My spouse won't sign the divorce papers. What do I do?
By nort3k from CA
Depending on what state you live in. In Oregon the spouse doesn't have to sign papers, but it takes longer to get the decree. Call Legal Aid and they could tell you for sure. You can buy and file the papers yourself and without an attorney since there is no property and no children. Good luck.
You can still get a divorce, but if your spouse won't agree to it, the divorce will usually cost you much more because of higher lawyer fees. If your spouse is in the military & won't sign the papers then you can't divorce them, but otherwise no trouble. Each state has it's own laws, contact a divorce lawyer. If you can't afford one, go to a paralegal or legal aid. I recommend a good paralegal. A paralegal costs about a quarter (or less) of the price of a lawyer & my paralegal really knew the ins & outs of divorce paperwork & she did an AMAZING job!
If you have kids & want custody here is a hint for you: If you have Physical Custody of the kids, then you usually are granted Temporary Custody & if you have Temporary custody then the odds are higher that you will end up with permanent custody.... So if you want your kids then be sure to have physical custody of them (have them staying with you) BEFORE you file the divorce paperwork.
When I was divorced many years ago, my ex simply wouldn't sign the papers no matter what. He did this simply to "give me grief" & I suspect that this is what is happening to you... SO, if you pretend for a while that you couldn't care less about the divorce paper work, then the odds are you'll have less trouble getting the paperwork signed. It's all about control!
But until your divorce or separation paperwork goes through, don't buy anything big because if you do buy a house, car or anything like that while you are still married then you spouse owns half of it! ..
---> There is a lot of good advice at the bottom of this page. Read all the way down & you will learn alot in good info from other ThriftyFun people.
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
How long will a lawyer keep papers on file once I have paid, but my husband won't sign? Will the papers stay there until he does sign?
By Mistie H. from Carrollton, GA
Did he file a response when you had the papers served on him? Here in SD if a response isn't filed in sixty days(I think), the divorce is granted by default.
If you are paying the lawyer you need to talk to him to find out what options are available. I'm sure the laws on this are different everywhere (as mentioned by the other posts). Girl, it's time to start talkin' to people.
I'm not sure about GA, but many states will allow you to get a divorce even without his signature. Different states word it differently but it boils down to the same thing.
Stand up for yourself and tell your attorney to do his/her job that you paid for! He/she knows how to get the job done and is taking advantage by not finishing the job!
I've been separated for 12 years. Our son has quit school and will be 18 in two months. I want to remarry and she won't sign any kind of divorce papers. How can I move on with my life with her trying to hang on to me?
By Brian
Get an attorney and file for divorce. She'll be served with papers and given a fair amount of time to sign them. If she fails to do so, the judge can grant the divorce without her signing the papers - it will go on record.
File for divorce. Years ago if the spouse refused to sign, you were stuck. Not any more. She refuses to sign, no biggie. Your attorney can take care of it.
Brian, I don't know where you live, but here after several attempts for the other half to sign divorce papers and they refuse it is granted any way. I had a friend whose parents went through this years ago. The wife would not sign, so after several attempts her lawyer told her she just as well sign them because he would get the divorce any way. Talk with your lawyer something can be done!
I have been separated for 14 years and the other party won't sign the divorce papers. They are now no longer any good. I live in Pennsylvania and he is in Maryland. What do I do? I want to remarry. We have filed all of the papers in the state that we were married in and put them through the clerk. She said that because I didn't request a master's hearing I was still married. That was the only time the other party signed the papers.
By Victoria
If you've lived in Pennsylvania for at least 6 months, you can file for divorce in that state. If the other party doesn't sign the papers, you can probably still get an uncontested divorce - especially if he doesn't file papers to contest it or appear in court.
I don't know the laws there,if this is required- but if you have his address, you should probably have him served by a process server. This proves he got the papers & knows you filed for divorce, that way he can't say he didn't know.
If you don't have his address, but know what city he's in - some states allow for you to post it in the paper for a certain number of days, then proceed with the dicorce. That shows that you made an effort to notify him.
More than anything, you really need to get some legal advice on this issue, it sounds like you've been getting bad legal advice. Here are links to 2 websites that can help you. The 1st answers some of your questions & gives yo links to other sites. The other link is for Legal Aid in PN, they offer free or pro-rated legal help.
www.womenslaw.org/
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I want to divorce my abusive wife, but I know she won't sign the papers. We have no children, own no property, and each have our own cars. What type of divorce do I need? Do I need a lawyer?
My husband won't consent to a divorce. We have been separated for 6 months.
