Legal Question in Family Law in Arizona
I recently got divorced. I was the Petioner. it was an uncontested divorce case. When I went to my Court hearing, my lawyer told me that my wife need not have to attend. she did not attend. When the paperwork was mailed to her, it was stamped "Default". She says that she should have been there. What does the default mean and did she have to attend?
Thank You!!
1 Answer from Attorneys
At the most basic level, "default" means that the divorce proceeded without your wife's active participation, and that the terms in your Decree (at the end of the case) are identical to the terms that were contained in your Petition (at the beginning of the case). In other words, she received the Petition at the beginning and was aware of exactly what you were asking the court to order. She did not take any steps to challenge the Petition, so you were granted a divorce by default (consistent with exactly what she knew you were requesting in the Petition). The Respondent does not attend a default hearing.
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