Divorce & Annulment

questions & answers

Question: I got married in the state of Philadelphia, PA in 2004 and I have been separated since the year of 2012. I moved to the state of AZ in May of 2014 and I want to know if I can get a divorce here in the state of AZ.

Answer:

In Arizona, only the Superior Court can grant a divorce. To get a divorce, one spouse must start a court case in the Superior Court. Although the Superior Court has a facility in each Arizona county, a court case to end a marriage must be started in the county where the person requesting the divorce lives.

In Arizona, either spouse can ask the court for a divorce. A divorce is not awarded to either spouse; rather, it simply changes the status of the marriage relationship.

Before starting the court case, either the husband or wife must have lived in Arizona for at least 90 days or have been a member of the armed forces stationed in Arizona for at least 90 days. Unless Arizona was the last state where you lived together with your spouse, issues regarding custody of children may require a longer residence time in order to deal with those issues.

You may also find it helpful to download the pdf Things You Should Know About Divorce in Arizona, located at http://www.azlawhelp.org/articles_info.cfm?mc=1&sc=3&articleid=5.