Useful recommendations: what to say in court during a divorce

An approximate procedure for divorce in court is as follows:

1. One of the spouses draws up a claim and sends it to the court at the place of his permanent registration or at the registration of the defendant. When the application is accepted, a date for the first meeting is set (no earlier than a month after the application).
2. At the first meeting, the judge finds out the attitude of the spouses to the divorce, the reasons, and the possibility of preserving the family. If both spouses agree to divorce and they have no disputes regarding property or children, the claim must be satisfied. But if the husband/wife does not want to separate, then they will be assigned a probationary period, after which, if there is no improvement in the relationship, the court will decide on a divorce.
3. The judge issues a decree on divorce and, after 30 days, sends the document to the registry office. The spouses receive divorce papers.

If both parties involved in the dissolution of the family union do not appear at the process, then it is considered that they decided to maintain the relationship. When one of the spouses does not show up, the meeting is postponed.

Ban on divorce

The law specifies cases when spouses cannot be divorced. If the following situations occur, the divorce procedure is postponed:

• The wife is pregnant and does not agree to divorce.
• The common child has not reached the age of 1 year (even in the case of a stillbirth, divorces are not carried out without the woman’s consent until a year has passed after the birth).

Each spouse has the opportunity to file divorce documents remotely. If it is impossible to represent your interests yourself, you can invite a proxy. Then the person chosen by one of the spouses will completely replace him in court and answer questions. You can file a motion to refuse to attend the trial. Then the spouses will not have to be present at the trial; everything will be considered without them.

What to say and what not to say

As a rule, none of the parties who appear in court to dissolve a marriage has the desire to drag out the unpleasant process indefinitely. Therefore, it is worth listening to the advice of lawyers, as well as those who have already gone through the legal divorce procedure, about what you can say and what you cannot say.

What can we talk about:

• financial situation at the time of divorce - income of both parties, availability of loans, to whom they are issued;
• desire to raise children and participate in their lives;
• alimony - amount, payment procedure, share of additional expenses.

Important! Don't talk long and emotionally. It is enough to succinctly answer the court’s questions on the merits and provide convincing evidence. Interrupting the judge or other participants in the process is a sign of bad taste; the judge may remove an unrestrained or aggressive spouse from the courtroom.

There are topics that only outwardly may look like grounds for divorce. However, practice shows that more often they become a reason for conflicts in court proceedings, and therefore they should not be touched upon.

What cannot be discussed in court:

• sexual relationships;
• lack of common interests;
• uncertainty or lack of common goals;
• household habits of secondary importance;
• psychological, moral immaturity for full-fledged marriage relationships;
• the attitude of friends and relatives towards the second spouse.

The courtroom is not a place for squabbles and mutual accusations of not meeting the ideal. Calm, confident behavior is more convincing to the court than a stream of insults. You especially need to think about your behavior and speech before the court if witnesses or children will take part in the process.

Behavior in the presence of children

Divorce of parents is the downfall of the world for children, and it doesn’t matter at all what age they are. Being present at the process of divorce has a traumatic effect on their psyche. If the parents again begin to shower each other with reproaches, quarrel, and scream, the child may develop a persistent negative attitude towards both of them. Restrained, correct behavior of divorcing spouses, respectful attitude towards each other is the main rule of behavior of parents in the courtroom if minors are invited to the hearing.

Preparing for trial

If an agreement cannot be reached, they turn to the court for help.

At the court hearing, all the circumstances of the divorce will be considered. Therefore, you need to be prepared to be asked different questions. The judge forms a list of questions for the parties from the submitted statement of claim. The statement of claim contains the following requests:

• make a decree of divorce;
• resolve issues related to the division of joint property;
• determine the main points related to the payment of alimony;
• resolve issues regarding children's accommodation.

Depending on the mutual claims, each spouse must prepare for the meeting and collect a package of documents that may be useful to confirm their position. There is a standard list of documents that are always needed:

1. passport (with a copy of all pages);
2. Marriage certificate;
3. birth certificate of all common children;
4. documents confirming the existence of property;
5. income certificate;
6. certificate from the passport office about family composition;
7. receipts for paid state fees.

The absence of any of the listed documents may cause the divorce process to stop. It is impossible to divide, for example, a dacha for which there are no documents. Therefore, it is imperative to back up all your words with official documents. To get things moving, an application must first be filled out. Completing this document has its own rules.

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Every woman should choose a behavior tactic for herself. If a man filed an application to court, then only a lawyer can suggest the best tactics.

There are several universal rules, thanks to which you can remain somewhat confident and at the same time win your case in court.

Divorce through a court is carried out only in the following situations:

1. if there is a controversial situation regarding jointly acquired property;
2. if there are minor children;
3. if one of the parties is against dissolution of the marriage.

If the spouses could not independently agree among themselves regarding these issues, then the application is submitted to the court at the place of residence of the plaintiff or defendant.

In addition to the claim, additional supporting documents must be attached.

Including a certificate of registration of a marriage union, a birth certificate of a minor, as well as a receipt confirming payment of the state fee.

Many citizens have never encountered litigation in their lives. And none of them knows how to behave correctly in court and defend their point of view.

To alleviate this fate, it is worth using the services of a highly qualified lawyer. Of course, this is not a cheap procedure, but it is almost always advisable.

How to file a claim?

