Connecticut Divorce Forms and Papers
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The first step is to obtain the packet of blank forms that you will need to divorce in Connecticut without a lawyer. Make sure to get either the packet for couples with or without children, as appropriate. As the person who is initiating the process of divorce without a lawyer, the first forms you fill out are the Summons, the Complaint and the Notice of Automatic Court Orders.
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Divorce in Connecticut Without a Lawyer
You will need to select what’s called a Case Management Date (See Schedule), also known as a Return Date. Information contained in the three forms will guide you in its choice, which will be from 4-6 weeks of when you file them. You will do so at your county’s Circuit Court Clerk’s Office. The fee will be $350. While the date is an important marker in this process, neither you nor your spouse must appear in court on this date.
You must then engage a County Sheriff to serve you spouse with these three forms within 10 days of the Return Date, which is noted on the Complaint. The sheriff will produce a Return Of Service form and give it to you. This will prove that your spouse has been served; you then file the Return Of Service with the Clerk’s Office.
If you have ever received any sort of public assistance from the State of Connecticut, you must fill out a form from the packet called the Certification, and send it to the Attorney General’s office, along with the three original forms. There are analogous requirement for any sort of public assistance from town government.
The other spouse, the spouse not initiating the divorce, is the defendant, and must file the Appearance within 48 hours of the Return Date. If he or she chooses not to, the Answer and the Complaint is mandatory to file.
After you complete the Case Management Agreement and file it with the clerk’s office, you and your spouse must both work on the Financial Affidavit, where each party lists all incomes, debts and living expenses. This will be vital in deciding on possible alimony or child support.
If there are children, the state mandates that both parents attend a parenting education class. On its completion, which must be within 60 days of the return date, both spouses receive a certificate, which is filed with the clerk.
You and your spouse must then separately complete the Dissolution of Marriage Report and, again, both of you must file a completed form with the Court Clerk’s Office. Both spouses will be mailed a notice of your court hearing date. If no other issues come up at the court hearing, the judge issues a Divorce Judgment. All that must be done to complete the divorce is for the Divorce Judgment to be filed after the hearing with the clerk’s office.
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