How canI get a divorce from my husband that was deportedif Ihaven’t seen orspoken to himin 14 years?
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How canI get a divorce from my husband that was deportedif Ihaven’t seen orspoken to himin 14 years?
He also remarried in his country.
Asked on November 25, 2011 under Family Law, Michigan
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
There a legal remedy that is available to you in this situation. Basically you can't take legal action against someone with first giving them notice of the action and giving them an opportunity to appear and explain their side. Even in a case of a missing spouse, that spouse must still be informed of the divorce action before it can proceed.
So the law provides for something know as a "divorce by publication". In such a case, the filing spouse (i.e. petitioner) must make a good faith effort to find the absent spouse (i.e. respondent). The petitioner has to present proof to a court that they made a diligent search to find their spouse. At that point the petitioner will be allowed to serve the repondent by publishing notice of the divorce in a newspaper (instead of personally having to serve them); typically it will be in one that is in the area of their last known location.
The respondent will need to file an answer after the first day of publication (usually 30-60 days). If they fail to do so, the petitioner can then file a request to enter a "default divorce". Generally, it is granted upon the terms requested by the petitioner (although the respondent is given a certain time in which they can appeal).
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