Washington, D.C. Divorce Information Online

Divorce in the District of Columbia

Under District of Columbia law, you have the right to represent yourself in all legal cases, including divorce.

The legal term for representing yourself is "pro se" (pronounced "pro say"), which is Latin for "on your own behalf." Representing yourself is not a good idea for everyone. It is important to understand that by representing yourself, you may be giving up important rights. It is very important for you to find out if your spouse has a pension, retirement account, insurance or other significant property before you decide whether to file your own divorce. If you do not ask for such things in the divorce, you will give them up forever.

Before you file for divorce on your own, you need to talk to your spouse, if possible, and find out how he or she feels about the divorce and the issues mentioned above. This will give you an indication on how to proceed with the divorce.

The law limits the authority of the court to grant divorces and the law also dictates when the court has jurisdiction over a divorce proceeding.

Within the District of Columbia, the D.C. Family Court, which is part of the D.C. Superior Court, has jurisdiction to hear divorce cases. When you file the relevant papers, you must have stated your grounds for that court to have jurisdiction. If not state correctly, your spouse may file a motion to dismiss your case.

• The courthouse is located at 500 Indiana Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001 (at 5th and D streets, N.W.)
• It is one block from the Judiciary Square Metro stop (Red line) or one block from the Archives/Navy Memorial stop (Green/Yellow lines). See http://www.dccourts.gov/ for more information about the D.C. court system.

Q. What is the difference between contested and uncontested divorces?

A. A divorce is uncontested if both you and your spouse agree to the divorce and are in complete agreement about dividing your mar­ital property (which includes assets and debts), the custody and sup­port for any children, and whether one spouse will pay alimony to the other. A divorce is contested when you and your spouse cannot agree on one or more of these issues, even if you both agree that you want the divorce.

Q. How do I get an uncontested divorce case started?

A. An uncontested divorce goes through the court system more quickly. You and your spouse may file a Complaint for Absolute Divorce and a Consent Answer at the same time, and the plaintiff would not have to serve the papers on the defendant.

Q. Does it make a difference whether I am the plaintiff or the defendant?

A. In most cases, no. In a divorce case, the main difference is that if the divorce is uncontested, the plaintiff will have to go to court and tes­tify at a brief hearing. If the divorce is contested and the parties do not reach a settlement agreement, there will be a trial. At a trial the plaintiff presents his or her evidence first.

Service of Process

When you file papers with the court, everyone on the other side of the case is entitled to receive a copy. You are responsible for getting the copies to them. This is called service of process. After you file your papers, if your spouse lives in Washington, D.C., he or she has 60 days to respond to your request for divorce (known as a complaint). If your spouse fails to respond, the court will proceed with the divorce so long as service of process has been completed correctly. Whether or not your spouse responds, you will have to appear before the court in a hearing scheduled by the clerk. At the end of the hearing, the court will decide at some later time, normally 30 days, to grant a divorce and a settlement of marital issues.

You must serve the summons and complaint in one of these ways:

• Personal Service — Ask an adult who is not involved in the case to hand the summons and complaint personally to the other party. You cannot do this yourself. You can ask a friend, a relative or a professional process server to serve the papers.
• Substitute Service at Home — Ask an adult who is not involved in the case to hand the summons and complaint personally to another adult who actually lives in the same home as the other party. You cannot do this yourself. You can ask a friend, a relative or a professional process serv­er to serve the papers.
• Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested — Mail the summons and complaint by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the other party. You can do this yourself at the post office. The post office will mail the return receipt (sometimes called the "green card") back to you after the letter is delivered. You may mail the papers to any address where the other party receives mail, including the home or work address. The other party, or an adult who actually lives in the same home, must personally sign the green card.

Proof of Marriage Requirement

To meet the proof of marriage requirement, the plaintiff must prove that there is a valid marriage before the court can grant a divorce. The plaintiff must bring an official copy of the marriage certificate, with a raised seal, from the state where they were married. If you and your spouse married in D.C., you can obtain one at the D.C. Superior Court, which is located at 500 Indiana Avenue NW, room 4485. If you have a common law marriage, there is no marriage certificate, so the plaintiff must provide testimony of friends and family or personal records, such as photographs and letters, to prove that a common law marriage exists.

How to Start the Divorce Process

In order to start the divorce process you must file a complaint where you or your spouse lives. In your complaint or at the hearing, you will have to meet the residency requirement for the ground you specified above. Divorce laws apply only to the residents of a state, and each state has its own residency requirements. To meet the residency requirement, either you or your spouse must have lived in D.C. continuously for at least six months at the time you file your Complaint for Absolute Divorce. The law absolutely requires that you or your spouse has been a resident for the stated period of time immediately prior to and at the time that you file for a divorce. For example, you cannot have lived in the District of Columbia for six months before moving to Nebraska for another six months and then have come back to the District of Columbia to file for a divorce. However, after you have filed, you can move anywhere in the world.

