Arizona Divorce Practice
Arizona divorce laws allow either spouse to file for divorce in Arizona if it is alleged that the marriage existing between the parties is irretrievably broken with no reasonable
prospect of reconciliation. The spouse filing for a divorce or legal separation in Arizona is not required to allege that either party is at fault for the breakdown of the marital relationship but, instead, need only allege that the marriage is irretrievably broken. For this reason, Arizona is commonly referred to as a no fault divorce state.
The process of obtaining a divorce in Arizona can vary significantly from case to case. Some general procedural similarities, however, are found in almost every Arizona divorce case. For example, all Arizona divorce cases begin with one spouse filing a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage.
Once filed, that Petition for Dissolution of Marriage must be served upon the other spouse, along with other required documents. The service of the initial Petition and related documents is referred to as service of process. That service of process may be accomplished by employing an Arizona licensed process server to personally hand those documents to the other spouse, by having the other spouse sign an Acceptance of Service wherein he or she acknowledges having received the documents, or, in some limited circumstances, by sending the documents to the other spouse by Certified Mail with Return Receipt Requested.
Regardless of the method used to serve the other party, proof that service of process has occurred must be filed with the clerk of the court. That service of process must be completed no later than 120 days after the date the Petition was initially filed with the court. Failure to serve the initial Petition and related paperwork within 120 days may result in the case being dismissed by the Presiding Judge of the Arizona Superior Court in which you filed the Petition.
Once service of process has been completed, the parties are given additional time to conduct discovery to seek out and obtain information and documentation necessary to adequately present his or her case. This segment of the case is commonly referred to as the discovery and disclosure portion of the Arizona divorce case. Both spouses are automatically required to disclose certain documents to the other spouse during this stage of the divorce process, which includes disclosing copies of income tax returns, paycheck stubs, business financial statements, bank account statements, credit card statements, and copies of deeds and titles to all property owned by either or both spouses.
Additionally, both spouses have the right to seek additional information and documentation through the issuance of subpoenas, the use of discovery requests for information and/or documentation, and the scheduling of depositions to provide the attorneys an opportunity to question the other spouse and witnesses to become better prepared for trial. The parties may also retain expert witnesses, such as business evaluators, real estate appraisers, child custody evaluators, and vocational experts, needed to testify at trial during this stage of the process.
The spouses are always free to resolve the issues in their case to avoid or significantly mitigate the need to participate in the formal discovery and disclosure portion of the case if each spouse has sufficient information to ensure a fair and equitable agreement is reached. The parties may submit a Consent Decree and Marital Settlement Agreement to the court if they resolve all of the issues in their Arizona divorce case. In fact, the parties may obtain a divorce in Arizona without ever appearing in court if they submit a properly prepared Consent Decree and Marital Settlement Agreement.
There are occasions when spouses do not initially reach an agreement resolving all of the issues in their Arizona divorce case. Oftentimes, even those spouses ultimately reach a complete agreement by participating in an Alternative Dispute Resolution process, such as mediation and/or arbitration.
Either spouse may also request the court to schedule a temporary orders hearing if it appears a case will not be resolved quickly and/or important unresolved issues need to be resolved quickly on a temporary basis, such as temporary child custody, use of community property, and temporary child support and/or spousal maintenance.
Ultimately, the parties will be scheduled for trial if they do not settle all of the issues in their case. The spouses are typically ordered to provide the court with a Joint Pretrial Statement prior to trial in which they inform the judge of the unresolved issues, educate the judge on each spouse’s position on each unresolved issue, outline the relevant legal positions impacting the court’s consideration of those issues, and list the witnesses and exhibits each party intends to present to the court at trial.
The court will thereafter issue a decision within 60 days of the date the trial occurred. That ruling is typically in the form of a Minute Entry, which is subsequently incorporated into a Decree of Dissolution of Marriage that will be lodged with the court by one of the parties. Assuming neither party files any post trial motions or appeals the court’s decision, the judge will then sign the lodged Decree and cause that Decree to be filed with the clerk of the court at which time the divorce is final.
The limited description of the steps necessary to obtain a divorce in Arizona set forth on this website provide only a limited understanding of the basic process and options available to spouses in an Arizona Divorce case. There are many additional options that may be necessary to adequately prepare any individual case for trial. The professionals at Hildebrand Law, P.C. strongly encourage you to speak directly to a competent, experienced, and licensed Arizona divorce lawyer regarding the appropriate procedures in your Arizona divorce case.
Hildebrand Law, P.C. is one of Maricopa County and Arizona’s preeminent divorce law firms. The law firm is dedicated solely to the practice of Arizona divorce cases. Focusing only upon Arizona divorce cases allow the professionals at Hildebrand Law, P.C. to remain current and focused on the constantly changing Arizona divorce laws. The professionals at Hildebrand Law, P.C. focus upon providing practical and effective solutions for all of our Arizona clients pursuing divorce. If you are facing the reality of a divorce in Arizona, you deserve the peace of mind that comes with knowing your most precious assets are being guarded by a committed team who focus only upon Arizona divorce cases.
Visit our Divorce FAQs page for more detailed information on Arizona divorce laws.
Contact us now at 480-305-8300 to schedule your consultation with attorney Christopher S. Hildebrand today. We are conveniently located near the U.S. 60 and 101 freeways at 1980 East Baseline Road, Ste. 103, Tempe, Arizona 85283.
