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No. In order to get divorced in Virginia, one of the parties must have been an actual and bona fide resident and domiciliary of the Commonwealth of Virginia for at least six months prior to the filing of the complaint for divorce. In other words, either you or your spouse must have lived in Virginia and had the intent to permanently remain in Virginia during the six months before the divorce complaint was filed. Since domicile can be a complex issue, parties should consult with an attorney in order to avoid filing in the wrong jurisdiction. There are also special residency provisions that apply to members of the armed forces. Any member of the armed forces who has been stationed in Virginia for at least six months or who has resided in Virginia for six months prior to being deployed overseas would satisfy the residency requirement needed to file for divorce in Virginia.

You will need to have a third party over the age of 18 who can verify the date the separation began, that the spouse on that date had the intent that the separation be permanent, and that the separation has been continuous and uninterrupted since that time. The third party can provide this information by deposition, affidavit, or live testimony before the court. The third party witness should be someone who has visited your residence on multiple occasions since your separation.

Virginia is an equitable distribution state which means that the court divides marital property in a way that it believes to be fair and equitable. The court is not able to divide the separate property of each spouse. The court looks at a number of factors in determining how to distribute and divide marital property. These factors are set forth in Virginia Code 20-107.3.

In the absence of a court order, both parents have equal rights to the physical custody of their minor children and to make decisions on behalf of their children. The parties could agree on how to handle custody and visitation prior to the court hearing and have their agreement entered as a consent order. Alternatively, either party could file a motion for pendente lite relief and ask the court to enter a temporary order for custody and visitation to remain in effect until the court makes a final determination.

Once an inter vivos trust is drafted and signed, to be effective, it must be funded by transferring the title of real estate, financial accounts, and other property into the name of the trust.