Divorce is tough and traumatic. After all, there are emotional and financial hurdles to overcome in addition to the legal process’s complexity. While no two divorces are identical, most follow a similar structure and involve similar parties. Let’s look at the parties involved in the divorce hearings.
1. Respondent
If your spouse initiates the divorce proceedings, they are referred to as the Petitioner in the case, making you the Respondent. A Respondent in a divorce case differs from a Respondent in a criminal trial. It doesn’t mean it’s your fault and won’t get you in trouble. Petitioner does not automatically have the upper hand in the divorce. This simply implies that your spouse initiated the divorce by filing the necessary paperwork first.
2. Petitioner
In a divorce, the person who submits the petition is the Petitioner. The Petitioner pays to file the case and to have their spouse served, but other than that, the court fees are pretty similar. If you and your spouse live in separate counties, the one who files first gets to select the county. However, there may be exceptions depending on where the children primarily live.
3. Divorce Lawyers for Petitioner and Respondent
According to HuffPost, 29% of custody cases were concluded without any outside influence. However, even in an uncontested divorce case, hiring an uncontested divorce lawyer is highly beneficial. A divorce attorney practices family law and has knowledge and expertise in matters such as divorce, child support, child custody and visita
