Legal Question in Family Law in North Carolina

My estranged husband and I have been legally separated since may 2014. He refuses to file for divorce based on religious reasons. We have a temporary custody order in place for our four kids with no return to court date set. He was abusive and we have not been able to communicate well.

Our custody case is open in the county where he resides. Do I have to file for divorce in his county or mine?

Since I'm doing this myself, can I fill out the divorce forms pro se even if our custody case is not finalized?

What happens if he attempts to contest it or demand any equitable distribution of property?


Asked on 9/27/15, 11:31 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

There is no such thing as legally separated in North Carolina - you are simply either separated or you aren't. As to the divorce, you can file in any NC county and the open custody case and possible ED issues are of no concern. As to him contesting the divorce - the only thing he could contest would be the separation date and the residency requirement - if you meet both of those, you are entitled to a divorce as a matter of law and there is nothing he can do legally or from a religious standpoint to prevent it. However, doing it yourself would be like trying to rebuild your own transmission if you aren't a mechanic. Besides our firm can likely complete your divorce cheaper than you can do it yourself. Just go to www.easyncdivorce.com takes like 5 - 10 minutes.

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Answered on 9/28/15, 10:50 am


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