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Vermont divorce details

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Uncontested VS Contested Divorce in Vermont

The two main scenarios of a divorce are:

  • Contested divorce

A contested divorce is associated with litigation, numerous court hearings and interviews, and high attorney fees. It is also difficult to determine the length as it depends on the individual case. Each spouse (and their lawyers) is aimed to win the case and gain as many benefits as possible.

  • Uncontested divorce

An uncontested divorce implies that the spouses can agree on all the terms of their case in advance, with or without an attorney’s assistance. An uncontested divorce is inexpensive and definitely less harmful to the children if any, but you should be ready to assess your opportunities fairly. Foremost, an uncontested divorce is good for spouses who both agree to terminate the marriage. Also, it’s assumed that the spouses can negotiate politely and cooperate with the aim to reach a reasonable Marital Settlement Agreement.

Uncontested vs Contested Divorce
Uncontested divorce in Vermont

Uncontested Divorce in Vermont

Uncontested divorce is popular because it takes less time, costs less, and causes less stress. If the couple’s desire to divorce is mutual, an uncontested divorce is definitely the right way. All the difficult issues can be resolved through mediation, not to mention the fact that the time frame of a Vermont divorce gives enough time to negotiate and reach an agreement.

Besides, an uncontested divorce allows to represent yourself before the court without a lawyer, and all the online divorce opportunities are also available only for uncontested cases.

Grounds for Divorce in Vermont

When filing for divorce in Vermont, you may choose either fault or no-fault ground.

Fault grounds point out the spouse’s misconduct and is followed by a contested divorce and a no-fault ground is for an uncontested divorce.

In Vermont, the fault-based grounds for divorce are:

  • adultery
  • a spouse’s incarceration for three years or more (in-state or out-of-state)
  • intolerable severity in either spouse (extreme cruelty)
  • willful desertion or when either spouse has been absent for seven years and not been heard of during that time
  • persistent refusal or neglect on the part of one spouse to provide suitable support for the other spouse, without cause, if that spouse has the ability to provide support.

The only no-fault ground is living separate and apart for at least 6 months before filing the petition for divorce.

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Vermont Residency Requirements to file for the divorce

Vermont Residency Requirements to File for Divorce

To get a divorce under the Vermont jurisdiction, you must meet the following residency requirements:

  • Either spouse must reside in Vermont within 6 months before filing the divorce.
  • One of the spouses must live in Vermont for a 1 year by the time of the final hearing.
  • The spouses must be separated for 6 months in order the final hearing could be appointed.

How to File for an Uncontested Divorce in Vermont?

In Vermont, different counties and courts have their own requirements and may have differences in the process of filing for an uncontested divorce.

Regardless, there are basic steps that you need to take:

  1. File the Complaint for divorce (the petition) and other forms with the right court. There are 14 family courts in Vermont, and each county has its own. You may file for divorce both in the county where you reside, or where your spouse lives. Your Stipulation (Marital Settlement Agreement) must be already completed.
  2. Serve your spouse with the divorce paperwork. They then have 30 days to respond and sign the “Notice of Action” and “Request for Waiver of Service of Summons” forms. These forms mean that your spouse is informed and agreed to an uncontested divorce.
  3. The judge considers the case, approves your Stipulation and then signs the Divorce Order. The final hearing is not mandatory, but it may be appointed in some cases, usually, if minor children are involved.

Note that Vermont doesn’t have any stable schedule of how long to wait for divorce once the papers are filed with the court. These terms may vary greatly depending on the county, the court, and peculiarities of the case.

How to file for an Uncontested Divorce?
Do-It-Yourself Divorce in Vermont

Do-It-Yourself Divorce in Vermont

The state of Vermont allows you to represent yourself in court. So if your case is simple enough, you may try to arrange a DIY divorce. A DIY divorce is a suitable option for spouses who have no children and big assets to divide, and neither ask for alimony. In such a case, your main task is to select the correct forms and fill them out properly.

In order to do it, you can use the information available on the Vermont Judiciary website or seek help from an online divorce company like ours.

How Much Does an Uncontested Divorce Cost?

In Vermont, the average cost of an uncontested divorce is difficult to predict due to the variety of filing fees’ amounts, and the differing rules & forms of each county. Filing fees in Vermont are between $75 and $250, and this is the starting cost for every uncontested divorce case.

