Maine No-Fault Uncontested Agreed Divorce Package for Dissolution of Marriage with Adult Children and with or without Property and Debts
Notes: This summary is not intended to be
an all-inclusive summary of the laws of divorce in the state of Maine,
but does contain basic and other procedures.
Grounds for Divorce
A divorce may be granted in the State of Maine based upon the following grounds:
1. Adultery
2. Impotence
3. Extreme cruelty
4. Utter desertion continued for 3 consecutive years prior to the commencement of the action
5. Gross and confirmed habits of intoxication from the use of liquor or drugs
6. Nonsupport
7. Cruel and abusive treatment
8. Irreconcilable differences is the no-fault grounds for divorce in the State of Maine.
9. Mental illness and confinement to a mental institution for at least 7 consecutive years prior to the commencement of the action. MRSA 19A-902
Residency Requirements
A person seeking a divorce may file a complaint for divorce in the District Court if:
1. The plaintiff has resided in good faith in this State for 6 months prior to the commencement of the action;
2. The plaintiff is a resident of this State and the parties were married in this State;
3. The plaintiff is a resident of this State and the parties resided in this State when the cause of divorce accrued; or
4. The defendant is a resident of this State.
5. The party is a member of the Armed Forces of the United States on active duty stationed this State or the spouse of that member or a parent of a child of that member. The member is deemed to be a resident either of the county in which the military installation, or other place at which the member has been stationed, is located or of the county in which the member has sojourned.
MRSA 19A-901
Name of court and title of action/parties
An action for divorce filed in the State of Maine is filed in the
District Court. The title of the action initiating the divorce is a Complaint
for Divorce, while the title of the action granting the divorce is
referred to as the Judgment of Divorce. The party who is filing
the action for divorce is called the Plaintiff, while the other
spouse is referred to as the Defendant. MRSA 19A-902
Legal Separation
A judgment of legal separation may be granted upon the petition
of one of the parties to a marriage, or upon a joint petition filed by
both spouses when the party or parties live or desire to live separate
and apart from their spouse for a period of at least sixty consecutive
days. MRSA 19A-851
Alimony
There are several types of alimony that may be awarded in Maine.
Among them are:
General support- General support may be awarded to provide
financial assistance to a spouse who has substantially less income than
the other spouse so that both spouses may maintain a reasonable standard
of living after the divorce.
1. There is a rebuttable presumption that general support may not be awarded if the parties were married for less than 10 years as of the date of the filing of the action for divorce. There is also a rebuttable presumption that general support may not be awarded for a term exceeding 1/2 the length of the marriage if the parties were married for at least 10 years but not more than 20 years as of the date of the filing of the action for divorce.
2. If the court finds that a spousal support award based upon a presumption established by this paragraph would be inequitable or unjust, that finding is sufficient to rebut the applicable presumption.
Transitional support- Transitional support may be awarded to provide for a spouse's transitional needs, including, but not limited to:
1. Short-term needs resulting from financial dislocations associated with the dissolution of the marriage; or
2. Reentry or advancement in the work force, including, but not limited to, physical or emotional rehabilitation services, vocational training and education.
Reimbursement support- Reimbursement support is awarded to
achieve an equitable result in the dissolution of the parties' financial
relationship in response to exceptional circumstances. Exceptional circumstances include, but are not limited to:
1. Economic misconduct by a spouse; and
2. Substantial contributions a spouse made towards the educational or occupational advancement of the other spouse during the marriage.
Reimbursement support may be awarded only if the court determines that the parties' financial circumstances do not permit the court to fully address equitable considerations through its distributive order.
Nominal support- Nominal support is awarded to preserve the
court's authority to grant support in the future.
Interim support- Interim support may be awarded to provide
for a spouse's separate needs pending the action for divorce.
