Contested v. Uncontested

If you are thinking about filing for divorce and you contact an attorney, one of the first questions they will ask you is whether your divorce is going to be contested or uncontested. Often, the answer to that question is not simple.

Uncontested Divorce

Generally speaking, when we ask that question we are trying to determine whether you and your spouse have discussed some (or all) of the issues that may be involved in your divorce and how far apart the two of you have been in those discussions. If you and your spouse have worked out all of the issues, such as equitable division, alimony, and child support, prior to contacting an attorney, then your divorce will most likely be uncontested. From an attorney's perspective, in an uncontested divorce, an attorney for one of the parties will draft a settlement agreement reflecting the agreement, both parties will review it, there will be minimal, if any, changes to the agreement, and then it will be ready for the parties to sign and file with the court…

Contested Divorce

A contested divorce, on the other hand, generally refers to a situation where you may not have spoken to your spouse about the issues in your divorce or that you have been unable to come to an agreement upon the terms of the settlement agreement. In this type of matter, your attorney will negotiate the terms of the settlement agreement (if possible) with your spouse or, if applicable, the opposing attorney. While certainly some of these types of cases ultimately lead to litigation and eventually a trial, it is important to understand that the vast majority of these "contested" cases result in the parties ultimately resolving their differences outside of a courtroom…

Sometimes, it is difficult to determine whether a divorce is uncontested or contested in the beginning and what may seem to be an uncontested divorce can ultimately turn out to be contested in the end. The key question is not whether you perceive that you and your spouse can work things out over the course of a divorce, but whether you have already done so.