How to Sue Your Ex Spouse After a Dissolution

For many couples with young children, divorce does not end the entanglements that may have to be settled with further court action.

After the divorce is over, there may still be continuing issues such as child support, child custody and alimony. Child custody and child support continue to be issues until the children are adults. Alimony is subject to modification on a continuous basis. The court where the case started and where the divorce was issued has continued jurisdiction over the case. To change child custody, child support or alimony, file a complaint for modification at the court that divorced you.

Instructions

1. Locate the correct paperwork. The paperwork you will need to file for any necessary modifications can be found at the court clerk's office or online at the court's website.

2. Prepare your financial forms. For alimony or child-support modification, you will be required to complete a form outlining your income and your expenses. You will likely need to bring in several months of pay stubs and W-2 forms to prove your income. This is especially true if filing to decrease your child-support obligation.

3. File the modification. Even though the court has jurisdiction over the case, the modification is still considered a new case and you may have to pay a filing fee. Confirm the fee amount with the court and the acceptable methods of payment.

4. Serve the documents to the other side. If the other party had an attorney in the divorce proceeding, you have to serve the attorney.

5. Attend the assigned hearings. The process for hearings and possible trial will follow the same footsteps as the original case. You will have an opportunity for mediation and settlement. If you and your ex-spouse are unable to agree on the modification, a trial will follow.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are filing a child-support modification, when asking for relief, seek for the resulting modification to be retroactive from the day your filed.

• If you are suing your ex-spouse on a matter that has nothing to do with your family, you may still be prohibited from testifying, because of marital privilege, conversations between the two of you that occurred during the marriage. But, you will be able to testify against your spouse regarding conversations you had before or after the marriage.