Complete Online Domestic Relations Statutes - Maine Revised Statutes

Complete Online Domestic Relations Statutes - Maine Revised Statutes

Divorce Residency Requirements - To meet the residency requirements for Maine, 1) at least one party must be a resident of Maine for at least 6 months, 2) the plaintiff is a resident and the couple was married in the state, or 3) the plaintiff is a resident and the cause of divorce occurred while the couple was residing in the state. (19-A §901)

Recognized Grounds for Divorce - A no-fault divorce can be filed on the grounds of irreconcilable marital differences. Fault grounds may also be claimed, which include: adultery, extreme cruelty, impotency, desertion for over 3 years, addiction to liquor or drugs, refusal to provide suitable maintenance for the complaining spouse, one of the parties is an incapacitated person, and cruel and abusive treatment. (19-A §902)

Legal (Judicial) Separation - The District Court can enter a separation decree which covers all the same issues as a divorce, including parental rights and responsibilities, spousal support, and division of assets and debts. A couple is still married after an order of judicial separation and the order may be modified later on. The judicial separation order will be terminated when the couple divorces, but the portion of the separation decree which disposes of the parties' property will remain in full force. (19-A §851)

Dividing Assets and Debts - Premarital assets, inheritances, gifts, and property excluded by valid agreement are not considered to be included in the marital estate. All property acquired by either spouse during to the marriage and prior to a legal separation is considered marital property and subject to a division in a divorce or separation. When making a decision on how the marital estate will be distributed, the court will consider all relevant factors, including:

- Each spouse's contribution to the acquisition of marital property, including a spouse's contribution as a homemaker;

- The value of the property set apart to each spouse; and

- The economic circumstances of each spouse, including whether it would be desirable to award the family home or the right to live in the home to a parent having custody of the children. (19-A §953)

Spousal Support - Different types and durations of spousal support may be awarded during a divorce depending on the circumstances of the case, including:

- Interim support which is meant to provide support while an action for divorce or judicial separation is pending.

- Transition support may be awarded to help with short-term needs resulting from the financial impact of the divorce or to help a spouse receive the training or education needed to become self-supporting.

- General support is to intended to help maintain a reasonable standard of living for a spouse with substantially less income potential than the other spouse. General support may not be awarded in marriages that lasted less than 10 years, and will not exceed 1/2 the length of the marriage for marriages lasting between 10 and 20 years.

- Reimbursement support can be awarded to reach an equitable dissolution of a couple's financial relationship in cases of exceptional circumstances such as the economic misconduct by a spouse or a spouse's contributions to the other spouse's occupational advances during the marriage.

- Nominal support may be awarded to preserve the court's authority to grant spousal support in the future

Support ends upon the cohabitation of the supported spouse with another person for at least 12 months which is the functional equivalent of marriage. It will also end upon the death of either spouse unless stated otherwise in the spousal support order. (19-A §951-A)

Name change - In Maine, either spouse may request a provision be added to the divorce for a name change, allowing that party to resume a former name of any other name requested. (19-A §1051)

Child custody - The court can allocate custody as either shared parental rights and responsibilities or sole parental rights and responsibilities based on the best interest of the child, considering as primary the safety and well-being of the child. Such a determination outlines which parent will have primary residential care and the rights of parent-child contact to the other parent, or if primary residential care will be shared by both parents. (19-A §1653)

Child Support - Support obligations are determined using the official child support guidelines for Maine which consider the incomes of both parents and includes child care costs, extraordinary medical expenses and health insurance premiums. The support obligation may be modified due to a substantial change in circumstances which would result in a variance of more than 15% of the initial order. Child support ends when a child reaches the age of majority, joins the military, or gets married, but may continue past a child's 18th birthday if the child is attending secondary school by not past his or her 19th birthday.(19-A Chapter 63)

Premarital Agreements - A premarital agreement may address the rights and obligations or each party, the right to buy, sell, or use property, spousal support, death benefits of a life insurance policy, the making of a will, and any other matter not in violation of public policy. It should be noted that right of a child to receive support may not be adversely affected by a premarital agreement. To be enforceable, such an agreement must be in writing and signed freely by both parties with a reasonable disclosure of financial circumstances prior to its execution. After marriage, a premarital agreement may only be modified or revoked by a written agreement signed by the parties. (19-A Chapter 21)