State: Maryland

Whether you filed for divorce or your spouse did, the process can be difficult to navigate, even if you don’t have children or property. Not knowing how to navigate the system can end up costing you thousands of extra dollars and more time. Cordell & Cordell is here for Maryland clients and can provide guidance to protect you and your family’s rights while your family law case is pending.

Maryland Divorce Process

In Maryland, divorce is also known as “absolute divorce.” A Maryland family law court – the circuit court – legally ends your marriage. Whether you agree on all issues and file a marital settlement agreement or you go through a litigation to resolve one or more issues, the court enters a divorce decree that both spouses must abide by.

The divorce process starts with filing a complaint for divorce. Once you file a complaint and serve your spouse, he or she has 30 or 60 days to file an answer (depending on where they are served). Depending on what is plead, the Court may require the parties to file several other documents, including a financial statement, complete or partial marital separation agreements, and prenuptial agreements where applicable.

During the divorce process, whether you settle or go to trial, you will resolve several factors, including:

• Division of property
• Monetary award
• Child support
• Parenting time
• Decision-making authority for children
• Spousal support

Maryland Residency Requirements

At least one party must be a resident of Maryland to file a divorce. You must show that you are physically living in the state. However, if the grounds for divorce happened outside of the state, one of the parties must have lived in Maryland for at least six months to file for a divorce. If the grounds happened inside the state, you only have to prove you physically live in the state.

You don’t have to live at the same address to complete the residency requirements. In fact, you can live anywhere in the state. While the initial divorce documents do not require you to list all of your addresses, you should be prepared to list them at the time of the final hearing so you can prove where you lived during your separation.

You can use bank statements to prove residency if you moved one or more times prior to filing for divorce. Other forms of proof include your driver’s license or tax returns.

Grounds for Divorce in Maryland

To file for a divorce in Maryland, you have to allege at least one ground. The three allowable grounds include:

• Mutual consent: You and your spouse agree to divorce and sign a marital settlement agreement that resolves all issues.
• 6-month separation: You and your spouse lived apart from each other, without interruption, for at least six months before you file for divorce. You can even live under the same roof as long as you live separate lives.
• Irreconcilable differences: You believe that your marriage should end because you cannot resolve issues.

Maryland Property Division Process

Maryland is an equitable distribution state; thus, each party receives an equitable – not equal – portion of the marital assets.

• Marital property: Any property obtained during the marriage despite how it is titled. The property is considered marital even once the divorce process begins. Therefore, it is important to be mindful how property is used. If the Court finds that you have deliberately reduced the value of a property for the purpose of reducing your spouse’s award, the court will calculate the value of the property as if you did not reduce the assets and require you to make up the difference. This process is called dissipation of assets.
• Non-marital property: Property that you obtained prior to the marriage or property gifted to you by your spouse. In most cases, non-marital property includes gifts made to one spouse from a third party, an inheritance from a third party, or property excluded by a valid agreement.
• Comingled property: The exception to non-marital property is when you comingle property. For example, you bought a house prior to the marriage. You got married, and your new spouse moved in. You both use the money you earned during the marriage to pay the mortgage and pay for maintenance. Unless you have an agreement that states otherwise, the value occurred during the marriage is marital while the value prior to the marriage is not.

The issue of commingled assets and calculating marital v. non martial equity can be an intricate process that many times results in the use of experts such as forensic accountants and home appraisers.

Prior to trial, the Court requires the parties to file a Joint Property Statement which outlines:

• 1) Property that the parties agree is martial
• 2) Property parties agree is non-marital and
• 3) Property the parties cannot agree on the status.

If you cannot decide on property division, a Maryland court will determine the ownership, value and how it will be divided. The Court has the authority to, but is not limited, order the sale of property, transfer of ownership, the equalization of value.

Maryland Child Custody Laws

Because Maryland assumes that the natural parents are the natural custodians of the children, the law doesn’t favor either parent. Prior to an establishment of custody, the parties have equal rights to the minor child. Either parent can petition the family court for child custody during a divorce. Divorce is not required to file for custody. Custody is bifurcated into two types: physical and legal. Physical custody is the amount of overnights a parent has with the minor child. Legal custody determines who has the right to make decisions pertaining to the wellbeing of the minor child including but not limited to decision making for: education, medical treatment, religion, discipline, and extracurricular activities.

Physical Custody: The court orders or the parties can agree to either sole physical, joint, shared or split custody.

• Sole Custody: One party has less than 92 overnights during a year. The noncustodial parent, typically is still granted a visitation schedule.
• Joint Custody: One party has at least 92 overnights to be considered joint physical.
• Shared Custody: This is a joint custody arrangement in which the parties have 50/50 custody.
• Split Custody: In situation where children do not spend an equal amount of time with both parents and one parent has more time with the child than the other, but another child or children do share a schedule with the parents. For example, if you have two children, your oldest would stay with you primarily but you and your ex would have joint custody of your youngest.

Legal Custody: The court orders to or the parties can either agree to either sole, joint and joint with tie breaking authority.

• Sole Custody: Only one parent makes the decisions as they relate to the minor child’s wellbeing. While the noncustodial parent may not make a decision, they should still receive all necessary information pertaining to the minor child.
• Joint Custody: All decisions must be mutual.
• Joint Custody with Tie Breaking Authority: Same as Joint, however in the event there is an impasse, the parent who has tie breaking authority shall make the final decision. The court can divide different topics under tie breaking authority. For example, mom can have tie breaking authority for medical and dad can have it for religion.

The Court weighs a number of factors to determine what is in the best interest of the minor child when deciding custody.

Understanding Maryland Parenting Plans

If you have minor children, you must create a parenting plan. This written document dictates how the parents will raise a child, including making major decisions about the child’s education, religion, and medical needs. The parenting plan also outlines parenting time.

Maryland Child Support

Maryland uses the parents’ incomes and the number of overnights a child spends with each parent to determine child support in custody cases. Child support takes several factors into consideration, including:

• Child care
• Health insurance premiums
• Uninsured medical expenses
• Transportation expenses (between the parents’ homes)
• Education expenses
• Prior Child Support and/or alimony obligations

Maryland Spousal Support

Maryland often refers to alimony as spousal support. Either spouse can make these payments to the other. Maryland recognizes three types of spousal support:

• Pendente lite alimony, which is temporary spousal support that a court might order during the pendency of the court process for divorce.
• Rehabilitative alimony, which is support for a limited amount of time or limited purposes, such as obtaining education or training to become self-sufficient.
• Indefinite alimony has no endpoint and is rarely awarded. A court might order it based on a spouse’s age, illness or disability.

The court has discretion when determining an alimony award. It looks at factors such as:

• The duration of the marriage
• Both spouse’s financial situations
• Distribution of assets
• Reasons for divorce
• Age
• Health

Why Maryland People Choose Cordell & Cordell

Work with a Maryland divorce lawyer to handle family law matters, whether you file for divorce or your spouse files. Cordell & Cordell’s experience in the Maryland court process can guide you through the complex legal issues that arise during family cases.

Client Experience

“[My lawyer] is exceptionally good at explaining, informing, and being empathetic.” — Timothy H.

“[My lawyer] was very attentive to listening to me and taking my case seriously, and that meant a lot to me. I am very pleased.” — Frank F.

A Proven Advocate for Maryland Clients

If you are ready to file for a divorce or if your spouse filed, contact Cordell & Cordell for a consultation. Learn how our lawyers make a difference.

Disclaimer: This page serves as a resource and is not to be taken as legal advice.