Mt. Juliet and Lebanon TN
A wedding day is one of the happiest days of a person’s life. It’s no wonder, then, that emotions may run high if a couple makes the difficult decision to end the marriage. Fortunately, our Mt. Juliet divorce attorney, Yancy Belcher, can help navigate you through the ups and downs of divorce, addressing any questions or concerns you have along the way.
Today, let’s look at the very first step in filing for divorce: determining grounds. To obtain a divorce in Tennessee, the filing party must provide “grounds” for the divorce. It could be that the couple is seeking a non-contested divorce; in other words, they’ve mutually agreed to part ways due to irreconcilable differences. This is a “no-fault ground” for divorce.
The 14 other causes that the State of Tennessee considers justifiable, reasonable grounds for divorce are considered “at-fault”. The party filing for divorce must prove, through evidence and testimony, that at least one of the following has occurred during the marriage:
- Adultery — You must be able to prove that adultery occurred.
- Bigamy — You cannot be married to two or more people at once.
- Inability to have children — Impotence must be permanent and must pre-date the marriage.
- Abandonment — Deserting a spouse maliciously, intentionally and without reasonable cause. This can only be filed one year after the date of separation.
- Infamous crime — Includes larceny, breaking and entering, incest, forgery, bribery and rape.
- Felony — If a spouse has been convicted of a felony and sent to prison.
- Attempted murder of spouse — If one spouse tries to kill the other.
- Refusing to move — If a spouse refuses to move to Tennessee after two years of marriage.
- Pregnancy — If a woman was pregnant by another man, without her spouse’s knowledge, at the time of the marriage.
- Alcoholism or drug addiction — Must be proven to be habitual.
- Cruel and inhuman treatment — Physical or emotional abuse, failure to provide or degrading conduct/behavior.
- Indignities — If one spouse inflicts pain on the other.
- Two years of separation— Must be two consecutive years, and the couple must have no minor children.
Nashville area, including Hermitage and Mt. Juliet, TN
A divorce can be a trying time, full of emotions, disappointments and big decisions to make. Sometimes you may feel you’re having to make those life choices while operating in a vacuum or an emotional fog. You don’t have to do this alone. The sooner you reach out to our Nashville area divorce attorney Yancy Belcher to develop an action plan, the better. We can use our years of experience to provide the best legal advice to help you, as seamlessly as possible, close one chapter of life and start the next. If you need a divorce lawyer, call the Law Office of Yancy Belcher at (615) 773-2889, or contact us online today.
