Spouses often agree about every aspect of a divorce, including whether one is actually necessary or not. One spouse may have decided that the marriage is beyond repair, while the other would prefer to maintain the status quo.
The spouse frustrated with the current circumstances may want to file for divorce but may worry that they will face a protracted legal battle in which their spouse will ultimately prevail. An unsuccessful attempt at divorce could very well exacerbate the current issues affecting a marriage. Does someone contemplating divorce in Kentucky need to worry about their spouse successfully defending against their filing?
Kentucky does offer no-fault divorces
Marriage is a state of mutual commitment, which means that either party could potentially retract their consent for the continuation of the relationship. There was a time in which people required evidence of some significant fault in order to divorce, but no-fault divorce statutes have done away with such requirements. People can file for divorce after they have gone at least 60 days without marital intimacy. Often, people begin living separately to prove they meet this requirement.
Those who file for a no-fault divorce in Kentucky will raise a claim that the marriage is irretrievably broken. They will not necessarily need to provide any evidence to the courts, but their spouse will be able to defend against that claim. If both spouses do not agree about the state of the marital relationship, then the judge will have to consider the circumstances carefully.
Evidence of misconduct, such as abuse or adultery, as well as records affirming a strained or unhealthy marital relationship, such as unkind messages exchanged between spouses, could help convince a judge that the marriage is not healthy and functional. Any serious damage to the relationship could be sufficient grounds to request a divorce.
People may worry that their spouses would refuse to respond to their divorce filing or might even seek to avoid legal service. However, there are ways around avoidance strategies, and a failure to respond to a filing will not prevent the courts from eventually granting a divorce. Those who understand when the state allows them to file for divorce will have an easier time if a filing is the right option for their family.