| | |  | No Court Appearance Divorce | | Home of the $99 Washington State Divorce - Empower Yourself |
|
|
| Divorce 101: So you've been served with divorce papers, now what?
Getting served with divorce documents can be a heart stopping moment. After all these are the documents that will ultimately end your marriage. If you fail to respond your spouse could very well get everything they are asking for so it's crucial that you respond on time.
You have 20 days to respond to the summons for dissolution of marriage, not including the date of service. Read the petition for dissolution of marriage carefully to find out what exactly your spouse is asking for. If any motions were included you may have considerably less time to respond to them than to the petition for dissolution and you may want to seek legal advice.
Use the Response to Petition (Marriage) WPF DR 01.0300 to respond. Each numbered paragraph on the response form corresponds with the numbered paragraphs on the petition. When you agree with a paragraph in the petition check the "Admitted" box on the response form; when you disagree check the "Denied" box. Be sure and fill out all parts of the response, including the case number.
If you and your spouse have children together and you disagree with either the parenting plan or child support worksheets submitted by your spouse you must submit your own.
When you have completed the Response to Petition make copies for yourself, the court, your spouse, and one for the prosecutor's office if any of your children have received public assistance. File the documents with the court listed on the summons.
Once you have filed your documents with the court mail a copy of everything to the prosecutor's office, if applicable, and have your spouse served.
Recap:
* Determine the date your response is due
* Read the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage carefully
* Fill out the Response to Petition
* Make copies
* File with the clerk's office
* Have your spouse served
It is always a good idea to seek legal advice from an attorney to protect your legal rights, especially if your situation will be contested, when there are children involved or when there is property that needs to be divided and you and your spouse cannot or have not been able to reach an agreement in these areas. You can get legal advice from an attorney even if you don't have enough money to hire one.
|
|
| |
| | Legal information is not legal advice - Empower Yourself |
|
| |
