Legal Question in Family Law in Indiana

Spouse Refuses To Move Out Of My House

My children and me moved out of an apartment we were sharing with my spouse to move into a home I bought jointly with a trusted relative.

I believed this would help protect me in the event of a dispute over the property in case of a divorce.

Well as most divorces go, we tried working things out after I got the house so my spouse moved in.

Now I am done and ready to file for divorce and want my home back for myself and my children.

The problem is that my spouse is refusing to leave and is making life miserable for all of us.

So I decided to move out of the house I bought and making payments on and moved in with a relative for my own sanity.

The police say everything is equitable property till the divorce is final and couldn't do anything.

Do I have any recourse until that time and can my spouse change the locks on ME given the fact I left first?


Asked on 1/31/04, 12:34 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Mary Ann Wunder Wunder & Wunder

Re: Spouse Refuses To Move Out Of My House

There is an old adage - possession is 9/10 of the law! That may not make it right, but you abandoned the property and since it was the marital residence (regardless of whose name it is in) the remaining spouse has a right to continue to dwell there. You need to get your dissolution proceeding filed and request a preliminary hearing to get this straightened out.

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Answered on 2/02/04, 9:38 am


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