If you hire an attorney for your uncontested case, a flat fee will be charged (charged by case). Flat fees in Vermont are about $1,000.

How much does an Uncontested Divorce cost in Vermont

How Long Does It Take to Get Divorced in Vermont?

Based on the Vermont residency requirements for divorce, it’s clear that the minimal length of an uncontested case is no less than 6 months (if you separated after filing the Complaint). The same 6-month waiting period is officially needed if you have minor children, but those may be the same 6 months as for separation.

Another prolonging factor is a “nisi” period. Nisi period is 90 days after the final order is signed before the divorce is final. Fortunately, it isn’t compulsory and can be canceled by the judge according to both spouses’ wish. The time frame is not so strict for an uncontested divorce, and this seems to be another one of its advantages.

How to Serve Your Spouse in Vermont

An important part of any divorce is to notify your spouse of your intention and terms. Officially called a process of service, this procedure should be accomplished according to the state laws. In Vermont, there are 3 ways how to deliver the divorce paperwork to your spouse:

  • Your spouse may sign an Acceptance of Service form and file it with the court. This method doesn’t demand any third party's participation.
  • You can send the papers through certified or first class mail with a return receipt.
  • You can use the Sheriff’s service. The county sheriff is authorized to deliver the divorce paperwork directly to your spouse.

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Documents You Need to Get a Divorce in Vermont

Due to the multiplicity of divorce forms according to different cases' specificity, it’s which ones you need for your particular county, court, and situation. If you want to receive the correct set of forms for your unique uncontested divorce, we can help you. Below is a basic list of the main documents you need to file:

  • Information Sheet (Form 800). Contains basic data about both parties.
  • Complaint for Divorce/ Legal Separation/ Dissolution (400-00836 Children) or (400-00836 No Children). The main document to start your case, also called the petition for divorce. Contains information about your intention and terms of the divorce.
  • Department of Health Record of Divorce or Annulment Form. The form is needed for statistical information.
  • Acceptance of Service - Family Division (Form 844). This form must be filled out by the Defendant to confirm that they were properly served with the Summons and Complaint copies, and agrees for an uncontested divorce.
  • Final Divorce Stip Property (Form 878). The final stipulation, also known as marital settlement agreement, regulates the issues of property, debts, and alimony.

Online Divorce in Vermont

Online divorce in Vermont does not imply filing for divorce online, and you have to attend the court at least once. However, you can still complete the main step of an uncontested divorce yourself (document preparation) online.

Use our service, and uncontested divorce in Vermont won’t seem like a complicated procedure. We’ll take care of all the bureaucratic difficulties and adapt the forms and documents for your specific case. Just for $139, you can receive the prepared paperwork kit within one day.

Online Divorce in Vermont
Rules for child support in Vermont

Rules for Child Support and Visitation in Vermont

Child custody is referred to as “parental rights and responsibilities” in the state of Vermont. There are physical and legal responsibilities.

  • Physical responsibilities refer to with whom the child lives, and which parent takes care of the child daily. This type of custody may be both sole and joint. Unless the spouses ask the court to award custody to both parents, the judge usually gives it to the one parent by taking into account numerous factors of the child’s best interests. The other parent gains their visitation rights instead. Parenting time isn't stable under Vermont rules, and its schedule should be decided separately for each case.
  • Legal responsibilities mean the decision-making power of parents. This type of custody may also be awarded to one parent or both. The party who has Legal responsibilities has a right to decide some issues that affect the child’s life greatly, namely, choice of education, religious aspects, travels outside the state, healthcare, and so on.

As for child support, the court may order one or even both parents to pay for it. Although, usually, the non-custodial parent has to pay a certain sum of money. The custodial parent is assumed to spend the relevant amount on an everyday care anyway, even without a special order.

In Vermont, you can try to estimate the approximate amount of child support using the State’s Child Support Guidelines, which take into account the number of children, parents’ income, and other factors. The guidelines determine the acceptable amount, but it must be approved by the court. So eventually, the judge often appoints the higher amount if it’s reasonable.

