DIVORCE
divorce. The legal dissolution of a marriage by a court. — Also termed marital dissolution;
dissolution of marriage. Cf. ANNULMENT. [Cases: Divorce 1–420. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 2–138,
140–167, 169–196, 198–211, 213–610, 731, 757–766, 768–825, 837–844, 851–861.] —
divorce,vb.
“When used without qualification, the term [divorce] imports a dissolution of the marriage
relation between husband and wife, that is, a complete severance of the tie by which the parties
were united. However, in its common and wider use, the term includes the dissolution of a valid
marriage, a formal separation of married persons, and the annulment of a marriage void from the
“So, while the term ‘divorce’ has sometimes been broadly defined or applied to include both
decrees of nullity and decrees of dissolution of marriage, especially where the marriage was not
void but only voidable at the option of the injured party, this has been declared to be not in accord
with modern usage, and generally, the term denotes only dissolution or suspension of a marital
relation, and does not include annulment of an invalid marriage.” 27A C.J.S. Divorce § 2, at 31–32
(1986).absolute divorce.See divorce a vinculo matrimonii.
bifurcated divorce.See divisible divorce.
conditional divorce.See conversion divorce.
contested divorce. 1. A divorce that one spouse opposes in court. 2. A divorce in which the
spouses litigate. • In this sense, although both spouses may want the divorce, they disagree on the
terms of the divorce decree. Cf. uncontested divorce.
conversion divorce.A divorce granted after (1) a legal separation has been granted or the
parties have signed a separation agreement, and (2) the parties have lived separately for a
statutorily prescribed period. — Also termed convertible divorce; conditional divorce.
divisible divorce.A divorce whereby the marriage itself is dissolved but the issues incident to
the divorce, such as alimony, child custody, and visitation, are reserved until a later proceeding. •
This type of divorce can be granted when the court has subject-matter jurisdiction but lacks
personal jurisdiction over the defendant-spouse. The doctrine of divisible divorce was recognized
by the Supreme Court in Estin v. Estin, 334 U.S. 541, 68 S.Ct. 1213 (1948), and Vanderbilt v.
Vanderbilt, 354 U.S. 416, 77 S.Ct. 1360 (1957). — Also termed bifurcated divorce. [Cases:
Divorce 146. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 209–210.]
divorce a mensa et thoro (ay men-s<<schwa>> et thor-oh). [Latin “(divorce) from board and
hearth”] Hist. A partial or qualified divorce by which the parties were separated and allowed or
ordered to live apart, but remained technically married. • This type of divorce, abolished in
England in 1857, was the forerunner of modern judicial separation. — Also termed separation a
mensa et thoro; separation from bed and board; limited divorce; legal separation; judicial
separation. [Cases: Divorce 155. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 223–225.]
“[The Ecclesiastical Courts] grant also what is called a divorce a mensa et thoro, or rather
what we should call a judicial separation, i.e. they release the parties from the duty of living
together on grounds of cruelty or misconduct ….” William Geldart, Introduction to English Law 38
(D.C.M. Yardley ed., 9th ed. 1984).
divorce a vinculo matrimonii (ay ving-ky<<schwa>>-loh ma-tr<<schwa>>-moh-nee-I).
[Latin “(divorce) from the chains of marriage”] A total divorce of husband and wife, dissolving the
marriage tie and releasing the parties wholly from their matrimonial obligations. • At common law,
but not always in canon law, this type of divorce bastardized any children from the marriage and
was granted on grounds that existed before the marriage. In England, the Matrimonial Causes Act
of 1857 introduced statutory divorce a vinculo matrimonii. — Usu. shortened to divorce. — Also
termed absolute divorce. Cf. limited divorce. [Cases: Divorce 157. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 223–225.]
Dominican divorce.See Mexican divorce.
ex parte divorce (eks pahr-tee). A divorce proceeding in which only one spouse participates
or appears in court. [Cases: Divorce 146. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 209–210.]
fault divorce.A divorce granted to one spouse on the basis of some proven wrongful act
(grounds for divorce) by the other spouse. • Although all states now have some form of no-fault
divorce, some jurisdictions still consider a spouse’s fault in precipitating the divorce, esp. when
dividing marital property or when awarding alimony. Traditionally, the common grounds for a
fault divorce were adultery, abandonment, imprisonment, and physical or mental cruelty; the
defenses to alleged fault in a petition for divorce were condonation, connivance, collusion,
recrimination, and insanity. Section 303(e) of the Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act has
abolished the defenses to divorce. Cf. no-fault divorce.
foreign divorce.A divorce obtained outside the state or country in which one spouse resides.
