General Statutes of North Carolina

50.12. Resumption of maiden name or adoption of name of prior deceased or prior divorced husband.

(a) Any woman whose marriage is dissolved by a decree of absolute divorce may, upon application to the clerk of court of the county in which she resides setting forth her intention to do so, change her name to any of the following:

(1) Her maiden name; or (2) The surname of a prior deceased husband; or (3) The surname of a prior husband if she has children who have that husband’s surname (b) In the complaint, or counterclaim for divorce filed by any woman in this State, she may petition the court to adopt any surname as provided by this section, and the court is authorized to incorporate in the divorce decree an order authorizing her to adopt that surname.

50-6. Divorce after separation of one year on application of either party.

Marriages may be dissolved and the parties thereto divorced from the bonds of matrimony on the application of either party, if and when the husband and wife have lived separate and apart for one year, and the plaintiff or defendant in the suit for divorce has resided in the State for a period of six months. A divorce under this section shall not be barred to either party by any defense or plea based upon any provision of G.S. 50-7, a plea of res judicata, or a plea of recrimination. Notwithstanding the provisions of G.S. 50-11, or the common law, a divorce under this section shall not affect the rights of a dependent spouse with respect to alimony which have been asserted in the action or any other pending action.

Whether there has been a resumption of marital relations during the period of separation shall be determined pursuant to G.S. 52-10.2. Isolation incidents of sexual intercourse between the parties shall not toll the statutory period required for divorce predicated on separation of one year.

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