Missouri No Fault Divorce

In the divorce terminology, generally the following nomenclature is used. The divorcing partner who files the divorce papers is named as the Petitioner or Plaintiff. The divorcing partner who is served the divorce papers is called as the Respondent or Defendant.

Grounds of Missouri No Fault Divorce

None of the divorcing partners need to prove that the other partner has committed some fault. It is sufficient if it is stated that the marriage has irretrievably broken down either due to incompatibility of temperament or irreconcilable differences.

It has been observed that some divorcing partners choose no fault grounds even if they have enough evidence of wrongdoing of the other partner. There are the following reasons of making such a choice.

• The divorcing partner wishes to avoid the court battle
• The divorcing partner desires that the children should not witness any court contest
• The divorce is obtained earlier
• The divorce is very economical

Residency requirements of Missouri No Fault Divorce

Any one or both divorcing partners must have resided in this state for a minimum duration of 90 days immediately before the divorce papers are filed. If such a divorcing partner is a member of the armed services, then, this partner must be stationed in this state for the above specified duration.

If the divorcing couple has minor children, the court in this state must have jurisdiction on the children. This condition can be fulfilled by meeting the below mentioned requirements.

• The children must have resided in this state for minimum 6 months and must presently stay in this state, or
• The children must have stayed in this state at least 6 months immediately before the date of filing

Certain aspects of Missouri No Fault Divorce

• The county in which either divorcing partners stays is the venue for filing the divorce papers
• The Petitioner must serve the divorce papers to the Respondent either by hand delivery or through mail
• The Respondent has to sign a legal document that intimates the receipt of the divorce papers
• The Petitioner or the Respondent files the above mentioned legal document in the court. This is evidence with the court that the Petitioner has served all the divorce papers to the Respondent.
• The waiting period in this state is 30 days. After this duration is over, then, the divorce can be finalized.
• A short uncontested divorce hearing is scheduled, during which the divorce is finalized
• Generally, it is required that both the divorcing partners must remain present at the divorce hearing.
• This state promotes equitable distribution of property
• While taking a decision regarding alimony, the court takes into account certain relevant factors like the standard of life during marriage, duration of the marriage 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 support of the child(ren)

Divorce Papers