Orlando Uncontested Divorce Lawyers

A More Time & Cost-Effective Method to Divorce

Divorce isn’t always how it looks on TV. Dissolving your marriage doesn’t have to involve a protracted, expensive court battle (at least not for all couples). In fact, the more you and your spouse can agree on, the smoother your divorce will be.

Contact our Orlando office today to retain our divorce attorneys. Call 800-822-5170 today.

Am I Eligible to Get an Uncontested Divorce?

For those rare couples who have no disagreements about the terms of their divorce, it can be a relatively quick and simple process. Couples who meet the following criteria may be eligible for a simplified dissolution of marriage (also known as “uncontested divorce”):

• Relatively short marriage: This is less of a requirement and more of a practicality. If you have been married more than a few years, you and your spouse likely have shared assets and will require the kind of nuanced dissolution of marriage that uncontested divorce proceedings simply do not offer. An uncontested divorce is more likely to be a good fit for couples who have been married for a short amount of time.
• No children: This includes unborn children and children who are 18 or under. Having dependent children necessitates negotiation and a child custody hearing, which automatically makes your divorce more complex. Even if you and your spouse are on the same page when it comes to your parenting agreement and child custody, uncontested divorce probably isn’t for you.
• No alimony necessary: If either you or your spouse requires spousal support either during or after divorce for any amount of time, the process of uncontested divorce does not include negotiating or establishing court-ordered support payments. Even if you agree on who will receive alimony, how long they will receive it, and how much they will receive, establishing alimony as part of your divorce decree requires more than the simplified marriage dissolution process can offer.
• Both of you want a simplified divorce: You can only pursue uncontested divorce if both you and your spouse agree that the marriage is beyond repair, that it should be dissolved, and that simplified dissolution of marriage is the best path forward. If there is disagreement on any of these fronts, you will need extra help.

Process of Uncontested Divorce

The process of simplified divorce is, as you might think, quite simple. You, your spouse, and your attorney(s) must first complete a Petition for Simplified Dissolution. Then, you must file the petition in the court where you, your spouse, or both of you currently live. (If you are seeking an uncontested divorce in Florida, at least one of you must have been a Florida resident for 6 months or more.)

After filing, you must establish a time to meet together with your respective divorce attorneys and complete a written settlement in which you hash out the details of your divorce. At this point, you may find that you and your spouse do not have the mutual understanding you thought, in which case it is very important to involve an attorney and get help negotiating your terms so that your divorce can remain as amicable as possible. Otherwise, assuming your enduring concurrence, you and your spouse can go on to complete a Final Judgement of Simplified Dissolution of Marriage with your attorney(s).

Shortly after you have completed and filed all the important paperwork, Florida law requires that you and your spouse go before a judge. During your hearing, the judge will verify that one of you has been a Florida resident for 6 months or more. Then, if you and your spouse have not completed an official settlement agreement together by that point, you may present the terms of your agreement together and the judge will review them.

Call 800-822-5170 for Help Getting an Uncontested Divorce in FL

Even in the simplest of divorces, legal counsel is invaluable and essential. If you decide to pursue uncontested divorce on your own, without the help of an experienced divorce lawyer, you could end up filing it incorrectly or accidentally omitting important information. Any such errors can unnecessarily prolong your divorce.

Are you seeking uncontested divorce? Schedule your consultation with an attorney today.