Missouri No Fault Divorce

Divorce Papers > No Fault Divorce > Missouri No Fault Divorce

Divorce is a process that is mainly performed to provide legal termination to the marriage. Every state has its own set of laws and policies related to this legal process. The process can be of various types depending upon the circumstances that lie between both the individuals. Similarly, Missouri no fault case is a process that occur when both the spouses are ready for permanent separation without claiming any wrong deed of the respective partner. The divorcing partner who files the legal papers is named as the petitioner or plaintiff. The divorcing partner who is served the legal papers is called as the respondent or defendant. The legal formalities associated with such process are comparatively less, hence, lesser duration and expenses are possible in a no fault process. The major criteria to be fulfilled when filing Missouri no fault divorce is to mention the appropriate grounds, and satisfy the residency requirement as decided by the state.

Grounds for Missouri no fault divorce

In order to file no fault divorce in Missouri none of the divorcing partners need to prove that the other partner has committed some fault. However, it is important to state that the marriage has irretrievably broken down either due to irreconcilable differences between both the spouses.

It has been observed that some divorcing partners choose no fault grounds even if they have enough evidence of wrongdoing of the other partner. The reasons for doing so could be:

• The divorcing partner wishes to avoid the court battle
• The divorcing partner desires that the children should not witness any court contest
• In order to attain a quick divorce
• To cut down on the total cost

Residency requirements for Missouri no fault divorce

Either one or both divorcing partners must have resided in this state for at least ninety days before the filing step in the court. If either of two divorcing partner is a member of the armed services, then, this partner must reside in the state at least ninety days.

If the divorcing couple has minor children, the court in this state necessarily considers the personal interest of the minor child. However, the court considers it only if the following requirements are met:

• The children must have resided in this state for at least six months and must presently stay in this state, or
• The children must have stayed in this state for at least six months immediately before the date of filing

Certain aspects of Missouri no fault divorce

• The county in which either divorcing partners stays is the place for filing the legal papers.
• The petitioner must serve the legal papers to the respondent either by hand delivery or through mail. Some third party like reliable friends or professionals such as, attorney can also play a major role in serving the opponent party.
• The respondent has to sign a legal document that includes the receipt of the submitted papers.
• The waiting period in this state is thirty days that comes into effect just after the petition is filed in the court. A no fault case can easily be granted after completion of this duration.
• A short uncontested hearing is also scheduled at times, during which the divorce is finalized by the court.
• Generally, it is required that both the divorcing partners must remain present at the final hearing.
• This state promotes equitable distribution of property that means it is not necessary that marital property should equally be divided between both the spouses. The equitable distribution may or may not result into a 50:50 division ratio. It is mainly done after considering the needs and capability of both the parties.
• While taking a decision regarding alimony, the court takes into account certain relevant factors like the standard of life during the marriage, duration of the marriage, age and health state of both the spouses etc.
• As per the law of this state, the income shares formula is used to calculate the child support amount. This is a percentage of the non-custodial parent's income that is used for the financial support provided to the child or children.

The Missouri no fault divorce is a legal process that mainly occur on the basis of valid grounds such as, irretrievably broken state of the marriage. On the other hand, fulfillment of residency criteria is another crucial requirement for successful establishment of the process.

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