Filing the Complaint

A divorce is commenced in Probate Court by the filing of a complaint. Grounds for divorce will be listed on the complaint, the most common of which is irretrievable breakdown of the marriage (commonly known as "no fault"), although there are other grounds which may apply to your situation. There are two types of irretrievable breakdown divorces: "1A", in which you and your spouse have already reached an agreement on all issues and "1B", in which agreement has not been reached on all issues. Once a Divorce complaint is filed, the filing party is automatically by law restrained from using any asset except for attorney's fees and expenses in the ordinary course, such as living expenses or business expenses.

In 1A divorce proceedings, all paperwork, including a Divorce Agreement, Joint Petition for Divorce, parenting certificate if there are minor children, and financial statements for each party, must be submitted to the Probate Court before a hearing date can be assigned. 1A divorce proceedings become final 120 days from the divorce hearing date.

In 1B divorce proceedings, a Complaint is filed, court hearings on motions for temporary orders may be scheduled, discovery is completed, a pre-trial conference is held (as is explained in more detail later), and a trial date cannot be assigned any earlier than six months from the date of the filing of the divorce complaint. 1B divorce proceedings become final 90 days from either the hearing date approving your Divorce Agreement or, there is no agreement or a partial agreement, then it becomes final 90 days from the entry of a Judgment of Divorce.

Serving the Complaint on your Spouse

After a Divorce Complaint has been filed, the Court issues a Domestic Relations Summons, which must be served upon your spouse in some manner. This can be accomplished by forwarding the documents to your spouse's attorney, by forwarding them directly to your spouse for his or her signature in the presence of a notary public, or by hiring a process server to deliver these documents to your spouse. We can discuss how to best have the Complaint and Summons served upon your spouse. Once your spouse is served then your spouse is automatically by law restrained from using any asset except for attorney's fees and expenses in the ordinary course, such as living expenses or business expenses.

Probate Court Financial Statements