[Cases: Divorce 351–420. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 769–825, 837–844, 851–861.]
Haitian divorce.See Mexican divorce.
hotel divorce.Slang. A form of collusive divorce — occurring before widespread passage of
no-fault divorce laws — in which the spouses agree to fake an adultery scene to create “fault.” Cf.
no-fault divorce.
“Clearly a lawyer may not originate or participate in a scheme to make it appear to the court
that a ground for divorce has occurred when this is not the fact. Such is the case in the so-called
‘hotel divorces,’ prevalent in jurisdictions where adultery is the only ground for divorce, and based
on the principle that intercourse will be presumed from apparently uninhibited opportunity.”
Henry S. Drinker, Legal Ethics 123–24 (1953).
legislative divorce.Hist. The legal termination of a particular marriage, enacted by the
legislature rather than by a court. • In the 18th century, Colonial American legislatures granted
these special statutes. In 1816, the House of Burgesses of Virginia granted a divorce to Rachel
Robards Jackson, the wife of then President Andrew Jackson, from a former spouse. Mrs.
Jackson’s untimely death was attributed to her reaction to the scandal that she had married Jackson
before the divorce was procured. Now only state courts have authority to grant decrees of divorce.
— Also termed parliamentary divorce. [Cases: Divorce 5. C.J.S. Divorce § 4.]
limited divorce. 1. A divorce that ends the legal relationship of marriage by court order but
does not address financial support, property distribution, or care and custody of children. • In the
days before no-fault divorce, a spouse might seek a quick divorce in a state with a short residency
requirement (such as Nevada). Then courts in the home state would give full faith and credit only
to the dissolution of the marital res, while maintaining sole jurisdiction over property-division,
support, and custody issues. [Cases: Divorce 155. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 223–225.] 2. Loosely, a
legal separation. 3. See divorce a mensa et thoro. Cf. divorce a vinculo matrimonii.
mail-order divorce.Slang. A divorce obtained by parties who are not physically present or
domiciled in the jurisdiction purporting to grant the divorce. • Such a divorce is not recognized in
the United States because of the absence of the usual bases for jurisdiction.
Mexican divorce.A divorce obtained in Mexico by mail order or by the appearance of one
spouse who does not have a Mexican domicile. • Neither type is recognized in the United States.
— Also termed Dominican divorce (if granted in the Dominican Republic); Haitian divorce (if
granted in Haiti).
migratory divorce.A divorce obtained in a jurisdiction other than the marital domicile; esp., a
divorce obtained by a spouse who moves to, or temporarily resides in, another state or country to
get the divorce.
no-fault divorce.A divorce in which the parties are not required to prove fault or grounds
beyond a showing of the irretrievable breakdown of the marriage or irreconcilable differences. •
The system of no-fault divorce has been adopted throughout the United States. By 1974, 45 states
had adopted no-fault divorce; by 1985, every state but New York had adopted some form of it. In
New York — one of the last bastions of fault grounds for divorce — the closest equivalent is a
conversion divorce one year after legal separation or a legal-separation agreement. Cf. fault
divorce; hotel divorce. [Cases: Divorce 12. C.J.S. Divorce §§ 13–18, 70.]
parliamentary divorce.See legislative divorce.
pro–con divorce.Slang. An uncontested divorce granted after only the plaintiff appears at the
proceeding (since the defendant contests nothing).
quickie divorce.Slang. A fast divorce granted with minimal paperwork. — Also termed quick
rabbinical divorce.A divorce granted under the authority of a rabbi. • This type of divorce
affects the relationship of the parties under the tenets of Judaism. It affects particularly a Jewish
woman’s ability to remarry in accordance with Judaic law. In the United States, it is not generally
a divorce recognized in civil courts. — Also termed get.
uncontested divorce.A divorce that is unopposed by the spouse who did not initiate it. Cf.
contested divorce. [Blacks Law 8th]