Best Child Custody Lawyers in Rockville, MD

No typically a divorce is not granted right away. The Court procedures for conducting a contested divorce takes approximately 9-12 months, which means that the combined time until the divorce will conclude can be as long as two years from the date the parties separated. If parties can resolve all marital issues and property by agreement, the parties can then proceed with an "uncontested" divorce. The Court procedure for this is simple, quick (often less than 90 days) and relatively inexpensive.

A party should contact a Maryland and Divorce Attorney when you seriously considering getting a divorce and you want to know your options to protect yourself prior to filing A party should also contact a divorce lawyer if you have been served with a copy of a complaint for absolute divorce.

Once the complaint has been filed with the court, the court clerk will issue a "Writ of Summons" along with a copy of the complaint. Both documents must be served on the other spouse. "Service of process" means that the other spouse receives a copy of the divorce paperwork. By Delivering these documents your spouse will be provided the required notice that the divorce has been filed in the courts. Under Maryland law, the responding spouse may be served by receiving a copy of the complaint and the writ of summons from the following: any person over the age of 18, other the other spousethe county sheriff where the defendant lives or works (the sheriff will charge a fee for this service), ora private process server, that will charge a fee. If any of the above methods of service are unsuccessful, then a party may need to ask the Court to serve the other spouse by certified mail, return receipt requested. This means that the post office will require that the other spouse sign for the copy and the serving spouse will receive proof of delivery with the return of the receipt, which is the green card.

In Maryland a Divorce Complaint is filed in the Circuit Court for the County that has jurisdiction for the matter. In DC, a Divorce Complaint is filed in the Superior Court for the District of Columbia.

The Court must consider the unique facts and circumstances of each case in deciding what type of custody arrangement would serve the child's best interest. The court must also look at the parents' ability to communicate and reach shared joint decisions. Here are some factors judges consider, based on Maryland case law: the fitness of each parentthe character and reputation of each parentwhat each parent wants regarding custody and and agreements they have madethe possibility of maintaining family relationshipsthe child's preference (if old enough and mature enough to form an opinion)the material opportunities each parent can offer affecting the child's futurethe age, health, and sex of the childthe residences of each parent, including opportunities for visitation and geographic proximity of the parental homesthe length of the child's separation from the parent, andwhether either parent has voluntarily abandonment or surrendered the child. (Montgomery County v. Sanders, 38 Md. App. 406 (1978)) Contact Us