Wisconsin Divorce Laws, What do you know?

Wisconsin divorce laws
Wisconsin divorce laws are fairly straightforward. The laws of Wisconsin are not complicated by a variety of different potential grounds for divorce, as is the case in many other states. This article will act as your guide to divorce in Wisconsin and educate you on the most important points to be aware of if you’re planning to file for divorce in this state.

First of all, you need to qualify to apply for divorce by meeting the Wisconsin residency requirements. This simply requires that one spouse must have lived in Wisconsin for six months up to the filing of the divorce. The law also stipulates the spouse needs to have been a resident of the country where the divorce is filed for 30 days before the filing. Be aware that a divorce hearing won’t commence until at least 120 days after filing, and divorce cases rarely last less than four months. If child custody or property division is disputed, it’s not uncommon for a case to take more than a year to resolve.

Grounds for Divorce
Wisconsin only has No Fault grounds for divorce, meaning that marital misconduct generally has little influence on the outcome of a case. Most divorces in Wisconsin fall under the category of “irretrievable breakdown of the marriage.” If both parties will agree to this and say so under oath, the process is relatively simple. If only one spouse believes the marriage is irretrievably broken and the other contests this notion, the court will decide based on the evidence at hand. In cases where there is disagreement, the incidents or circumstances leading up to the filing become important to the court.

The other situation in which a divorce is possible is when the spouses have lived separately for a year or more without any periods living together in between.

Property Distribution
When the division of property can’t be agreed on by both spouses, the court will apply a set of guidelines to determine how marital property will be divided. This is done in accordance with the legal principle of property distribution – in other words, the marital property will be divided in a way the court determines to be fair to both spouses. The court will first determine what property qualifies for division, then divide it based on several factors.

Amongst these factors are the age and health of each spouse, the property each spouse brought into the marriage, each spouse’s potential to generate a future income, and potential tax issues that may arise for each spouse. The contribution each spouse has made throughout the duration of the marriage is also included in the consideration, whether that be monetary contribution or in the form of child-raising and general home-making. The length of the marriage can also be a relevant factor.

Child Custody
As with all other states, child custody decisions made by the court are determined by the best interests of the child. Under Wisconsin divorce laws, a decision will be made that will maintain the stability and well-being of the child as much as possible, according to the information the court has available.

Factors that can influence the court’s decision in this respect include what the child actually wants, the age and current educational and other needs of the child, and the likelihood of each parent to maintain cooperation and communication with the other. Ideally, the parents will be expected to propose their own parenting plan to deal with these issues, preventing the court from having to make a decision. Another important factor is the past bond between the child and each parent, and which parent has spent more time with the child up until the present.

Child Support and Alimony
Child support is another issue which can be determined by many influencing factors. The general idea behind the process is that child support payments should help sustain a lifestyle for the child which is as similar as possible to the life the child would have led had the divorce not happened. In other words, if a lower income parent takes custody of the child, the higher income parent may be ordered to make payments to ensure the lifestyle and living standards of the child are maintained at the same level.

Other factors come into play, such as the cost of education and day care. If one parent must travel long distance in order to visit the child, this may also be taken into account by the court.

Spousal support payments, otherwise known as alimony or spousal maintenance, are closely intertwined with property distribution under Wisconsin divorce laws. Factors that determine if payments will be made, and for how much, include things like the length of the marriage, the education and earning capacity of each spouse, and a host of other factors. Any written and signed formal agreements made prior to the marriage with regards to alimony will come into effect.

SBI!