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3 things you should know about serving divorce papers

On Behalf of | Dec 18, 2017 | Divorce

It is unfortunately true that both partners in a divorce do not always agree to the separation. When this is the case, it can be contentious to proceed and move on to the next chapter of your life. To do so, you must make the divorce legal and official, but a resistant spouse may not comply with your efforts. Serving your ex with divorce papers is often the next step if he or she refuses to receive and sign them of their own accord. 

When your spouse is legally resistant to divorce proceedings, serving papers may not be the only struggle you encounter. Rather than face these obstacles alone, enlisting help from a legal professional can help you navigate your divorce in a way that minimizes conflict. 

1. You must file before serving

Once you get to the point of serving your ex with divorce papers, you should have already filed the initial papers declaring your intent to proceed with the divorce. This entails completing and submitting the divorce summons or petition in the court where you reside. Once this has been processed, you can proceed to serve your ex with the next course of paperwork.

2. Spouse must acknowledge

Simply serving papers is not enough to proceed to the next step of your divorce. Typically, your ex must acknowledge the papers by signing and dating them. How you obtain acknowledgment, however, depends on how you have chosen to serve the papers to your ex.

3. There are several options

According to Time, you can now serve divorce papers via Facebook and other social media platforms. Modern means of communication indeed make it easier than ever to serve an ex, but you can also go a more traditional route. Some of the other options include sending papers via certified or first class mail with a return receipt, hiring a process server or sheriff or publishing the announcement in a newspaper.

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