Once you decide to obtain a divorce in the Commonwealth of Virginia, the next question you may want to consider is which circuit courthouse can you file the divorce paperwork with?
In Virginia, you have three options as the petitioning spouse, provided at least one spouse is a Virginia resident (ie. – you or your spouse has lived in Virginia more than six months prior to filing the complaint for divorce). The first and most common court to file in is the circuit court for the city or county where you last lived together as husband and wife (or husband and husband, and wife and wife) in the marital residence. The second option is to file in the city or county where the defending spouse lives, if different from where you last lived together, provided your spouse still is a Virginia resident. The third option, if your soon to be ex-spouse lives out of state, you can file in the circuit court for the city or county in Virginia where you as the petitioning spouse lives.
It’s important to properly consider where you file for divorce as filing costs and serving of paperwork costs can vary from court to court. You may also want to consider the ease of being able to travel to one court versus another, or perhaps what court may or may not be more convenient for your spouse.
If you have questions regarding filing divorce, please contact us at 804-423-1382 or email us at info@wmmlegal.com to set up an initial consultation with one of our family law attorneys.
