Legal Separations in Arizona

Legal separations are extraordinarily rare in Arizona. A legal separation is not normally a precursor to a divorce. This is a common misconception. In Arizona, a legal separation is a change in marital status that is occasionally used in lieu of a divorce. Legal separations are rare because the procedure, the time and cost of handling a legal separation is virtually identical to that involved in a divorce. The only difference between a legal separation and a divorce is that, at the end of the process, the paper ultimately signed by the judge changes the marital status to “legally separated” rather than “marriage dissolved.” A legal separation still involves a decision involving child custody, parenting time, and child support where children are involved, spousal maintenance, and a division of assests and debts. This process is no different than that of a divorce case. Legal separations rarely occur in Arizona because, due to the time and expense involved, husbands and wives usually quickly determine either that they can reconcile after a short period of informal separation or that they truly want their marriage dissolved. There is really no point in going through a legal separation process, obtaining a decree of legal separation, and then following that up in a few months with more paperwork at an even greater expense to dissolve the marriage.

In very rare situations, such as when one spouse is not medically insurable and needs to remain on the other spouse’s medical insurance plan, the parties may elect a legal separation. Another rare but plausible reason to elect legal separation over a divorce is where a person’s religious beliefs preclude him or her from divorcing.

Legal separations are only available in Arizona where both spouses consent to the process. If one spouse files the case as a legal separation and the other spouse requests that the case proceed as a divorce, then there will be a divorce. As with all other matters covered in this blog, I am available to discuss these issues in more detail in an office consultation.

Copyright © 2010 by Scoresby Family Law – J. Kyle Scoresby, P.C. All rights reserved.

To read more about legal separations, visit my blog on my website at www.scoresbyfamilylaw.com

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