Divorce - NC
No one wants to hire a divorce attorney, but the fact is that many people go through divorce related proceedings every year. Divorce can be one of the most stressful and emotionally painful experiences that you will ever endure. The right attorney will help you through many of the issues involved with divorce and will care about you as an individual and your case. On the other hand, choosing the wrong attorney can be extremely costly and could add further aggravation to your experience. At Marshall & Taylor, P.C. we take pride in helping you go through this experience and making it as easy for you as possible.
Divorce in North Carolina
According to Black’s Law Dictionary divorce is “the legal separation of man and wife, effected, for cause, by the judgment of a court, and either totally dissolving the marriage relation, or suspending its effect so far as concerns the cohabitation of the parties.” In North Carolina there are two kinds of divorces. The first, divorce from bed and board, is actually a legal separation and is not a divorce at all. The second, absolute divorce is the breaking of the marital contract between husband and wife.
Divorce (defined as the actual breaking of the marital contract) itself is not a complex process in North Carolina. The complexity of a domestic case arises in deciding the other issues such as child custody, child visitation, child support, property division, and spousal support. To obtain the actual divorce, either you or your spouse must have lived in this state for at least six months prior to the filing of your complaint for divorce. Once filed, the complaint must then be served on your spouse either by a sheriff or by certified mail. If you are unaware of your spouse’s location, you may still obtain a divorce by following certain notice rules. After waiting the specified period of time, your attorney can appear without you or your spouse being present and obtain your divorce. There are only two grounds for divorce in North Carolina. The first and most commonly used is a one year separation between you and your spouse. The second ground for divorce, which is rarely used, is incurable insanity. The average divorce case takes approximately 35-40 days to complete from the time that you retain us.
If you are interested in pursuing a divorce or separation or want to learn more about the differences between divorce and separation, Marshall & Taylor are here to help. We have the experience and the resources to guide you through this process, whether you are going through a divorce or a separation. Our goal is to make your divorce or separation as comfortable and as easy as possible. Contact us today for your confidential consultation or to learn more about how we can help you.