Divorce & Family Law Summaries
U.S. Divorce Laws are enacted by each state using their respective legislative process. Once legislation is enacted into law, the divorce courts in Mississippi have the authority to manage the divorce proceedings, including spousal support and child support payments, custodial rights of parents, and the division of property.
Since state laws are repealed and amended frequently, it is always advisable to consult with an experienced divorce lawyer before making important decisions about your marriage.
All states allow for “no-fault” divorce. Yet many courts still factor in the respective parties’ past behavior when determining the division of community property, debts, custody, support, and related issues.
Read our expanded article on the divorce process for a deeper and more realistic understanding of the challenges you’re likely to face.
RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS
At least one of the spouses must be a state resident for at least six months before a divorce may begin, and the chancery court shall have jurisdiction on suits for divorce. A divorce based on irreconcilable differences may begin in the county where either party resides.
A divorce based on fault grounds must be filed in the county where the plaintiff resides if the defendant resides outside of the state or cannot be located, or it can be filed in the county where the defendant resides if said party is a resident of this state.
LEGAL GROUNDS FOR DIVORCE
A divorce may be granted on the grounds of irreconcilable differences if both parties agree. Complaints about divorce based on irreconcilable differences must have been on file for sixty (60) days before being heard.
A divorce may also be granted on the following fault grounds:
- Natural impotence.
- Adultery, unless it should appear that it was committed by collusion of the parties to procure a divorce, or unless the parties cohabited after a knowledge by the complainant of the adultery.
- Being sentenced to prison and not pardoned before being sent there.
- Willful, continued desertion for one year.
- Drug or alcohol addiction.
- Habitual cruel treatment.
- Insanity at the time of marriage if the party complaining did not know of such infirmity.
- Bigamy.
- Pregnancy of the wife by another person at the time of the marriage if the husband did not know of such pregnancy.
- Kinship to each other within the degrees of kindred between whom marriage is prohibited by law.
- Incurable insanity.
PROPERTY DIVISION
Mississippi is an equitable distribution state, with the added twist that each spouse retains the property for which they have the title, but jointly titled property will be divided equitably by the court. If the property settlement is disputed, the division of property shall be at the court’s discretion.
ALIMONY-MAINTENANCE SUPPORT
The court may order the maintenance and alimony of the wife or the husband or any allowance to be made to her or him, and shall, if need be, require a bond, sureties, or other guarantees for the payment of the sum so allowed.
SPOUSE’S LEGAL NAME
There are no laws directly addressing changing a spouse’s name upon divorce, but each spouse has the right to petition the court for a name change.
CHILD CUSTODY
If the parents can’t come to a mutual agreement concerning custody, the court shall base its decision on the child’s best interests. There is no presumption that either parent is better suited for control based on gender. In making an order for custody to either parent or both parents jointly, the court may require the parents to submit a plan to implement the custody order.
If custody is disputed, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that it is detrimental to the child and not in the best interest of the child, to be placed in sole custody, joint legal custody, or joint physical custody of a parent who has a history of perpetrating family violence.
CHILD SUPPORT
The “Income Shares” model is used as a base for determining child support. When proof shows that both parents have separate incomes or estates, the court may require that each parent contributes to the support and maintenance of the children of the marriage in proportion to the relative financial ability. The duty of approval of a child terminates upon the emancipation of the child.
SAME-SEX DIVORCE
On June 26, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that gay marriage is a right protected by the U.S. Constitution in all 50 states. It follows, therefore, that the rights and obligations between same-sex divorcing parties are subject to the same dissolution laws of that state. Reference: U.S. Supreme Court Opinion: Obergefell v. Hodges. (For more information, visit ProCon.org).
