Legal Question in Family Law in Missouri

Re: My wife left me 5 years ago; can we get an annulment?

Absent other facts that were not stated in your post, an annulment would not be an option. However, assuming that the two of you have already agreed on the terms of the dissolution, there are no children born of the marriage, and there is no other personal property or debts to be distributed between the two of you, you should be able to find an attorney to assist you with a divorce for less than the price you were quoted. If you are located near Kansas City, feel free to give me a call and we can discuss your options for getting the divorce resolved in a more cost-effective manner.

Re: My wife left me 5 years ago; can we get an annulment?

In the first place, it is extremely likely that you will need a divorce or what is now called a "dissolution of marriage" which can only be entered by the courts. There is a legal remedy called an annullment, but it is unlikely that you have grounds for one or even really have any need for one. The law allows an individual to represent himself in court, and so it would be possible for you to file for divorce yourself. There are even private services out there who provide forms and so forth for a price. Having said all of that, I can advise you in the strongest possible manner that you should hire an attorney to represent you and to obtain the divorce for you. There are just too many cases in which an individual has saved himself the initial attorneys fees only to wind up with far greater and more expensive legal problems down the road due to the fact that an attorney did not handle the original proceedings. I am sure that there must be a way for you to save or raise the money for the attorney. It will be well worth it in the long run.