Many people do not understand the difference between divorce and legal separation, also known as separate maintenance. In a divorce, the martial relationship is completely terminated. Community assets and debts are divided, child custody arrangements are formulated, and, if appropriate, spousal support is awarded. For the purposes of a legal status, a person is then “divorced.” In an action for separate maintenance, parties’ assets and debts are divided and custody arrangements are determined. However the two parties are not officially divorced and, for all intents and purposes, their legal status remains “married.”
In Nevada, parties may seek a legal separation anytime they have a cause of action for divorce. The two grounds for divorce in Nevada are 1) incompatibility and 2) living separate and apart for over one year. In addition to these two grounds for obtaining a legal separation, spouses may also seek to become legally separated if one has been deserted by the other for a period of 90 days or longer.
People usually chose to obtain a legal separation as opposed to a divorce for one of two reasons. First, some people’s religious beliefs prevent them from obtaining an actual divorce. In this case, people may choose to divide their community assets and devise a custody arrangement. However, they do so with the understanding that they are still technically married according to their religion and they have agreed that neither will ever re-marry.
Second, people chose to legally separate when they are not sure they want to officially divorce but have decided to live apart for an extended period of time. These people usually decide to officially end the “marital community,” so they will no longer be able to jointly accumulate community assets or community debts.
Amy M. Friedlander, Esq.
On Thursday, November 12, 2009, the Nevada Supreme Court gave its ruling in an international family law matter, commonly known as Ogawa v. Ogawa. This case involved three distinct issues effecting a child custody dispute and division of community property in a divorce action. Under the facts of this case, a now-Nevada resident was divorcing her spouse, who had returned to Japan with their three Japanese-born children.
When the parents of a child live in different states, and custody or support issues arise, you must take great care before hiring a lawyer to represent you in the case. Often, there are two or more possible states that may appear to have jurisdiction over the issues. These issues can be very complicated. Questions regarding jurisdiction are not subject to general rules but are instead fact specific and dependent on the application of complex statutes and rules.
The most important issue that any litigant will face is a Court’s determination as it pertains to the custody rights of parents with regard to their children.