Some of the factors the court will consider in determining an award
of support include:
1. The length of the marriage;
2. The ability of each party to pay;
3. The age of each party;
4. The employment history and employment potential of each spouse;
5. The income history and income potential of each spouse;
6. The education and training of each spouse;
7. The provisions for retirement and health insurance benefits of each party;
8. The tax consequences of the division of marital property, including the tax consequences of the sale of the marital home, if applicable;
9. The health and disabilities of each party;
10. The tax consequences of a spousal support award;
11. The contributions of either party as homemaker;
12. The contributions of either party to the education or earning potential of the other party;
13. Economic misconduct by either party resulting in the diminution of marital property or income;
14. The standard of living of the parties during the marriage;
15. The ability of the party seeking support to become self-supporting within a reasonable period of time;
16. The effect of the following on a party's need for spousal support or a party's ability to pay spousal support;
a. Actual or potential income from marital or nonmarital property awarded or set apart to each party as part of the court's distributive order;
b. Child support for the support of a minor child or children of the marriage
17. Any other factor the court considers appropriate.
The court may order that a support award be paid in either lump sum or in installments, and an award of support will terminate upon the death of either the payor or payee spouse unless provided for otherwise in the judgment of divorce. MRSA 19A-951
Distribution of Property
The State of Maine is an equitable distribution state. In the absence
of a valid property settlement agreement, upon entry of the final decree
of divorce the court shall set aside to each spouse that party's separate
property and distribute all other property between the parties in a manner
that the court determines is equitable, just and reasonable after considering
the following factors:
1. The contribution of each spouse to the acquisition of the marital
property, including the contribution of a spouse as a homemaker;
2. The value of the property set aside to each spouse;
3. The economic circumstances of each spouse at the time the division of property is to become effective, including the desirability of awarding the family home or the right to live in the home for reasonable periods to the spouse having custody of the children.
"Marital property" means all property acquired by either spouse subsequent to the marriage, except:
1. Property acquired by gift, bequest, devise or descent;
2. Property acquired in exchange for property acquired prior to the marriage or in exchange for property acquired by gift, bequest, devise or descent;
3. Property acquired by a spouse after a decree of legal separation;
4. Property excluded by valid agreement of the parties; and
5. The increase in value of property acquired prior to the marriage and the increase in value of a spouse's nonmarital property
a. "Increase in value" includes appreciation resulting from market forces; and appreciation resulting from reinvested income and capital gain unless either or both spouses had a substantial active role during the marriage in managing, preserving or improving the property.
b. "Increase in value" does not include Appreciation resulting from the investment of marital funds or property in the nonmarital property; appreciation resulting from marital labor; and appreciation resulting from reinvested income and capital gain if either or both spouses had a substantial active role during the marriage in managing, preserving or improving the property.
MRSA 19A-953
Child Custody
The court shall determine custody of minor children of the marriage
based upon the best interests of the child. Some of the factors used to
determine the best interests of the child include:
1. The age of the child;
2. The relationship of the child with the child's parents and any
other person who may significantly affect the child's welfare;
3. The preference of the child, if old enough to express a meaningful preference;
4. The duration and adequacy of the child's current living arrangements
and the desirability of maintaining continuity;
5. The stability of any proposed living arrangement;
6. The motivation of the parties involved and their capacity to
give the child love, affection and guidance;
7. The child's adjustment to the present home, school and community;
8. The capacity of each parent to allow and encourage frequent
and continuing contact between the child and other parent, including physical address;
9. The capacity of each parent to learn to cooperate in child care;
10. Methods for assisting parental cooperation and resolving disputes and each parent's willingness to use those methods;
11. The effect on the child if one parent has sole authority over the child's upbringing;
12. The existence of domestic abuse between the parents, in the past or currently, and how that abuse affects:
a. The child emotionally; and
b. The safety of the child
13. The existence of any history of child abuse by a parent;
14. All other factors having a reasonable bearing on the physical and psychological well-being of the child;
15. A parent's prior willful misuse of the protection from abuse process in chapter 101 in order to gain tactical advantage in a proceeding involving the determination of parental rights and responsibilities of a minor child. Such willful misuse may only be considered if established by clear and convincing evidence, and if it is further found by clear and convincing evidence that in the particular circumstances of the parents and child, that willful misuse tends to show that the acting parent will in the future have a lessened ability and willingness to cooperate and work with the other parent in their shared responsibilities for the child. The court shall articulate findings of fact whenever relying upon this factor as part of its determination of a child's best interest. The voluntary dismissal of a protection from abuse petition may not, taken alone, be treated as evidence of the willful misuse of the protection from abuse process;
16. If the child is under one year of age, whether the child is being breast-fed; and
17. The existence of a parent's conviction for a sex offense or a sexually violent offense
The court shall not apply a preference for one parent over the other
based upon gender or age of the parties. In any custody proceeding, the
court may order each parent to submit a parenting plan detailing each parent's
proposals regarding issues such as the child's residence, support, visitation,
education and medical and dental care, among others. MRSA 19A-1501
Mediation
Court authority to order mediation - The court may, in any case under this Title, at any time refer the parties to mediation on any issue.