Rules for Spousal Support in Vermont

Spousal Support, also called Spousal Maintenance or Alimony, is payment made from one former spouse to the other in order to minimize the changes in habitual standard of living for that party who earns less or has less property. The spouses may decide on alimony issues by themselves or ask for the court order. Generally, in Vermont, there are two types of spousal support:

  • Permanent. The long-term periodic payments for the spouse who can’t support themselves or maintain a habitual standard of living for some reason.
  • Rehabilitative. Short-term payments for the spouse who earns less, which are supposed to be spent on professional development so the receiving spouse could become self-sufficient and earn enough money. Also, the rehabilitative alimony may be aimed to smooth the sharp changes of a financial situation accrued by divorce.

Spousal support may be asked by either spouse, but it must be approved by the court according to plenty of factors such as the length of marriage, both spouses’ contribution to their family welfare, reasonable needs of each spouse, their earning capacity, and many others.

Vermont has the Guidelines for Setting Spousal Maintenance, so that spouses could learn more about significant factors that affect the terms and amount of spousal support, and estimate their possibilities.

Rules for spousal support in Vermont
Division of property in Vermont

Division of Property in Vermont

Vermont belongs to the equitable distribution states. This means that property must be divided between the spouses in a fair (but not necessarily equal) way.

Unlike most other equitable distribution states where separate property (those owned individually by the spouses prior to the marriage) is not subject to division, in Vermont, all the property can be considered as marital in some cases, regardless of when the property was acquired and in whose name it is held.

There are many factors that need to be considered by the court or by spouses themselves (if they want to make a Settlement Agreement) to divide the property justly and reasonably. Some of these factors are: the length of the marriage; each spouse’s health and financial condition; employability of each spouse; their specific needs; contribution to the property’s value and to the family welfare at all (not only material contribution); cases of abuse, misconduct or any other fault of one of the spouses, and so on.

Division of Debt in Vermont

Debts are considered to be part of property. Like property, it can also be classified as marital and separate, so they must be divided under the same principles and according to the same affecting factors.

The court takes into account who accumulated the debt and what the purpose of it was.

Divorce Mediation in Vermont

Mediation is an alternative dispute resolution, and the couples can resort it to reach an agreement about the most important issues of their divorce case. In many cases, mediation makes litigation unnecessary, or it can initially be used instead of a court trial.

During the mediation session, the spouses negotiate, being led by a qualified mediator. The mediator is a neutral party who helps the couple to communicate freely and cooperate effectively. Mediation doesn’t imply competition - the spouses and the mediator have a joint goal to sign the successful Marital Settlement Agreement acceptable to both parties.

The state of Vermont welcomes divorce mediation. Vermont Superior Court provides its own Family Court Mediation Program, and the mediation can be ordered by the court. In that case, if you can’t afford it, the court may pay a part of the mediator’s fees.

Generally, divorce mediation is a very popular option now. It’s perfectly combined with the principles of uncontested divorce, though you can try mediation regardless of whether you contest the case or not. Regardless, it helps to keep a smooth relationship with your former spouse, so it’s considered to be less harmful for the children of the marriage.

Divorce Mediation in Vermont

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How to divorce a missing spouse in Vermont

How to Divorce a Missing Spouse in Vermont

In order to get a divorce when you are unaware of your spouse’s location, you need to make some additional efforts.

  1. Foremost, you should convince the court that the spouse is really missing. You should do your best to locate them and then describe all your attempts with the special "Affidavit of Diligent Search" form.
  2. Once you submit this form to the court, the judge estimates your efforts and, if all goes well, states that your spouse really can’t be found. You can then request the court to order the Service by Publication.
  3. Service by publication means that the Summons along with some other information about your case is published in a designated newspaper as a notice about your intention to divorce. At the same time, the notice is sent to the last known address of your spouse.
  4. Service by Publication is considered to be completed within 20 days after the first publication. The divorce can be granted by default, without your spouse’s answer and presence.

Default Divorce in Vermont

Under the Vermont divorce laws, once the Defendant (the non-filing spouse) is served with divorce documents they have 20 days to respond with "the Answer" or "the Notice of Appearance". If the Defendant fails to respond, the default judgment is entered against them. This means that the judge takes into account only the Plaintiff’s requests and interests. In brief, default divorce means the divorce proceeding is finalized without the Defendant’s participation.

The Default Divorce in Vermont
Annulment of the marriage in Vermont

Annulment of Marriage in Vermont

An annulment ends the married life as a divorce does. However, while a divorce terminates a valid marriage, an annulment proclaims the certain married union initially void and invalid. This procedure cancels the marriage as it never legally existed at all.

Not everyone can file for an annulment. Unlike the divorce, starting this motion doesn’t depend on your wishes only. To annul the marriage in Vermont, the couple must meet one of these grounds:

  • Underage marriage (under 16).
  • Insanity or some disability.
  • Impotence.
  • Force (consent to marriage obtained by duress or threat).
  • Fraud (consent to marriage obtained by lying or concealment of important facts)
  • Incest.
  • Bigamy.

Legal Separation in Vermont

Legal separation is very similar to divorce proceedings. In Vermont, it is granted on the same grounds and under the same filing rules as a divorce is. The spouses divide the property and liabilities, decide children-related issues, and so on. The main difference is that after a legal separation, the couple remains legally married and they are not allowed to remarry until they officially get divorced. Furthermore, legal separation in Vermont doesn’t have any time limit, so it doesn’t turn into a divorce automatically if at least one party is still a resident of the state.

Legal separation can be chosen as a temporary hiatus or in order to keep some of the marriage benefits such as taxes or insurance.

Legal Separation in Vermont
The Same-Sex Divorce in Vermont

Same-Sex Divorce in Vermont

Same-sex marriage and divorce became legal in Vermont in 2009, which made Vermont the fifth US state to recognize it. But in reality, Vermont has an even longer history of legislative support of tolerance and equality.

In 1992, sexual orientation was added to the state anti-discrimination statute. Since 1995, same-sex couples were allowed to adopt, and in 2000, Vermont was the first US state to provide Civil Unions for LGBT couples.

Nowadays, the family laws and rules are absolutely the same for same-sex and straight couples. The legal marriage can be ended by divorce, and there is no point and possibility to join in civil union anymore. However, plenty of valid civil unions entered before 2009 are still recognized in the state. In case of a breakup, the civil unions can be officially terminated with the Dissolution of a Civil Union procedure.

Military Divorce in Vermont

Military divorce in Vermont follows nearly the same rules as in the rest of the US states, because all the US military members are protected by the same federal laws - the Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act and the Uniformed Services Former Spouses’ Protection Act (USFSPA). These laws affect the divorce proceeding in such aspects:

  • Along with the regular Residency Requirements for divorce, you may file for divorce in Vermont if you or your spouse is stationed there as a military service member.
  • All the military spouses are protected against the default judgment by the Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act. The divorce proceeding may be postponed for the whole period of the military spouse’s active duty and for another 60 days after that.
  • The military pension is not divided as marital property unless the spouses were married for more than 10 years while the spouse was on active duty military.
  • It's not allowed to appoint an amount of a child support and spousal maintenance higher than 60% of a military spouse’s pays.

How to Divorce a Spouse in Jail in Vermont

Speaking of uncontested divorce, there are no special rules or difficulties to divorce an inmate spouse in Vermont.

You must serve your spouse with the divorce paperwork as in any usual divorce case, but you may clarify if the papers should be handed to your spouse by the jail authorities. Then, the schedule is typical, and you should give your spouse time to respond and so on. As Vermont rarely requires any court hearing for an uncontested divorce, there is no problem that your spouse can’t physically participate in the case. Furthermore, you can agree on default divorce in advance, in order not to cooperate settling your marital agreement, if negotiation is not pertinent for you.

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Vermont Divorce Filing Fee

Court filing fees are in addition to the cost of using DivorceFiller.com. This cost may vary by county. Please check with your local courthouse to determine the exact amount.

Divorce filing fee

Can a Filing Fee Be Waived?

The filing fee can be waived for indigent petitioners.

The petitioner should fill out the "Application to Waive Filing Fees and Costs" form, providing the court with evidence of financial hardship.

How We Can Help

We understand that the divorce process can be quite difficult and stressful. That is why our services are aimed at helping you get through the process as quickly and easy as possible. We prepare all the required paperwork that need to be filed with the court accurately and on time. You can rest assured that your documents are approved by the court.

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