Can a divorce be granted without the consent of one of the parties?

Cluricaun · May 31, 2006, 1:30pm

Sorry for the long title, but I digress…

Is it possible to have a divorce granted with one of the parties not being present in the court? Say you were married to a person who took off in the dead of the night and who seems to have fallen off the face of the earth. You obviously can’t serve them papers to sign, so can the court grant a divorce in absentia?

Exapno_Mapcase · May 31, 2006, 1:38pm

This is another law that varies from state to state, but the general answer is that after a person has been missing for seven years, the remaining spouse can petition a court to have the missing spouse declared legally dead. I don’t know of any way to compel a divorce, however. IANAL so there may be loopholes I’m not aware of.

anson2995 · May 31, 2006, 1:49pm

IANAL, and divorce laws vary from state to state, and I assume from your profile that you are asking about divorce law in Illinois.

This site says:

A local attorney would be able to give a better answer.

Gfactor · May 31, 2006, 1:59pm

Short answer. Yes. You don’t need to physically serve someone with process if they can’t be found. You get a court order to serve by publication.

Michigan Court Rules:

(I) Discretion of the Court.

(1) On a showing that service of process cannot reasonably be made as provided by this rule, the court may by order permit service of process to be made in any other manner reasonably calculated to give the defendant actual notice of the proceedings and an opportunity to be heard.

(2) A request for an order under the rule must be made in a verified motion dated not more than 14 days before it is filed. The motion must set forth sufficient facts to show that process cannot be served under this rule and must state the defendant's address or last known address, or that no address of the defendant is known. If the name or present address of the defendant is unknown, the moving party must set forth facts showing diligent inquiry to ascertain it. A hearing on the motion is not required unless the court so directs.

(3) Service of process may not be made under this subrule before entry of the court's order permitting it.

We’ve done a couple of threads on this issue. There are some problems if the court lacks personal jurisdiction over the defendant. For example the court cannot divide marital property or award support. *E.g., * http://www.divorcesource.com/research/edj/jurisdiction/99mar30.shtml But inability to personally serve is not the same as lack of personal jurisdiction.

Gfactor · May 31, 2006, 2:04pm

Simple Divorce Question
Divorce question

Kalhoun · May 31, 2006, 2:09pm

My husband served his ex and she didn’t contest anything. She did not show up at court. They were divorced very quickly.

Si_Amigo · May 31, 2006, 2:32pm

People get divorced while they are sitting in jail all the time. They don’t don’t even bother dragging them into the court room unless they contest the divorce.