Legal Separation and Divorce

Legal Separation and Divorce: What’s the Difference?

Many people are unsure of the difference between separation and divorce. They may have heard that separation is cheaper or easier to get, but this isn’t always the case. In order to determine which option you want for your situation, it’s important to understand what each one entails. We will be discussing legal separation versus divorce, so stay tuned!

Legal separation is a legal process that ends your marriage. It’s different from divorce, in the sense that you are not actually divorced when this process has been finalized. During separation, both spouses live separate lives but remain legally married until they finalize their separation or get divorced by court order. A separation lawyer will let you know if you can still own property together during separation and you will have to pay spousal support if one spouse earns much more than the other does unless there are special circumstances that would lead to an exemption being made for this rule (ex: long-term health issues).

If either spouse violates any of these rules while separated without getting consent from the other party first, it may be considered adultery, and grounds for additional penalties might apply if prosecuted properly under local law.

On the other hand, divorce is the separation’s counterpart. As its name implies, this legal process servers your marriage and ends it completely. It doesn’t matter who broke up with whom or how long you were married; once a court grants an order for the divorce to be finalized – which can happen before separation has even been completed – then your marriage is over.

This means that all spousal support payments end immediately (unless there are special circumstances), both spouses will no longer own property together after the finalization of their divorce, and neither spouse will ever again owe any sort of duty to provide financial assistance as they did during their marital relationship unless ordered otherwise by another judge at some point in time down the road if certain conditions apply (ex: you’re still caring for your ex-spouse’s child who is under the age of 18).

Now that we’ve covered separation and divorce, it should be clear which one fits into your situation better. If separation sounds like a good option then reach out to us today so that our lawyers can help guide you through this process! In conclusion, separation is not as simple as divorce and vice versa.

Division of property, child custody/visitation, spousal support are the main areas where separation and divorce differ.

Legal separation can be cheaper than a divorce process because it’s less formal; however, you will still have to go through a lengthy legal procedure in order to finalize your separation or get divorced by court order.

It is important to know what each type entails before making such an important decision as to whether or not to end your marriage with one another. This way you’ll understand how separation fits into your particular situation at hand and also comprehend that no two cases are ever identical even if both spouses need either separation or divorce for their own separate reasons (ex: abuse). If this sounds like something that may be helpful to you, then please do not hesitate to contact us today so that we can help guide you through this process!

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Christophe Rude
Christophe Rude
Articles: 15880

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