Sometimes you can't do without a trial

The statement of claim is filed by the initiator of the divorce process. There is a special form that is filled out, including all the necessary information regarding the circumstances of the divorce. Passport details must be written down there and the reasons that prompted the divorce explained in detail. At the same time, it is always said that reconciliation is impossible.

If there are disputes over property, there are common children, all this must be recorded in the application. The application must come from both spouses, but you will have to fill out 2 separate forms. In this case, the essence of the statement will be the same. If one of the spouses is against divorce, then the application is submitted by one who seeks to break off the relationship.

It is not always necessary to go to court for a divorce. Sometimes it is enough to come to the registry office. This opportunity is provided for spouses of those sentenced for more than 3 years, for those whose spouse is officially considered missing or dead. Husbands/wives of incapacitated citizens have the same right.

If a spouse belonging to the category mentioned above files for divorce, then he will additionally need to attach a court decision declaring his spouse incompetent, deceased, or missing. Most often, it takes 2 meetings to consider the case.

The first is intended for general familiarization with the situation. The spouses talk about their differences, prove that they cannot reconcile, and report their property status. The judge may ask about joint children, common property, and common debts. He will find out what disputes and disagreements there are between husband and wife. If there are no disputes regarding the place of residence of the children or regarding the division of property, the judge may divorce the spouses at the 1st meeting. Only before this will he make sure that reconciling the spouses and saving the family is unrealistic.

If one of the parties does not come to court, if all the necessary documents are not collected, if there are disputes between spouses, then the issues will be considered at the 2nd meeting. The time period between the 1st and 2nd hearing can be long; this period can be given for the parties to find a common solution and make peace.

The maximum gap is 6 months. The 2nd hearing must be conducted by the same judge. This hearing will resolve issues related to the controversy. The main goal: to find an objective solution that complies with the laws. Issues related to the maintenance of children will definitely be resolved. The partners will agree on this with the participation of the judge. Here the question must be resolved whether or not a schedule for visiting children is needed by a parent leaving the family. Of course, the main question is who the children will live with. It is also decided at the meeting.

If the situation is conflictual and complex, then the words of the spouses themselves will not be enough. Usually they bring in witnesses who cover the situation from their side. The result is an objective picture of what is happening.

The judge can divide everything acquired equally, but more often than not, the one with whom the children remain gets the larger part. This is done to respect the interests of the children. For an objective and legal resolution of disputes, the judge will require a list of all property that is the subject of disputes.

In order for the division to be as fair as possible, the property must be valued by properly licensed experts. This is the only way to distribute property between the parties legally.

If the mood of the parties changes, they can enter into a settlement agreement, which will become the basis for further actions. When the decision is made, you will have to wait a few days until the decision becomes completely legal. After that, they go to the registry office with the court documents and put a stamp in their passport there, which will confirm the divorce. The registry office also issues a certificate of divorce.

When a marriage is considered dissolved

After studying the presented evidence, petitions, wishes of citizens, and conducting pre-trial conversations, the judge makes a decision to terminate the marriage. From this moment the document comes into force. After the conclusion is issued, citizens are sent by the court to the registry office to receive an official certificate, which confirms that family relations have been completed.

After the judicial conclusion enters into force, the mother of a young child (or children) must come to the court in person and submit a written application for the collection of alimony for the maintenance of minor citizens.

Tips for behavior in court

You need to behave calmly and confidently

In order not to displease the judge, you must follow the rules of conduct:

1. Firstly, you cannot interrupt the judge.
2. Secondly, you should speak only after officials contact you.
3. Thirdly, speech should be loud enough, but without shouting, and clear.

Arguing with your ex-spouse during a trial is far from the best position. The relationship can be sorted out endlessly, but all these squabbles will not have any positive effect on the court’s decision, they will only delay the case. We must remember that you came to court to finally complete everything and part with the law.

Calm, confident behavior is valued in court. We must demonstrate goodwill and restraint. The behavior of spouses and witnesses must be correct and tactful. If the person giving the testimony is caught in perjury, he will be fined. In addition, a general unfavorable impression will be formed about this side.

If you need to hold a meeting with a lawyer, you need to talk as quietly as possible. If others hear fragments of speeches and misunderstand them, the situation will become more complicated.

Lateness to a meeting is unacceptable. If insurmountable circumstances arise, you must warn about your lateness and explain the reasons.

What disputes can be settled by a settlement agreement during a divorce?

The settlement agreement must resolve all issues raised by the claim. If the spouses are already divorced, and only the issue of division of property is raised in court, then the settlement agreement will only talk about this. But if additional demands were put forward, a settlement agreement can be concluded only when these demands can also be resolved by agreement of the parties.

Most often, a settlement agreement is used by already divorced couples who file a separate claim for division of property . But it can also resolve the issue of alimony payments, if it has not been raised before. In such cases, the settlement agreement concluded in court will replace the agreement between the spouses certified by a notary.

Form and content of the settlement agreement

The court only approves the settlement agreement. For the parties, this means that they must draft the text themselves. All agreements reached must be stated in writing in a single document. There are no specific obligations for any of the parties to draw up an agreement. This can be done by either spouse.

There are two stages in drawing up an agreement: the parties must first agree on all controversial issues, and then draw up a text, adhering to legal requirements. With the agreement itself, everything is a little easier. One has a car, the other an apartment. But this needs to be written down on paper correctly, so that the judge has no reason to refuse to approve the agreement. By using legal services, you can be sure that all the requirements of substantive and procedural law are met.