How to Divorce in Alabama
Alabama, like most states, has its own specific requirements for divorce, but they are relatively simple and fairly straight forward. To satisfy the requirements of divorce in Alabama, you will need to meet the residency criteria and have suitable grounds for divorce, and then come to an understanding about childcare, child maintenance and division of your belongings. It is strongly recommended that you hire a practicing divorce attorney, but you may, if you wish, represent yourself.
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Instructions
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Show that your case is suitable to be heard in the Alabama Courts by meeting the residency requirements. You or your spouse must be a resident of Alabama for a minimum of six months before your file for a divorce.
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Find grounds for divorce. There are numerous grounds for divorce in Alabama, including adultery, voluntary abandonment, imprisonment or addiction after marriage to alcohol or drugs. The two more common reasons used for divorce in Alabama are incompatibility and irretrievable breakdown.
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Arrange the division of property. Alabama does not use the practice of splitting property and assets equally between both parties. It uses an "equitable distribution" system where property is divided in what the court sees as a fair manner, but not necessarily 50-50. The division of property becomes more difficult to predict the longer a marriage has lasted. The court will take into account who brought property into the marriage, but judges have a lot of discretion for making the decision, so the division can be unpredictable.
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Decide custody of your children. If you have children, the court has the authority to award custody to either parent, along with the responsibility for their education. Ideally, the decision of custody would be made between you and your spouse amicably, but if not, the judge makes a decision based on the evidence in front of him or her.
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Arrange maintenance and alimony. You and your spouse may amicably agree on levels of maintenance and alimony. If it becomes clear that you cannot make such an agreement, a judge makes the decision based on the assets of both yourself and your spouse. The judge may take into account any misconduct during the marriage by either party when making his decision.
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Tips & Warnings
Ensure that you get good legal advice at every step of the process. While the divorce proceedings may seem simple on the surface, you need someone who has an intricate knowledge of how the system works and factors which influence a judge's decisions.
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