Required mediation - Prior to a contested hearing, when there are minor children of the parties, the court shall refer the parties to mediation.
1. For good cause shown, the court, prior to referring the parties to mediation, may hear motions for temporary relief, pending final judgment on an issue or combination of issues for which good cause for temporary relief has been shown.
2. Upon motion supported by affidavit, the court may, for extraordinary cause shown, waive the mediation requirement.
Mediated agreement - An agreement reached by the parties through mediation on issues must be reduced to writing, signed by the parties and presented to the court for approval as a court order.
No agreement; good faith effort required - When agreement through mediation is not reached on an issue, the court must determine that the parties made a good faith effort to mediate the issue before proceeding with a hearing. If the court finds that either party failed to make a good faith effort to mediate, the court may order the parties to submit to mediation, may dismiss the action or a part of the action, may render a decision or judgment by default, may assess attorney's fees and costs or may impose any other sanction that is appropriate in the circumstances.
Failure to appear - The court may also impose an appropriate sanction upon a party's failure without good cause to appear for mediation after receiving notice of the scheduled time for mediation.
Waiver of mediation; questions of law - The court may hear motions to waive mediation in cases in which there are no facts at issue and all unresolved issues are questions of law.
MRSA 19A-251, 902
Child Support
After the court or hearing officer determines the annual gross income of both parties, the 2 incomes must be added together to provide a combined annual gross income and applied to the child support table to determine the basic support entitlement for each child.
When there is a child within each age category, the court or hearing officer shall refer to the table and locate the figure in the left-hand column that is closest to the parents' combined annual gross income. In each age category the court or hearing officer shall determine the dollar figure for the total number of children for whom support is being determined, multiply the dollar figure in each age category by the number of children in that category and add the 2 products. The resulting dollar amount represents the basic support entitlement.
The total basic support obligation is determined by adding the child care costs, health insurance premiums and extraordinary medical expenses to the basic support entitlement as follows:
1. When each child is under the age of 12 years, the sums actually being expended for child care costs must be added to the basic support entitlement to determine the total basic support obligation.
2. If a child is incurring extraordinary medical expenses, the future incidence of which is determinable because of the permanent, chronic or recurring nature of the illness or disorder, the sums actually being expended for the medical expenses must be added to the basic support entitlement to determine the total basic support obligation.
3. If a party is paying health insurance premiums, the sums actually being expended for health insurance premiums for the child or children for whom support is being ordered must be added to the basic support entitlement to determine the total basic support obligation. The court shall determine the pro rata share of the health insurance premium actually expended that is attributable to each child.
4. The total basic support obligation must be divided between the parties in proportion to their respective gross incomes. The court or hearing officer shall order the party not providing primary residential care to pay, in money, that party's share of the total basic support obligation to the party providing primary residential care. The primary residential care provider is presumed to spend the primary care provider's share directly on each child. If the court or hearing officer determines that the parties provide substantially equal care for a child for whom support is sought, presumptive support must be calculated. Both parents are responsible for child support if a caretaker relative provides primary residential care for the child. The caretaker relative's income may not be considered in determining the parents' child support obligation.
MRSA 19A-2006
The court may deviate from these guidelines upon finding that the application
of the guidelines would result in an inequitable or unjust result, or not in the child’s best interest.
MRSA 19A-2007
Name Change
Upon request of either spouse, the court may change that person's
name to a former name or any other name requested. MRSA 19A-1051
