Scottsdale Legal Separation Attorneys

Especially among older couples, maintaining the benefits one received during marriage can be very important. This is especially true where one spouse depends on the other spouse to provide health insurance. After a divorce, both parties are responsible for their own health insurance—this may not be feasible for one of the spouses. For that spouse, a legal separation allows them to remain on health insurance.

Many religions frown upon divorce. And some non-religious individuals were also raised to believe that a divorce is inappropriate. Some believe in the commitment they made at the time of marriage. The decision to divorce or stay married belongs solely to each spouse in the marriage. We do not advise people one way or another on that decision, and we respect everyone’s personal choices. We understand and respect people who want to stay married for religious or moral reasons.

We commonly help individuals who do not want to be divorced but are concerned about being irreparably harmed by the other spouse’s poor financial decisions. These include, for example, a spouse with gambling addictions who is running up credit card debt or a spouse who is choosing to drive while intoxicated or a spouse who is racking up extensive debt on a business. In such situations, it is easy to see why someone would want to cut the financial tie from the person they love. These individuals are often relieved to find out that divorce is not the only option and that can stay married to the person they love without having the financial liability for their spouse’s poor choices.

We frequently have individuals who want to start by filing for legal separation as a way of lessening the emotional blow that often accompanies filing for divorce. We certainly understand that filing divorce paperwork can be a traumatic and difficult; whereas a legal separation does not carry the same emotional punch.

Both parties must choose to remain married. Either party may move to change the legal separation proceedings to divorce proceedings.

While legal separation is the alternative to a divorce, most Petitions for Legal Separation result in a divorce. That’s because the response almost always asks for the legal separation proceedings to be converted to divorce proceedings. In making the decision of whether to file for legal separation, you should be aware that this is the common outcome.

Jurisdiction can sometimes be tricky as jurisdiction varies depending on the issue. Here’s a quick overview of jurisdiction Arizona needs to do certain parts of a legal separation:

• To enter a Decree of Legal Separation. One party must have lived in Arizona for at least ninety consecutive days (temporary absences allowed) prior to the filing of the Petition for Legal Separation.
• To enter an order regarding child custody. If the legal separation involves a minor child, the child must have lived in Arizona for six consecutive months (temporary absences allowed) prior to the filing of the Petition for Legal Separation. If your child has not lived in Arizona for six consecutive months or another state previously determined custody, we recommend you speak with an attorney to determine whether you can file in Arizona.
• To divide property. Arizona must have personal jurisdiction over both spouses. This means the parties either live here or have significant contacts here. In other words, it means both parties have a connection to the state. For example, in one case, the husband had never been to Arizona, but because he co-owned an Arizona-based business with his wife and filed taxes here, Arizona was found to have personal jurisdiction.  While personal jurisdiction is a complicated legal matter, it is a rare case where Arizona does not have personal jurisdiction. If you have questions regarding personal jurisdiction, we recommend you speak with an attorney.

The responding spouse has the right to choose to convert the proceedings from a legal separation to a divorce. If they choose to convert it to divorce proceedings, the community will still terminate on the date the Petition for Legal Separation was served under Arizona law. See A.R.S. § 25-213(B).

After a legal separation is completed, a party files for divorce, the Court cannot enter new division of property orders. Under Arizona law, the exception to this is the same as it is for divorce—if there are grounds to reopen the divorce or legal separation (such as someone concealing assets), it can be reopened.

The party moving for divorce must file under the same case number as the legal separation. The 60-day waiting period and the jurisdictional laws for divorce still apply when someone files for a divorce.