A court determining property division and alimony is required to look at certain factors. What are known as the Ferguson factors related to property division include how much each party substantially contributed to accumulating property, the degree to which each spouse has disposed of marital assets, the market value of…
In Mississippi, the divorce laws have not changed in many years. However, on July 31, 2017, following a period of several months of debate, drafting, and public outcry, what many believed to be a long overdue and beneficial change to the state’s divorce law went into effect. Under the twelve…
In a recent Mississippi appellate case, a wife filed for divorce on the fault-based grounds of adultery and habitual inhuman treatment. The couple married in 2004 and then separated in 2011. They had no children. The husband owned a bail bonding business, and the wife worked as an admissions registrar.…
We have all heard the term “consenting adults.” Well, Mississippi law requires such consent before a divorce on the ground of irreconcilable differences (also known as a “no-fault” or “agreed divorce”) will be granted. A divorce will not granted simply because he or she no longer desires to be married to…
When filing for divorce in Mississippi, you can file based on fault or no-fault grounds. Existing fault grounds in Mississippi include adultery, criminal conviction with a sentence to jail time, bigamy, impotence, willful continuous desertion for a minimum of a year, habitual substance abuse, habitual cruel and inhuman treatment, the…
So you both agree that you want to be divorced and you want to be divorced NOW! If no one is at fault for the divorce, you may wish to file what is known as an irreconcilable differences divorce. Irreconcilable Differences, also known as an “ID” or “no fault” divorce…
The entire concept of property division in a Mississippi divorce is rooted in fairness. In every divorce case, our Chancery courts are charged with the task of determining what is fair on a case-by-case basis. Typically, in a divorce, each spouse’s subjective view of fairness differs. Each spouse generally wants…
Who gets the house? This is the million dollar question I get from many of my clients. Simply put, the answer to who gets the marital home in a Mississippi divorce is not always an easy answer. The marital home or residence is often the largest marital asset the parties…
Do not “sit” on your right to enforce or collect on a divorce judgment. Let me repeat that: DO NOT wait too long to enforce a divorce judgment or any incorporated alimony, property settlement, or child support judgment. I give this counsel to all prospective clients that contact me asking…
One of the most frequently asked questions I have received in my years of divorce practice is “how much is this divorce going to cost me?” This is a fair question, but a tough one to answer. In Mississippi, divorce is neither easy nor free. While I often find myself…