No Signature Divorces in New York State
You no longer need the consent of both parties to pursue a divorce in New York State. In most cases, the individual filing for divorce must formally serve the other spouse with the divorce papers. For the divorce to continue, the other spouse must respond to the summons. However, in New York, if the other spouse refuses to respond to the summons within a certain period of time, the filing spouse is allowed to move forward with the divorce regardless. In this article, the Westchester County divorce lawyers at the Law Office of Robert S. Sunshine will discuss “no signature” divorces in New York State and how they proceed.
How do I obtain a no-signature divorce in New York State?
No-signature or default divorces make it so that your rights are upheld regardless of whether or not your former spouse cooperates with the process or not. However, you still have to notify the other spouse about the divorce. The first step in the process is formally notifying the other spouse that you’ve initiated divorce proceedings. If you were able to locate your spouse and serve them the papers, they then have 20 days to respond. If they fail to do so, the divorce will proceed “in default.”
Default divorces can only occur if the other spouse has been properly served. In other words, you can’t claim that your former spouse failed to respond if they haven’t been formally served with divorce papers. The spouse must have received a divorce summons. For that reason, it is important to hire a seasoned divorce lawyer to handle the process of a no-signature divorce.
What happens if I can’t locate my spouse to serve them with divorce papers?
There are cases in which the spouse filing for divorce cannot locate the other spouse to serve them with the papers. Often, this is due to a long separation that resulted in a prolonged lack of contact. A spouse who documents all avenues they took to locate their spouse and proves that they made an honest effort will then be required to post notice in the newspaper for at least three weeks. If your spouse has still not reached out to you, then divorce proceedings can continue in their absence.
Moving forward with a no-signature divorce
If you have taken all of the above actions and your spouse has still failed to respond to the summons, their divorce will proceed uncontested. This means that your former spouse will no longer be included in the process. In other words, you will go through the divorce process alone. Once your divorce is finalized, you can move forward with your life.
Talk to a Westchester County, New York Divorce Lawyer Today
The Law Offices of Robert S. Sunshine represent the interests of divorcing spouses in Westchester County, NY. Call our Westchester County family lawyers today to schedule an appointment, and we can begin addressing your concerns right away.