Same State, Different Addresses

You do not have to remain at the same address to fulfill your residency requirement. You can move anywhere within the state from which you are filing. The forms do not require you to list all addressees, but you should be prepared to prove where you lived during the separation in the final hearing.

Proof of Residency

Your residency is substantiated by your sworn complaint. The testimony is all that most courts require to verify residency. But cases have been dismissed and even overturned because of improper proof of residency.

Resident Versus Nonresident

A court may take on a divorce proceeding even if your spouse is not a resident of the District of Columbia. If you or your spouse move to another state after the divorce has been filed, you may still have your case heard in the District of Columbia.

Q. I was not married in D.C. Does that matter?

A. It does not matter where you were married. If either you or your spouse has been a resident of D.C. for six months before you file for divorce, you can get a divorce through the D.C. court.

How To Establish Residency

Register to vote. Get a driver's license. Get a job. Open charge accounts. Register your car. Take out a library card. The list is endless. But whatever you do, do not maintain a residence in another state that could imply that you do not intend to remain in the state from which you file.

Divorce: Fault and No-Fault

Divorce is the ending of a marriage ordered by a court. In the District of Columbia, however, you could ask for two types of divorce: absolute or a legal separation. When the court decrees (orders) an absolute divorce, it means that the divorce is permanent, permits remarriage and terminates property claims. When the court decrees a legal separation, it means that the divorce is not permanent, does not permit remarriage and does not terminate property claims; it serves only to legalize the separation and provide for support. You are not required to get a legal separation before you can get an absolute divorce — there is a common misconception that you need a legal separation in order to get a divorce. This is not the case.

Annulment establishes that your marital status never existed. The court will declare that you were never married. Because the courts rarely grant an annulment, you should think twice about using this route if you want to end your marriage. The court may look to, but is not limited to, the legitimacy of children and the preservation of the sanctity of marriage. Because of these considerations a court will look favorably upon granting a divorce instead of an annulment

Grounds

There are three principal players involved in your marriage that will also be involved in your divorce: you, your spouse and the state. You cannot simply break up, saddle your charger and ride off into the sunset. Among other legal considerations, you have to give the state an acceptable reason why you should be allowed to break up. The reason is known as the ground for your divorce. Over the years each state has enacted legislation that governs acceptable grounds.

To meet the grounds requirement, you must prove that you and your spouse have been separated for a certain period of time. Since D.C. is a no-fault jurisdiction, there are only two grounds for divorce in the District of Columbia:

• Six-Month Mutual and Voluntary Separation — You and your spouse have agreed mutually and voluntarily to separate and have been living apart, without cohabitation (sexual relations), for at least six months before the date you file.
• One-Year Separation — You and your spouse have been living separate and apart, without cohabitation, for at least one year before filing for a divorce, whether or not you have agreed to separate.

You and your spouse can live separate and apart even if you are living in the same house or apartment. The law says you must show that you have shared "neither bed nor board." This means that you had separate bedrooms, and that you do not go out together as a couple, share meals, pay bills jointly or otherwise act as married.

Q. Can I get a divorce if my spouse and I are still living in the same home?

A. It is difficult but you may be able to. You must convince the court that you and your spouse are really leading separate lives even though you are living under the same roof.

Q. Can I file for divorce before we've been separated the full time?

A. No. You have to be separated the required time before you file.

Q. What does "without cohabitation" mean?

A. It means without sexual relations. You cannot have sexual relations with your spouse during the separation period.

Q. Can I get a divorce if my spouse does not agree to it?

A. Yes. If you have been separated for a year without cohabitation, you can get a divorce whether your spouse agrees to it or not.

Adultery

Q. Does it matter if I committed adultery, or walked out on my spouse? Does it matter if my spouse did that to me?

A. Adultery, cruelty or desertion do not affect whether you can get a divorce in D.C. However, this conduct might be taken into consideration in connection with division of property or custody of children.

When Is My Divorce Final?

After the hearing, if the judge grants your divorce, you will get a copy of the divorce order. Your divorce will be final 30 days after the "docketing date," which could be a few days after your hearing. Either party may file an appeal within those 30 days and also ask the court to stay the divorce order. If the stay is granted, the order becomes final once the appeal is resolved. If the stay is denied, the order is still final after the 30 days. If you both agree that you do not want to appeal the judge's order, you can file a Joint Waiver of Appeal, and then there will not be a 30-day waiting period and the order will be final immediately.

Granat Legal Services, P.L.L.C.
1629 K Street, N.W., Suite 300
Washington, D.C. 20006

Phone: 202-609-9836 ▪ Fax: 561-828-5812 ▪ Email

Granat Legal Services, P.L.L.C represents divorce clients online in Washington, DC.