costs waivers related to your divorce case (1).

Filing for a divorce can be complicated in some cases. Many times it is unclear which is the proper venue to file the divorce complaint. Additionally, each state has its own rules regarding which accompanying documents are required. After the divorce complaint has been filed, it is the plaintiff's responsibility to ensure that the a copy of the divorce complaint is served properly to the other spouse (2). It may be in your best interest to hire a divorce attorney in order to file your divorce case correctly.

Sources:

(1) Family Law for Paralegals by J. Shoshanna Ehrlich, published in 2005.
(2) FindLaw: Filing and Serving the Divorce/Dissolution Petition: http://family.findlaw.com/divorce/divorce-process/divorce-filing.html