Although the varies from state-to-state and you should talk with a good family law attorney in your area, there are some basic similarities between the laws of many states when determining where the initial divorce action must be filed.
Determining where to file a divorce (or any legal proceeding) is based on the county and state of residency of the husband and wife. In fact, the divorce petition must include assertions stating that the person filing for divorce meets certain statutory residency requirements.
The statutory residency requirements vary from state to state. For example, you may live in a state where the law says that if you want to file for a divorce, you or your spouse must live in the state for 180 days. If you meet that requirement, you should file your divorce in the county where you live in or intend to stay in.
Furthermore, in many states, if the husband lives in one county and the wife lives in another county, the divorce may be commenced in either of those two counties.
If neither of the husband or the wife actually resides in a state, the proper “jurisdiction” is typically based on “domicile” rather than “residency”. What is domicile? Law dictionary.com defines domicile as “the place where a person has his/her permanent principal home to which he/she returns or intends to return.”
In other words, if you live in Minnesota but have a vacation home in Florida, a divorce may still be able to be filed in Minnesota because you have established domicile there. Also, the divorce would filed in the county where the home or other residence is located. If you live in Minneapolis in the summer and have a home there, you may want to file in Hennepin County even if you have a vaction home in Florida or elsewhere.
Jurisdictional issues can get complicated. There are often many little side rules that non-lawyers often don’t know or understand. For instance, in some states, if you are a member of the military and you are stationed in one state for the required number of days to establish residency (for example, 180 days) you may be able to file for divorce in the state and county where you are stationed.
Finally, in some states, the court may find that another county is a more proper one for the case to be heard. If both parties agree, the “venue” of the divorce proceedings can be changed. Also, if an impartial hearing cannot be had, the “venue” may be changed to a different county.
The trial judge will have great discretion to change the county of venue. The convenience of the parties and the witnesses are factors which the court may take into consideration when determining when a change of county of venue is available.
