My friend is going to court for a divorce which is very rare but his wife refuses to settle. Does the judge decide that day or is there more time for him to decide the case?
It very much varies state to state. Google that state’s divorce laws. No substitutes for consulting a lawyer in that state but give some broad scenarios.
Some law schools’ web sites also have some generalities about what commonly happens in that state.
Very anecdotally, very few states or circumstances where he will not be able to get a divorce whether she wants to settle or not. Especially if he has made, through a lawyer, several good faith efforts to.
I was divorced in Illinois, and my lawyer told me that the court wanted no part in settling anything. I was told by my attorney, and this is how it went, that the ex and I would bring a settlement agreement that we both signed to the court. The judge pretty much just confirmed that we agreed with the document.
That’s my experience with the courts and divorce, anyway.
The problem is she won’t budge 1 inch in 2 years. He had a crappy lawyer but now he has a very good one. This is NC. They had a retired judge as mediator who told her no way is she getting what she wants but she won’t give up. They have 4 kids and she does not want any visitation for him. One is 18 so she has no power over that child.
I don’t do family law, but I’m hard-pressed to envision circumstances where the divorce would be denied. The order dividing property and establishing custody could take time to prepare, depending on the complexity of the case and how busy the court is with other matters, and typically the court is under no time limit. In a bitterly contested case where an appeal seems likely, the court might also want to take time to be especially sure that its reasoning is thorough and defensible. It’s possible that the court could issue a ruling right at the close of trial, but it wouldn’t be at all surprising if the judge simply said that he or she would take the matter under advisement and issue an order in due time.
When you look up bitterly contested they would have this divorce. The way she wants no visitation is to say he abused her and the kids. I have no direct knowledge of that but from knowing the guy I don’t think he did that but many people have skeletons in their closet. . I assume she has to prevent evidence to make that claim.