Lynn Ricci Divorce Law Blog on Lawyers.com

Our St. Louis lawyers at Ricci – Law - Group provide an outline describing the process of divorce and the steps to filing for divorce in St. Louis, Missouri.

Filing for Divorce
A divorce process begins when one spouse files a petition for dissolution, or a complaint, against the other. The spouse petitioning for divorce is called the  petitioner. The spouse who is being sued for the divorce is  called  the respondent.

People can only file for divorce in Missouri after they have been a resident of the state for more than 90 days. Filing for divorce, also called filing a “Petition for Dissolution of Marriage” requires appropriate forms to be completed and signed under oath, a filing fee paid to the court, and the papers, or pleadings, filed with the  court in the appropriate county.

Notifying the Spouse
After one spouse files a Petition, a copy of it, along with a summons, is sent to and served upon the other spouse. A summons is a written notification that a divorce has been filed and that the spouse, once properly served, is under the jurisdiction, or authority, of the court and is required to appear in court.  The respondent  30 days to file a response with the court in answer to the complaint.  Frequently, the respondent at this time will also file her/his own Counter-Petition for Dissolution of Marriage.

Temporary Hearing
While your divorce case is pending, you may need to address current living arrangements, payment of bills, property issues, support, child custody,childcare, and the like.  If your spouse and you are unable to agree on how to address these issues, then since final hearing may take as long as a year,  an immediate court hearing for orders “pendente lite” to establish temporary rights and obligations of the parties pending final case resolution may be necessary.  Your divorce law firm in Saint Louis can file a Motion Pendente Lite with the court seeking a  temporary court order addressing issues including making orders for child and spousal support, restraining a party from hiding assets, and establishing a child custody schedule. 

Discovery
Discovery is the pre-trial process by which the parties in a case gather information in preparation for case resolution, whether through trial or by settlement. Methods of discovery include subpoenaing your banks and employers for records; serving the opposing side with a list of questions, or Interrogatories, which they are required to answer under oath; serving the opposing side with a Request for Admissions which consists of a list of short statements of fact that the opposing side is required to admit or deny.  Another discovery tool is the deposition.  In a deposition, you can compel the opposing party or other witnesses to appear at your lawyer’s office to answer questions under oath.  The questions and answers are recorded by a court reporter who is hired to make a permanent record of the testimony.  Through the discovery process, each party is able to broadly gather information so as to identify and narrow issues in the case, to assess the outcome sought, to craft acceptable terms to settle the case, or ultimately to gather evidence in preparation for trial.

Trial
Divorce trials are held before a judge, not a jury. A trial may begin with the attorney for each side presenting opening statements that briefly summarize his or her client's version of the case.  The petitioner, as the moving party, goes first in the presentation of evidence.  Petitioner’s attorney  will call witnesses to testify, call her/his own client to testify, and offer documents and other  evidence in support of his or her case. During petitioner’s presentation of her/his case, respondent’s counsel will have an opportunity to follow up, or cross examine, each witness who has testified, and have an opportunity to challenge the relevance or authenticity of any documents offered into evidence.  After the petitioner has presented, the  respondent then puts on her/his case and likewise has the opportunity to call witnesses to testify and present  evidence in support of his or her side.  After all the evidence has been presented, each  attorney may make  a closing statement that summarizes the evidence,  highlights the strengths of their case and weaknesses of opposing party’s case, and restates to the court the relief or result being sought.

The judge bases the final decision on the testimony of witnesses and on the evidence admitted.  The judge’s decision, or Judgment, will be in writing.  Generally, the decision is handed down quickly, but from time to time the wait for the final decision may be weeks or months as divorce law in Saint Louis can be complicated.

Appeal
Finally, if a spouse is not happy with the outcome, he or she has the right to appeal.  An appeal is a review of the trial court’s file and the judge's decision only by an appellate court.  There will be no more witness testimony or presentation of evidence.   Each or both of the parties may file a Notice of Appeal to appeal  the judge’s decision once it is final. The appellate court determines if the trial judge erred in his or her opinion of the case.  If the appeal is granted, the trial court’s decision can be changed and/or the matter can be remanded or go back to the trial court for further action.

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Ricci - Law - Group
1200 South Big Bend Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63117