Abandonment divorce is when one spouse leaves the marital home and never returns. The elements needed to qualify vary by state, but lack of agreement to live apart and lack of reconciliation are common. Reconciliation can damage a claim of abandonment, and the time period for abandonment varies by state. Whether a person can file for abandonment divorce if they know their partner’s whereabouts also varies by state.
An abandonment divorce is a dissolution of marriage based on the fact that one spouse left the marital home and never returned. The exact elements needed to qualify for this type of divorce vary from state to state. However, there are some elements that tend to be common. These include lack of agreement to live apart and lack of reconciliation.
It is considered normal for spouses to occupy the same residence. If one spouse decides to leave the residence to pursue other interests and does not return, it is likely that the remaining spouse may request abandonment. Divorce can generally be divided into two broad categories: fault and no fault. In a fault divorce, one spouse accuses the other of being responsible for destroying the marriage for certain causes. A divorce on abandonment is granted on the ground that one spouse has left the marital home without the consent of the other spouse.
Divorce on abandonment is usually not granted when people have agreed to separate and, subsequently, live apart for an extended period of time. This is generally true even if the two partners have decided to separate and then one wishes to reconcile but is unsure of his or her partner’s whereabouts. One of the elements of an abandonment divorce that can vary from state to state is the amount of time that must elapse.
Usually, a person is not considered abandoned immediately after a spouse leaves. It is also not usually left to the victim to determine how long their partner must be away before they qualify. State law will typically specify the appropriate period.
Reconciliation usually damages a person’s claim of abandonment. In some cases a person may leave the house, but then may return before the qualifying time has elapsed. If that same person leaves the house again, the time period generally has to start over. Most states do not allow time off to be added together to claim abandonment.
Another element that can vary from state to state is whether or not a person can file for an abandonment divorce if they know their partner’s whereabouts. A man may, for example, leave without his wife’s consent. He may later call and announce that he is at his mother’s house and is not sure if he will return. In some states, this may qualify as an abandonment divorce, but in other states, it may not.
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