For the majority of people, divorce is a traumatic experience.  Not only are there feelings of pain, recrimination, guilt, and uncertainty, but there also are all the problems that can go with a new life style. You have to learn to live alone again, to adjust to a change of finances, to be a single parent responsible for decisions once made jointly, or to see your children only on visitation days. There is the added strain of dividing your accumulated possessions. Along with it all come the legal problems of the divorce itself.

Like it or not, divorce is considered a lawsuit. One spouse has to charge the other spouse in a court proceeding. Regardless of how private you are or would like to be about your personal problems, you must spell out the facts to a judge or a Master in order to obtain a divorce. The most common course is to hire a lawyer, tell him or her the facts, and hope for the best. Half of all American marriages end in divorce, sometime bitterly with both parties spending thousands of dollars in legal fees. You can save on legal fees if you can make your divorce a matter of agreement rather than conflict. There is, however, an easier way to get a divorce than the traditional way where both parties are represented by attorneys from beginning to end. If you recently separated from your spouse, or have been separated for some time and want to secure a divorce, the easiest way to get your divorce is to secure an uncontested,  no-fault divorce and to file as a pro se litigant. "Pro se" means to represent oneself.

Representing oneself is not for everyone. If you have complex assets; if there is an imbalance of power between you are your spouse; if there has been domestic violence within the relationship; or if you cannot communicate with each other as adults; then you need to be represented by counsel. You can find an attorney who handles divorce cases by consulting the Find a Lawyer section of this Web site. If however, you can agree on all of your issues, and you agree on all of the terms of a Marital Separation Agreement with your spouse, you can easily file an uncontested, no-fault divorce in almost any state in America.  

You can create your Marital Separation Agreement using our Rapidocs technology and then when it is completed have it reviewed by one the Legal Advice Network Attorneys for a nominal fee. If you have any questions of whether you should represent yourself as a pro se litigant, use this resource to determine if you should represent yourself or whether you need to the full representational services of an attorney.   

The Uncontested, No-Fault Divorce 

Most divorces in the United States today, whether your are representing yourself or are represented by counsel, and based upon a no-fault ground, which means that neither party is an fault - the marriage has simply broken and there is no hope of reconciliation.

Filing a no-fault divorce is a relatively very easy and simple process. If you have no children and no assets, you might not even need a Marital Separation Agreement, and you can file your divorce papers directly if you meet the residence and other divorce requirements in your state. Your total cost will be court filing fees; thousands of dollars less than if you were represented by an attorney. 

What if You and Your Spouse Cannot Agree on One or Two Issues

If you and your spouse cannot agree about one or two
issues, your best choice is family mediation. One or two
hours spent with a trained mediator, or resolving your
dispute through claims evaluation, can save you thousands in legal fees and much emotional heart ache. Once you have reached agreement you can execute a Marital Settlement Agreement which is the basis for a hassle-free no-fault divorce. [See section on Mediation for information about Mediation Resources].

You can purchase a No-Fault Divorce Forms Package that you can assemble using the Rapidocs Assembler ($49.95) or or you have the option of assembling your documents yourself using your word-processor, which of course takes more time. ($29.95) 

We are adding new no-fault divorce kits for the various states every month are added and are being converted into the Rapidocs Assembler technology. 

If your state's No-Fault Divorce Forms Package is not yet within our Catalog, try our Legal Research Center. You may find that the judicial system in your state has published divorce and family law forms with instructions on how to use them.

Finally, remember that after your divorce you will usually need a new will, living will, or health care power of attorney, to manage your affairs if your are unable and have previously delegated that power to your ex-spouse. 

Resources

Cornell Legal Information Institute: Divorce Materials
Child Support Laws by State from Office of Child Support Enforcement
Child Support Enforcement - a private company
DivorceHelpline- very valuable on California and how to avoid litigation costs in general
DivorceNet- a required stop on any research of the Net on Divorce
Divorce Source -detailed state-by-state information on divorce law.
Family Law Center at Court TV
U.S. House of Representatives: Internet Law Library: Marriage and Divorce
The Divorce, Custody and Alimony Reporter from the Family Law Advisor
Where to Write for Vital Records
Family Law News from Law Journal Extra
Men's Issues Page of the WWW Virtual Library
Getting A Divorce Across State Lines
Divorce and Federal Employee Benefits