When you hire Rowland & Yauger to defend your interests, you can be confident that a solution to your problem is at hand. The experienced family law attorneys at Rowland & Yauger are here to listen, provide knowledgeable legal advice, and to offer effective help in these deeply distressing personal situations. Our experienced North Carolina family law attorneys are intimately familiar with the North Carolina divorce and separation laws. We are persuasive negotiators and strive to reach a just and fair agreement between our client and their spouse whenever possible. If an acceptable agreement cannot be reached, we vigorously pursue and protect your rights in court.
Separation in North Carolina requires that a husband and wife move into separate residences with the intent to continue living apart from one another. If the spouses engage in isolated instances of sexual intercourse it does not constitute resumption of marital relations and does not stop the statutory one-year period from running, provided such incidents do not amount to a "resumption of marital relations" and at least one of the spouses intends to continue living apart from the other."
Property division, child custody and child support may all be negotiated and agreed upon at the time of Separation, during or after Divorce procedures. A claim for Alimony must be asserted before the Divorce is granted or future claims will be barred. This is also true for a claim for equitable distribution of assets with a few narrow exceptions. A Separation agreement is a binding contract. It is important for you to obtain competent legal advice from a North Carolina divorce lawyer to make sure your rights are protected before signing these papers. You may also wish to have such issues as child custody and child support included in your divorce proceedings to add the contempt enforcement powers of the court to these agreements in case of future disputes.
Divorce from bed and board
Divorce from bed and board is usually brought by an injured spouse to get the court to order the other spouse out of the residence. The injured spouse must establish at least one of six grounds:
malicious turning out of doors
cruel or barbarous treatment
indignities - conduct which renders the other spouse's condition intolerable and life burdensome
excessive use of alcohol or drugs rendering the condition of the other spouse intolerable
Further, the injured spouse must say that he or she did not provoke the other spouse's misconduct. Only the injured party may apply for a divorce from bed and board.
The party defending against an action for divorce from bed and board may use the following defenses:
condonation
connivance
recrimination
The parties' reconciliation while the divorce from bed and board action is pending is not a defense, however. Resumption of marital relations after a divorce from bed and board is granted nullifies the effect of the divorce from bed and board.
Requirements for Divorce
You must be a resident of North Carolina for six months to file for a Divorce. Grounds for divorce in North Carolina include assertion, under oath, that you and your spouse have lived separate and apart for at least one year, or the incurable insanity of a spouse. If child custody is contested, mandatory mediation for the parents will be ordered by the court.
If you petition the court to restore your maiden name or the name of a former spouse who is deceased or with whom you have children, that name change will be granted in the Divorce Decree. A parent may change the name of a minor child if:
You have consent of the other parent
the other parent is deceased
the minor child has reached the age of 16
the minor child has the consent of the custodial parent who has supported the minor child and the clerk of court is satisfied that the non-custodial parent has abandoned the minor child
the non-custodial parent has been adjudicated as having abandoned the minor child
Rowland & Yauger are capable and experienced North Carolina Divorce attorneys ready to answer your divorce and legal separation questions. Let us help you resolve these stressful and confidential matters with the knowledge, experience and personal attention you need.
We invite you to Contact us or call our office at 910-947-2280 or toll free at 910-722-9717 to learn more about your legal rights.