Pennsylvania Divorce Legal Questions

Neither your divorce nor your husband will be effected by pregnancy.  Since you were separated from your husband and presumably will still be when the baby is born, your husband will have no rights regaridng the child as it will not be his.  Rather, your boyfriend will have all those rights. The divorce is not effected because your pregnancy has nothing to do with the divorce.  Of course, he could continue to drag it out.  You or your lawyer should file to terminate the support if he is merely dragging it out. ... Read More

Pennsylvania does not consider marital misconduct or fault when dividing marital assets.  If the money that you are paying to your ex-husband is a distribution of his share of the marital property, it would not have made any difference if you had evidence of his infidelity when you negotiated the settlement.  However, marital misconduct is one factor that would be considered when determining the nature, amount, duration and manner of alimony payments.  ... Read More

Leaving an abusive marriage is a very frightening thing, and takes courage.  You should remember that no relationship that involves hurting another person is healthy, and that you are moving toward being a survivor, not victim.  Cutting off ties with friends and family is a significant means of maintaining control over the abused person.  No one deserves to be treated badly so that they are frightened of someone who was supposed to love them. It is understandable that you are scared and that you need help.  In addition to legal help, you should look into counseling through your county's domestic violence program or crime victim's center.  In addition, you should look for an attorney who has experience in working with survivors of domestic violence.  That attorney can help you look at your options and together you can decide what course of action helps you.  You sound like you are overwhelmed by your situation, so I have a piece of advice that is not technically legal advice -- take it one step at a time.  As long as you are safe and he doesn't know where you are, you have some time to figure this out. Whatever you decide, I wish you luck.          ... Read More

Yes, if 2 years has passed from the date of separation, you can force the other side into a divorce. However, it involves doing certain procedures which are complicated for a lay person with no legal training to do. You should see if you can get an attorney to give you a price you can afford.... Read More

If both sides agree to a consent divorce, you need to wait 90 days from filing the complaint. If one side doesn't consent, you need to wait 2 years from the date of filing the complaint to push matters toward divorce. Unless your spouse is agreeing to a consent divorce, the date of separation is key.... Read More

You really need to sort out all of this stuff in person with an attorney. However, if you bought the house before the marriage, it may not be marital property. As long as your attorney has a good address on her, he can force her in to a divorce, but must wait 2 years from the date of separation.... Read More

You must live in PA for 6 months to file divorce.  If NJ is the same, you should file wherever someone has lived there for more than 6 months.  But I had a case in which a NJ judge forced the case to NJ based on the marital residence being there.  That is not required but not unreasonable. ... Read More

In PA, you must live here 6 months to file for divorce.  It may be the same in NJ.  I had one case with similar facts and my client lived here for 4 years.  We filed here and she filed there.  The NJ court held that it had to be in NJ because all the assets were there as that was the marital home.  That is not a required result but not an unreasonable one.  ... Read More

There are 2 ways to end a marriage, divorce and annulment.   An annulment is having the marriage voided as if it has never occurred.  There are several reasons to grant an annulment such as already being married or fraud.  But it is much simpler, and probably cheaper, to obtain a divorce.  I always recommend using a lawyer for that as the rules can be confusing and it is generally affordable.   ... Read More

All divorces begin with a divorce complaint.  That is the procedure to seek relief from the court which in this case is a divorce decree.  If you have been separated at least 2 years, you can then file an affidavit of separation which must be served on your spouse.  You also have to provide 20 days notice that you intend to request a divorce decree. I never recommend filing a divorce without an attorney as the rules can be confusing and it can be very affordable for a lawyer to do it.  ... Read More

A complaint must be served within 30 days. If not, the complaint must be reinstated.  An acceptance of service must be dated within 30 days of the complaint being filed or reinstated.  Then you must wait 90 days after the acceptance of service is dated to sign your consent forms.... Read More

Marital property is that acquired during the marriage.  A spouse's conduct has no relevance in dividing that property.  Rather, the court will look at the parties' relative incomes and earning capacities.  Also, if there is little or no equity in the house, he may agree to simply give it to you as it would currently have no marital value.  However, if there is equity, that has to be accounted for along with any other marital assets. You should speak to an attorney about the various factors to determine a fair settlement proposal based on your exact circumstances.... Read More

Marital property is that acquired from date of marriage to separation.  There are 2 exceptions to this, inheritance and gifts to one party, as opposed to the marriage.  Those exceptions can in turn be limited if the spouse commingles his or her non marital assets with marital assets and may create a presumption that it was a gift to the marriage. Your wife can claim both the exception of inheritance and that it was pre marital.  Since the money is easily traceable, she can likely overcome any presumption that it was commingled.... Read More

Support is for the expenses of the residence.  If you are making payments for the house she is living in, regardless if you are doing so to protect your credit and a marital asset, that should be credited toward the support order.  Support orders assume the party receiving it is using the payments for their residence. If both your names are on the house, you each have a right to live there.  Moreover, if you move back to live with her, the support must stop, following a petition to vacate and a hearing.  ... Read More