If I want a divorce and don't know my spouses whereabouts, how do I publish notice in the newspaper?
Question Details:
I want to divorce my husband. We have been separated for 20 months. What paperwork do I need to complete to file for a divorce in MA when I do not know where my husband lives? His last known address is the same address I reside. I read that I am able to publish some info in the paper, but I am unsure what paper(s) and what the info needs to say. How long will it take for a divorce to be final if he doesn't respond? We have 2 children, 6 years and 4 years; no custody order is in place. The children have resided with me full time for the past 5 months. I get no financial support from my husband. What happens if he does not respond?
In Massachusetts, it is similar. You need to file a complaint with the motion for such service, and an affidavit. You may be required to show that you took some action to investigate his whereabouts.
Contact me with any questions.
You'll need to make a motion in writing to the court, for permission to do this, and part of that motion has to be what is often called an "affidavit of diligent inquiry." This is your sworn and notarized statement, that you have made a good faith effort to locate the man, and with a separate paragraph for each different thing you did trying to find him, and that you still can't find him.
When it's time to publish the notice, you should be able to find the requirements in the court rules; usually, it amounts to the same thing as the summons that would be served with the complaint if you knew where to find him. You can look at the newspaper's legal notices section for examples, too.
You are correct, you can "serve" a divorce complaint via "notice by publication". This is used when a respondent-spouse cannot be located by the petitioner-spouse. Basically, the respondent is notified of the divorce proceedings by publishing such notice it in a local paper in the area of their last known whereabouts. You can ask the court clerk in the court where you will be filing as to where you can obtain your state's rule for this.
Then, again depending on spedific state law, they have to reply within a certain amount of time. If they do not, you can proceed with the divorce; this is known as a "divorce by default". It typically will be granted on your terms.
