Should I file a Counter-Petition?
Often times filing a Counter-Petition for Dissolution of Marriage is unnecessary. More often than not, a spouse will not want to later dismiss a divorce after the case has been filed and the other spouse has been served. However, there are times and circumstances where a spouse may later change their mind about the divorce, and usually when they realize the outcome will not be favorable.
If your spouse filed for the divorce, and you start getting a feeling that your spouse may want to try to dismiss the case either because they no longer want the divorce or because they feel that the outcome will not be favorable, you may want to consider filing a counter-petition. Especially so, if you have already spent a considerable amount of money in the case thus far and you want the case to proceed to conclusion.
However, you cannot file a counter-petition just whenever you want. A counter-petition is allowed without special permission from the Judge, if your response to the original petition for dissolution of marriage is still not yet due. So what this means, is that you have 30 days from the date you were served to file your counter-petition for dissolution of marriage. If you later decide that you want to file a counter-petition, and it's been more than 30 days from the date you were served, you will need the court's permission to do so. This special permission is called "leave of court" and there is a specific type of motion that your lawyer would prepare.
The trick is that you must file your motion for "leave of court" before your spouse files a motion to dismiss the case. So, you may have a "race to the courthouse" situation and that's why it's important to act quickly if you feel that your spouse may try to have the divorce case dismissed. If the case is dismissed, and you still want a divorce, you'll have to start over.
Starting the case over is costly and can be avoided. To completely avoid the risk of having to later deal with this issue, filing a counter-petition in the first 30 days of the case should be considered. Lawyers tend to avoid counter-petitions because they cost money to prepare and there's a filing fee paid to the court associated with this document. Because spouses often have limited funds at the beginning of their case, lawyers will not automatically prepare a counter-petition unless it seems necessary.
If you want to talk to Paul Nordini about whether or not filing a Counter-Petition makes sense in your case, or how quickly he can prepare a motion to get permission to get this step finished, call for your free, no-pressure phone consultation. (630) 416-6600.