How do I get a divorce from my husband who is in prison? 25 Answers as of October 04, 2011

Getting a divorce from an inmate is possible. Doing it cheaply depends on what your ex files with the court. If he makes it an contested case then it could be more expensive than an uncontested case.

If your husband will agree, he can sign a separation agreement which you can present to the court in an "agreed divorce". If not, you will have to file for divorce, serve him in prison, and have a trial before the court so it can determine the issues.

Same as any other situation. File, serve, proceed.

The cheapest way would be for you to prepare and file your own divorce case, call the prison and ask how service of process can be made at the prison, find a process server who has served at the prison to serve process, and seek assistance from the Court's self-help clinic. The best way would be to retain an experienced Family Law Attorney to represent you, advise you, and handle the case.

You should contact an attorney who can assist you in filing for a divorce and getting him served in prison. You may be able to proceed by a stipulated judgment if your husband will agree to the divorce, otherwise you can proceed by default judgment.

You will still need to go through the same process as all other divorces; filing a complaint for divorce and serving your husband at the prison. Perhaps you can visit your husband and talk to him about an uncontested divorce which will still require a complaint for divorce and your husband can acknowledge service through the mail. Best advice I can give you is to meet with a family law attorney in a private and confidential environment and discuss all of your questions regarding your rights in the divorce and the circumstances of your husband incarcerated for life.

The cheapest way is if he will sign. Regardless, an attorney should be able to make the case much simpler for you.

If you would like to dissolve your marriage, you must file a Petition for Dissolution and serve that and a Summons on your husband. The dissolution hearing can be held after 90 days. Your husband's signature and/or presence is not necessary for a divorce to be granted.

You can obtain a divorce while he is incarcerated. I would suggest you hire an attorney it is not a difficult process. He can be served at the facility with the divorce papers.

It Is no different than if he were not in prison, except that it might be a little more difficult for him to participate in the case. That may or may not be a problem depending on what other issues besides simply dissolving the marriage are involved. The cheapest way, obviously, is to try to do everything yourself; but, that requires that you learn a little more about how to do that and you should still consult an attorney for some general information about what you can expect if you do things on your own.

Hire a paralegal to assist you on the paperwork and a process server to properly serve your husband in prison.

It would be like a regular divorce. A petition is filed, he is served, he will have the opportunity to file an answer. If he does nothing, the divorce can be granted. If he files a denial, the Court can conduct a hearing with or without his presence. His presence will depend on the issues contested and the Judge.

The process is essentially the same as if he were not in prison. If you are in my area, please contact me for a free consultation to discuss your options. It should be a fairly straightforward and relatively inexpensive process.

File a divorce petition, have your husband served with the divorce papers in jail (which is easy to do), and then proceed by default if he doesn't respond. You can get assistance from your local county court's free legal self-help center.