Divorce

Minnesota Divorce. Mr. Blahnik is a Minnesota divorce attorney and practices in all areas of divorce and family law.

In Minnesota, divorces are granted pursuant to Minnesota Statute 518. Wherever the word “divorce” is used in the statutes, it has the same meaning as “dissolution” or “dissolution of marriage.” (518.002)

A dissolution of marriage is the termination of the marital relationship between a husband and wife. A decree of dissolution completely terminates the marital status of both parties. A legal separation is a court determination of the rights and responsibilities of a husband and wife arising out of the marital relationship. A decree of legal separation does not terminate the marital status of the parties. A dissolution of a marriage shall be granted by a county or district court when the court finds that there has been an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage relationship. (518.06)

To prove that there has been an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage relationship, all that has to be established is that one of the spouses wants the divorce (for the most part). Minnesota is a “no fault” divorce State. So, the spouse wanting the divorce does not need to prove that the other spouse is the reason why the marriage failed. “The defenses to divorce, dissolution and legal separation, including but not limited to condonation, connivance, collusion, recrimination, insanity, and lapse of time, [have been] abolished.” (518.06) Often times modern day movies and television shows depict divorce trials wherein one spouse is attempting to prove that the other spouse is to blame for the break-down of the marriage and is otherwise “at fault.” This simply is not the case in Minnesota.

The process of obtaining a divorce in Minnesota can be relatively simple or can be extremely complex based on the many different circumstances of the spouses. One extremely large factor is essentially how well the spouses get along with one another to resolve their divorce issues. Obviously, whether or not there are minor children born into the marriage plays a big part in the divorce process in Minnesota.

There is a formal procedure that must be followed to obtain a divorce in Minnesota, but depending on how well the spouses get along, this can be accomplished in a few different ways. The divorce proceeding must be commenced. To commence the divorce, one spouse must serve on the other spouse a “Summons and Petition for Dissolution of Marriage.” To “serve” the summons and petition, these documents must be personally handed to the other spouse by someone other than the first spouse (service cannot be effectuated by one of the parties). If both the spouses want the divorce, or if both the spouses get along for the most part, the personal service of the summons and petition can be avoided by the other spouse simply signing an Acknowledgment of Service.

After the divorce process has been commenced, the spouse who was served technically has thirty days to “Answer” the summons and petition. To “answer” the Petition means to formally serve an “Answer and Counter-Petition for Dissolution of Marriage” on the other spouse. Often times if the spouses are on reasonable terms, the initiating spouse will agree to grant to the other spouse an extension of time (sometimes an indefinate extension) to answer the Petition.