Divorcing a Missing Spouse in Florida

As a Florida resident, you want to divorce your spouse. Perhaps you have been separated for quite some time and, at this point, you don’t even know where he or she lives. This can pose a problem in Florida because once you petition the court for a divorce, your spouse must be served the paperwork, according to Florida law. What do you do? First of all, you must make a diligent search for your spouse to locate his or her current residence. This can be done through asking friends, family, your spouse’s co-workers, or others who might know. You can also search through phone books, social networks, and the internet. If you come up empty, then you must submit to the court a sworn statement that you diligently searched but that your spouse’s location is unknown. You should include an outline of what you did to find your spouse and swear under penalty of perjury that the information in your statement is true.

After receiving your statement, the court will generally issue a notice allowing you to serve your spouse the divorce paperwork through publication. This means that you will have the divorce information published in the legal notices of a local newspaper in compliance with the requirements that the court gives you. These requirements may include how long and where the information should be published. The information will generally announce your pending divorce and the court where it is being processed. Once the divorce information has been published, you must inform the court within 28 days in writing of what you have done, including the information contained in the newspaper, and include a copy of the publication. Once the court is satisfied of your actions, it can grant you a default divorce judgment.

Jacksonville Divorce Attorney

For those facing the prospect of divorce or any other family law issue, such as disputes over child custody, child support, relocation, modifications of earlier court orders, domestic violence, or premarital or postnuptial agreements, it is vital to retain the services of a skilled attorney. All of these divorce and family issues can impact you and your children for many years to come.

Charles E. Willmott, P.A. offers the highest level of competence in divorce and family law representation. That is because Mr. Willmott is Board Certified in this field by the Florida Bar. Only six percent of all attorneys in the state have met the rigorous requirements for board certification, which puts this law firm in an elite category. Mr. Willmott has close to 20 years of experience as a divorce and family lawyer and mediator. If you live in and around Jacksonville and need any kind of legal assistance in a family issue, contact his firm for a consultation.