Walk It Through: The Split
An irretrievable breakdown, equal parental rights, and an assignment of the estate.
A pharmacist, married for years with one child, decides the marriage is over and asks what it takes to file.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One marriage and one house. Joint petitions in detail, child support, and alimony amounts are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Irretrievable breakdownThe no fault ground for divorce, which can begin with a joint petition, a sworn affidavit and a notarized separation agreement, or with one spouse filing alone.
- Shared legal custodyBoth parents staying involved in major decisions about education, medical care and moral and religious development; parents have it temporarily while a case is pending, absent emergency, abuse or neglect.