In Florida, the general divorce laws are established at the state level. However, individual counties sometimes set forth their own specific regulations that may differ from the statewide rules. For example, there may be variations in the filing procedure, county-specific court forms may be necessary, or couples may be required to attend some mediation sessions, parenting classes, or counseling.
This guide contains the answers to the most widely spread questions about the divorce filing procedure in St. Lucie County, including its residency requirements, mandated forms, the basic steps of the process, court fees, and addresses.
Understanding St. Lucie County Divorce Requirements
When filing for divorce in Florida, you need to understand and meet certain requirements, especially the ones accepted in St. Lucie County, like residency requirements or grounds for divorce in Florida. Let’s discuss them in more detail.
Residency Requirements
To file for divorce in Florida, you or your spouse must have lived in the state for at least six months before submitting the Petition. The court usually requires proof of your residence, which can be in the form of a Florida driver’s license, state ID, voter registration, or an affidavit from a third party. If you don’t meet this condition, the court will not accept your divorce Petition. Meanwhile, no specific residency requirement is applicable for a particular county.
Irretrievably Broken Marriage
Florida is a no-fault divorce state, which means that you don’t need to prove the other party’s wrongdoing, like adultery or abuse. Instead, you only need to state that the marriage is “irretrievably broken” and cannot be fixed. In other words, you and your spouse can’t resolve your irreconcilable differences and can no longer live together.
Another reason for filing for marriage dissolution is the mental incapacity of one of the spouses. However, this fact must be proven by a court no less than three years before initiating the case. A guardian ad litem (an advocate) may be appointed to protect the interests of the party with a disorder.
St. Lucie County Divorce Procedure
The process of filing for divorce in St. Lucie County generally includes the following steps:
- Complete the paperwork specific to your family situation.
- Sign, notarize, and make copies of the documents.
- Go to the court and file your forms with the clerk.
- Gather the copies of the papers you filed and the forms you are required to serve.
- Ask a sheriff or a process server to give the abovementioned documents to your spouse.
- Attend the parenting course if you have children and submit the certificate of completion to the court.
- Exchange Financial Affidavits with your spouse as a part of mandatory disclosure.
- Contact the clerk inquiring about a hearing date at least 20 days after filing.
- Go to a hearing and bring the remaining documents with you.
- After the judge signs the Final Judgement, file the Final Disposition with the clerk.
This filing process is common for uncontested divorces. If you and your spouse have no minor children, and neither of you will be asking for alimony, you can reach a full agreement and get divorced using a simplified procedure. To do it, you need to file a joint Petition, along with the additional forms, and attend the hearing together.
In a contested case, when you and your spouse cannot agree on childcare, alimony, or division of assets, courts recommend that you hire a lawyer. The contested process will be more complicated than an uncontested one, and going through it without a legal professional will likely be challenging.
St. Lucie County Divorce Forms
The number and type of documents needed for filing for divorce greatly depend on your unique family situation and circumstances. An approximate list of St. Lucie County divorce forms that the courts commonly require include:
- Petition for Dissolution of Marriage
- Marital Settlement Agreement
- Lucie County Summons form
- Family Law Financial Affidavit
- Cover Sheet for Family Court Cases
- Notice of Social Security Number
- Certificate of Compliance with Mandatory Disclosure
- Final Judgement of Dissolution of Marriage
If you have children, the required St. Lucie County family court forms will likely include:
- Parenting Plan
- Child Support Guidelines Worksheet
- Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Affidavit
Note that you may need additional St. Lucie County divorce forms, and it will be necessary to sign many of these documents in front of the notary and some in front of the deputy clerk. Otherwise, the paperwork will not be admissible in court.
Moreover, a single typo may lead to an unpredictable or undesirable outcome or even court rejection and the necessity to start the entire process anew. Therefore, completing the documents accurately and correctly is of paramount importance. If you delegate this duty to us and provide the details about your uncontested divorce, you can be sure that our automatic system will select the case-specific forms and fill them out with the needed information within a convenient deadline.
St. Lucie County Clerk Fees
St. Lucie County court filing fees are around $410. Additional minor payments may be required, such as those covering the cost of making copies. You may contact the clerk before visiting the court to ask about the exact fees and the ways you can pay them in St. Lucie County.
As the fees are relatively high, courts acknowledge that not everyone can afford to pay them. Therefore, it is possible to request a waiver by providing proof of an indigent status. If you would like to do that, you may fill out a respective Application form and file it along with the other documents. Note that a court may decline your request to waive the fees if it finds that you do not meet the requirements.
Divorce Courts in St. Lucie County, Florida
St. Lucie County courts for divorce filing are the circuit courts as they are the ones that review marriage dissolution cases. Here is the address and the contact information of the St. Lucie County family court:
St. Lucie County, FL Divorce Circuit Court Information
Court Name: Circuit Court – St. Lucie County, Family Law Division
Court Title: In the Circuit Court of St. Lucie County, Florida
Circuit Court Location: 218 S 2nd St., Fort Pierce, Florida 34950
Court Phone: 772-462-6900
Court Hours: 9am – 5pm
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