Arkansas Divorce

Arkansas divorce laws can be as complex or as simple as your marriage. But, if you take the divorce process step by step, it does not have to be overwhelming.

Under Arkansas divorce law, anyone filing a complaint for divorce must be an Arkansas resident for at least 60 days. You may also need to have a witness testify in court that you have lived in Arkansas for at least 60 days.

You'll need to complete the following steps to file for divorce in Arkansas:

1. The petitioning spouse must file a "complaint" for divorce and summons at the courthouse in his/her county.
2. The petitioning spouse must serve the complaint on the responding spouse. You can contact your local sheriff and have them serve the complaint or check the yellow pages for a process server.
3. The responding spouse must file a written response, or “answer”, to the complaint within 20 days of being served with the complaint. This is your chance to tell your side of the story and request property, alimony, child custody, or child support. If the responding spouse fails to file an answer, then the court may give the petitioning spouse everything he/she requested in the complaint. This would be a “default judgment.”
4. The judge signs the “Decree of Dissolution of Marriage”. This signed decree formally ends the marriage and finalizes the divorce. The couple is still married up until the day the judge signs the decree.

During the Arkansas divorce case, the Chancery Court must divide the couple’s marital property. This means that in any Arkansas divorce, the court will order an equitable division of property acquired during the marriage.

However, an “equitable division of property” does not mean that the property will be split 50/50. Instead, the court will examine the spouse’s circumstances and contributions to the marriage when deciding how to divide the property.

When the court divides the property, the judge will not divide any property acquired before the spouses got married. Therefore, it is important to document what property the each spouse owns and when it was acquired.

The Arkansas divorce court may decide that one spouse needs financial support from the other in order to meet basic living expenses. Generally, spousal support will end when the receiving spouse remarries or dies.

In Arkansas, divorcing parents are required to take a parenting class. If requested, the court will also issue a temporary order to provide for the children. The temporary order will only be in effect until the judge signs the divorce decree. A typical temporary order will require that the children’s lives not be disrupted by their parents’ divorce. For example, the temporary order may require that the children live in the same home and attend the same school as when their parents were living together.

Arkansas divorce law considers several factors in deciding child custody. For example, the court will consider the following:

• The child’s wishes and concerns
• The child’s relationship with their parents, siblings, and extended family
• The child’s adjustment and development at home, school, and in the community
• The mental, physical, and emotional health of the parents, child, and siblings
• The wishes and concerns of the parents
• Whether either parent has abused or neglected any child
• Whether either parent has failed to make any child support payments

Both parents have an obligation to provide financial support for all minor children from the marriage. The court will enforce this obligation regardless of the gender of the parent. For instance, the court does not automatically assume that the father must pay child support to the mother. If it is in the best interests of the children, the court will order a mother to pay child support to the father. In circumstances where the child lives with neither parent, the court will order both parents to pay child support to whomever the child lives with.

The court relies upon the Arkansas Child Support Worksheet to determine how much a parent must pay to support their children.

If a parent requests that the child support order be modified, the court will change the order to meet changes in the needs of the children. For example, if a child develops special needs, the court may modify the child support order to require that a parent pay to more money in order to meet those needs. Or, the court may modify the order when there are changes in the parent's ability to pay the original support amount. For example, if a parent loses his/her job, the court may decrease the support payment to reflect the loss in income. The court may even increase child support payments if a parent gets a raise or wins the lottery. The court will not allow a parent to come into a windfall and not pass that additional benefit on to the children.

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