What is the fastest way to get a divorce? I live in VIrginia

In Virginia the most common grounds for divorce are having lived separate and apart from your spouse for at least one year or living separate and apart for six months if you have no children together AND you have a written property settlement agreement.  A divorce can be filed immediately, without a separation period, if you have fault grounds for divorce, such as adultery, cruelty, or desertion.  However, it is unlikely that such a fault based divorce would be completed any faster than a no-fault (separation-based) divorce, since you would have to go through the entire litigation process, including discovery and a full hearing in front of judge to prove the fault grounds. Assuming you already have completed your separation period, the divorce itself can be completed in as little as three or four weeks, if your spouse is cooperative with signing the paperwork.  If your spouse is not cooperating or you do not know where your spouse is, the divorce can still be completed, but it may take an extra month or two, depending on the situation.  If your spouse is contesting any issues, such as child custody, support, or property division, then you can expect the divorce to take as long as year or maybe even more.  Of course, all of these time frames are assuming that you have an experienced attorney handling your case.  People who try to handle their divorces themselves can expect it to take much longer as they fumble their way through the process and these people often end up in my office to fix the mistakes they have made. This answer is given in accordance with the laws of Virginia and may not be applicable in any other state.  It should not be construed as legal advice, as that would require a more thorough analysis of all of the facts involved in a specific case.