Separation in Virginia
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"Separation" means two
different things in Virginia:
1. Living apart for a certain amount of time, which is the only no-fault
ground of divorce in Virginia. Your status as "living apart" does
not require any formal documentation -- it means that one person leaves
the marriage, and establishes a separate household, with the intention of
permanent separation. To get a divorce on this ground, you need to have
one spouse, AND a third-party witness, testify that the separation, and
the intention of permanent separation, was continuously maintained for one
year before the date the case for no-fault divorce was filed. However, this
period is reduced to six months if there are no minor children and a Separation
Agreement (see below).
2. "Separation Agreements", also often called "Property Settlement
Agreements." Both of these names are usually a misnomer, because what
they usually are is a binding written contract settling all the issues
that a court could address in a divorce case: property, debts, pensions,
child support, spousal support (a.k.a. "alimony"), and child custody
and visitation (a.k.a. "parenting time"). However, sometimes there
are agreements that only cover some of these issues and leave others unresolved;
and sometimes there are agreements that are only temporary. It is very important
to have a lawyer either draft the Agreement, or at least review it with
you before you sign it. If you can only afford to use a lawyer for one part
of the divorce process, that is the part where it is most important to have
one.
Unlike some other states, we do not have something called "Legal Separation"
which has to be issued by, or filed with, a court or any other governmental
office. We do have a couple similar institutions called "separate maintenance"
and "divorce from bed and board," but they are very rarely used.
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