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If you’re considering a divorce in Kansas, there are some things you need to know. Here’s a guide to getting a divorce in Kansas, from finding a lawyer to filing the paperwork.
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Introduction
Divorce is a legal process that ends a marriage. Once the divorce is final, each person is free to marry again.
In Kansas, you can get a divorce if you have “irreconcilable differences” with your spouse, or if your spouse has committed adultery, deserted you, or been convicted of a felony.
You can file for divorce yourself, or you can use an attorney. If you use an attorney, you will need to pay their fees. You can also use a mediator to help you and your spouse agree on the terms of your divorce, which can help keep costs down.
To start the divorce process in Kansas, one spouse must file a petition for divorce with the court in the county where they live. The other spouse will then be served with the petition and given a chance to respond.
If you and your spouse agree on the terms of your divorce, you can file an uncontested divorce. If you do not agree on the terms of your divorce, it will be considered contested and will take longer and be more expensive to resolve.
Once all of the necessary paperwork has been filed and served, there will be a hearing before a judge to finalize the divorce. In most cases, this hearing is brief and simply confirms that everything has been done correctly and that both parties understand and agree to the terms of the divorce. However, in contested divorces, this hearing can be much longer and more complex as both sides present their evidence and argue their case before the judge.
residency requirements
In order to get a divorce in the state of Kansas, you or your spouse must be a resident of the state for at least 60 days prior to filing for divorce. You will need to file a petition for divorce with the district court in the county where either you or your spouse resides.
establish residency
In order to file for divorce in Kansas, one spouse must have been a state resident for 60 days prior to filing. if the couple has minor children, this residency requirement is extended to six months. Once residency is established, the next step is to file a petition for divorce with the district court in the county where either spouse lives.
file for divorce
In order to file for divorce in Kansas, either you or your spouse must have been a resident of the state for 60 days before filing. Once you have met this residency requirement, you may file in the district court of the county where either you or your spouse reside. If you do not have minor children with your spouse and do not own any property together, you may be eligible to file for a summary dissolution, which is a simpler and faster process.
serving divorce papers
The process of getting a divorce in Kansas starts with one spouse filing a Petition for Divorce with the court. The Petitioner must then serve the other spouse with the divorce papers. The Respondent has 20 days to file a response if they live in Kansas, or 30 days if they live out of state. If the Respondent does not file a response, the Petitioner can ask the court to grant a default divorce.
process server
The process server will hand-deliver the divorce papers to your spouse. You will need to provide the process server with a list of times and days that would be convenient for your spouse to be served. The process server will make at least three attempts to serve your spouse. If your spouse cannot be located, the court may allow you to serve by publication, which means that a notice of the divorce will be published in a local newspaper.
sheriff
If you are planning to get a divorce in Kansas, you will need to serve your divorce papers on your spouse. You can do this yourself, or you can hire a professional process server.
If you choose to serve your spouse yourself, you will need to find out where they live and work so that you can serve them the papers. Once you have found their location, you will need to fill out a “Summons and Notice” form, which can be found online or at your local courthouse. Once you have filled out the form, you will need to take it to your local sheriff’s office and have them serve it to your spouse.
If you choose to hire a professional process server, they will take care of finding your spouse and serving them the papers. This can be a good option if you are not sure where your spouse is located, or if you do not want to deal with serving the papers yourself.
certified mail
If your spouse lives in Kansas, you can serve him or her with divorce papers by certified mail. You will need to fill out a form at the post office and pay a fee to have the papers sent by certified mail. Once your spouse receives the papers, he or she will have to sign a form confirming that they were received. You will then need to file the form with the court.
finalizing the divorce
If you want to get divorced in Kansas, you must first file a petition with the district court in the county where either you or your spouse live. The person who files the petition is the petitioner, and the other spouse is the respondent. Once the petition is filed, the respondent has 20 days to respond to the petition. If the respondent does not respond, the petitioner can ask the court to issue a default judgment, which will grant the divorce without the respondent’s input.
divorce decree
After the court issues a divorce decree, the divorce is final and both parties are legally single. If either party wants to remarry, they must first obtain a new marriage license from their county clerk’s office.
property division
In Kansas, courts use something called “equitable distribution” to divide property during a divorce. This means that the court will try to divide the property in a way that is fair, but not necessarily equal. The court will consider a number of factors when making its decision, including:
-The length of the marriage
-The age and health of each spouse
-Each spouse’s income and earning potential
-Each spouse’s financial needs
-The contributions each spouse made to the marriage (including homemaking and childrearing)
-The value of the property each spouse is bringing into the divorce
-Any misconduct by either spouse during the marriage (such as spending marital funds on an extramarital affair)
Once the court has considered all of these factors, it will make a decision on how to divide the property. In some cases, the court may decide that an equal division is fair. In other cases, the court may decide that one spouse should receive more or less than half of the property.
child custody
If you and your spouse have minor children together, you will need to come to an agreement about child custody and visitation. The court will not make this decision for you, so it is important that you reach an agreement that both of you are happy with.
In Kansas, there are two types of child custody: legal and physical. Legal custody refers to the right to make decisions about your child’s upbringing, such as their education, religion, and medical care. Physical custody refers to which parent the child will live with most of the time.
It is possible for one parent to have legal custody while both parents share physical custody, or for both parents to share legal and physical custody equally. It is also possible for one parent to have sole legal and physical custody of the child.
In Kansas, the court will always make its decisions about child custody based on what is in the best interests of the child. Some of the factors that the court may consider when making its decision include:
-The wishes of the child’s parents
-The wishes of the child, if they are old enough to make an informed decision
-The child’s relationship with each parent
-The child’s relationship with siblings and other important people in their life
-The child’s stability, including their home life, school life, and community life
-Each parent’s ability to provide a stable home environment for the child
-Each parent’s ability to meet the child’s physical and emotional needs
-Any history of abuse or neglect by either parent
