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Overview of MN Divorce Procedure

Uncontested Divorce

In an uncontested divorce, the parties should, though are not required to, have a lawyer prepare a joint petition for dissolution, with or without children, to file with the district court. When the parties have signed and filed the petition, then the court will review it and issue a judgment and decree that will dissolve the marriage. The petition may be approved without a hearing in court.

Contested Divorce

A divorce case in Minnesota starts with one of the spouses serving a summons and petition for dissolution of marriage on the other spouse. The first spouse, the petitioner, does not serve these papers him or herself; rather, a process server will serve them.

The person served is called the respondent. The respondent should, and for practical purposes must, have his or her attorney prepare and file an answer to the petition. If the respondent fails to answer the petition, then the petitioner's allegations will be taken as true.

In a contested case, the petition must be heard, and except in unusual cases must be heard in open court. Closed proceedings are generally disfavored in American law. Some counties use referees for preliminary proceedings.

If maintenance or support is needed immediately, then the court may order temporary payments from one spouse to the other.

The parties may resolve their differences by settlement, but if they are unable then they must proceed with a divorce trial on the disputed issues. Not all issues are always disputed. The parties may agree on custody of their children, but not on the amount of child support, for example.

After the disputed issues are resolved by trial or settlement, then the court will issue a judgment and decree of dissolution (often called a J&D) and a certificate of dissolution.

At this point, the parties will be divorced.

This is not a detailed overview of the legal and trial procedures, nor is it intended to be.

Other information related to procedure includes the following: