Divorce is plenty difficult enough without the added complication of not being able to locate your spouse. If you can’t even find your spouse in order to serve him or her, it leaves you in the lurch. The fact is, however, that you can file for divorce even if your spouse is nowhere to be found, and an Illinois divorce attorney can help you do just that.Â
In every divorce case, the spouse who files for divorce must serve the divorce petition to the other spouse. There are a variety of ways to serve the spouse you are divorcing, and this service provides him or her with legal notice of your divorce filing. If your spouse is in the wind, however, and cannot be found (including if he or she has been deported), you can ask the court for a workaround.Â
The judge in your case can allow service by publication, which amounts to publishing a notice in the local newspaper, and the circuit clerk in the county in which you file can provide you with information about the correct newspaper to publish in. Before you turn to service by publication, the judge will require that you make a good faith effort to find your missing spouse, and such efforts should include all of the following:
It’s important to keep careful track of your attempts to locate your spouse because you will need your records to convince the court that you have exhausted your options related to finding your spouse. If the judge is not convinced that you’ve put in adequate effort, he or she may refuse to allow service by publication.Â
If your spouse hasn’t shown up by the time your divorce is ultimately finalized, the court won’t be able to rule on the following terms:
If your spouse eventually turns up, you can return to court to have any remaining terms resolved.Â
If you are divorcing but cannot find your spouse, the accomplished Illinois divorce attorneys at Sabuco Beck, PC have the experience, legal skill, and dedication to service to help guide your complicated case toward a beneficial resolution. To learn more, please don’t wait to contact us today.Â
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