Legal Question in Family Law in Washington

Bifurcation

I am going through a dissolution in King County currently. It's clear that my soon to be ex does not want to settle or even negotiate (on property division, custody of children seems OK), and my girlfriend and I would like to be married. Does Washington have any sort of thing like ''bifurcation'' such that we could get married without having all the dissolution details nailed. Or is there a way to petition the court for an expedited court date to get things over with?


Asked on 1/19/06, 3:46 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Christopher Steuart IT Forensics, Inc.

Re: Bifurcation

Although the statutes seem to support the possibility of bifurcation, there is case law that disfavors it. You can always try to bifurcate, but I would not anticipate a favorable ruling unless there was some exceptional circumstance (wanting to get married would not qualify). I routinely advise my clients to not propose marriage to anybody (or accept a proposal) until the dissolution is final.

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Answered on 1/19/06, 6:39 pm


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