Filing for divorce in Okmulgee County? Know what you must prepare. Knowing state and local law requirements for any court filing is a must.
Oklahoma has civil procedure rules that govern the filing of all court documents. You must know what these rules require at all steps of the divorce. That allows you to know all the required steps, when each step must be executed and how to do so.
An Oklahoma Divorce Petition
The process starts with the filing of a divorce petition, also known as a “petition for dissolution of marriage.” The petition is filed in the county in which you and your spouse live. Along with the petition, a summons must be served upon the responding spouse.
There are particular rules regarding how these documents must be served upon your spouse. Once served, you have to show the court that you have served your spouse. This is often done with a proof of service, which is also filed with the court.
Once the petition is filed and your spouse has been served, your spouse has a certain amount of time to file a responsive pleading to your petition. The filing of the petition triggers an immediate temporary injunction that freezes all marital assets other than regular day-to-day expenditures. This prevents either party from taking off with any assets. Once that is done and you have been served with the responsive pleading, discovery begins.
Possible Temporary Orders
Once the divorce process is started, a court may also make other temporary orders. These temporary orders usually require a hearing, and they may affect such thing as temporary child custody and support as well as the managing of assets and payment of bills during the divorce process.
Discovery During Divorce
Sometimes spouses can agree on how assets are to be divided. But most often, there is some disagreement among the parties as to how assets and liabilities are to be handled.
In that case, the spouses must make certain financial disclosures and exchange information regarding assets and debt owed. This process might include identifying witnesses, providing bank statements and investment account statements. It is also possible that you might have to formally answer written questions called interrogatories during this process.
Moving Toward A Settlement Agreement and Final Decree
During this process, you and your spouse will have to come to an agreement regarding the division of assets and property, division of debts and other liabilities, child custody, visitation, and support, and spousal support. This can be done directly or through your attorneys. For those issues that you are unable to agree upon, there is other help. Courts can order mediation to help a couple move toward resolution. This can be helpful if the couple is not too far from a mutually agreeable settlement agreement.
For those couples that are far from an agreement, the court will set a trial date at which both sides present evidence regarding the issues at hand. The judge then issues a ruling, and that becomes the final order of the court.
Trials involve a fair amount of preparation and may include other appearances at court such as at pretrial conferences.
Special Concerns When Children Are Involved
The impact of divorce on a child cannot be overestimated. Courts seek to minimize the impact upon children. The court may order that both parents attend parenting classes to better understand the impact of divorce on their children and how to help them adjust. There are also differences in the documents filed and served when children are involved. An attorney can help you understand these differences and comport with Oklahoma law.
Finally, when children are involved in an uncontested divorce, the waiting period before the court grants the divorce is increased from 10 to 90 days.
Low-cost Consultation: Okmulgee Family Law Attorney
Divorce is a messy and difficult process. Whether you are contemplating a divorce or are in the middle of one, you need a lawyer to help you understand the divorce process and how it may affect you.
It’s time to reach out for a confidential, no-cost consultation with an Okmulgee family law attorney. Simply call (918) 756-9600, or toll-free (888) Wirth-Law now for a consultation with an Okmulgee, Oklahoma lawyer at the Wirth Law Office – Okmulgee.
Or, enter your legal question or concern in the form at the top right of this page, and one of our attorneys will email or call you.
