Filing for a divorce is different from state to state. However, most states almost have similar laws regarding their divorce laws.
That said, divorce in Connecticut is quite different from the usual divorce laws in many states.
Just how different is a divorce in Connecticut compared to other states? We will dive into these differences and the process on how to file for divorce in Connecticut.
Please note that if you have further questions, or want to make sure you do everything correctly, hiring a divorce attorney can be a big help.
How To File For Divorce In Connecticut
1. Meet The Residency Requirements
First, before you can file for a divorce, you will need to meet the state’s residency requirements.
The residency requirement in Connecticut to file for a divorce is that one of the spouses must be a resident of the county in which they file for the divorce for at least 12 months.
Alternatively, you can file for a divorce if you and your spouse married in Connecticut, left, and came back with the intention to stay. You can also file for a divorce in Connecticut if the cause of your divorce happened in the state.
2. Prepare Your Forms
Next, the second requirement to be able to file for a divorce is to prepare the forms that the state requires. The first form to complete is the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage form.
Depending on the county where you or your spouse live, you may require additional forms. You may also have grounds for divorce or not.
In Connecticut, there are fault-based divorces. You can file for a divorce for the following fault grounds:
- Intentional Desertion or abandonment for a year
- You and your spouse have lived apart continuously for 18 months without hope of reconciliation.
- Your spouse has been absent for seven years without contact.
- Adultery
- Abuse and cruel treatment
- Marriage is influenced by fraudulent acts.
- Alcohol abuse
- Insanity with at least 60 consecutive months or five years confinement in a mental institution, hospital, or other institution because of mental illness within the six-year period before filing for divorce.
- Felony conviction; either a life sentence or more than a year of imprisonment because your spouse has committed a “violation of a conjugal duty,” which courts have interpreted to be crimes of a sexual nature
Connecticut is also a no-fault divorce. A no-fault divorce can be filed by stating that the marriage is irretrievably broken.
3. File For A Divorce
After you prepare your forms you will file for the divorce in the county’s courthouse, where one of the spouses resides. After filing for your forms, you are required to pay a court fee.
The average filing fee in Connecticut is about $360. You may ask for a fee waiver if you cannot afford the filing fee.
If you are the supposed defendant and your spouse filed a divorce against you, you need to respond as quickly as you can. Otherwise, your spouse can get a default/uncontested divorce.
4. Serve Your Forms
Then, there is a way in which you can serve your spouse the divorce complaint. That is through a State Marshall.
But if your spouse is in jail, deployed in the military, or unable to locate them, you may have to try another way of serving your forms. You can check the court clerk about service in these situations.
5. Disclose Your Finances
Finally, the two spouses filing for divorce are required to disclose their finances. You and your spouse need to fill out and exchange a Financial Affidavit and must do it before your “Resolution Plan Date.”