If your spouse files for divorce this year, they will submit the paperwork to the court and you will be served a copy of the divorce petition. You are expected to review, sign and submit your response to the court. After that, the court sets up your initial hearings.
But what happens if you do not respond to the divorce petition at all? Is this actually a necessary part of the process, or just a technical acknowledgment that you understand that a divorce is coming?
A default divorce
Technically, you could ignore the divorce petition. Under New Jersey law, you still get 35 days to respond. If you fail to do so, the court can then move forward with a default divorce. Failing to respond doesn’t stop the divorce from happening.
The problem for you is that you would not be involved in the divorce process. By responding to the petition, you have the opportunity to be involved in child custody, asset division and much more.
Your spouse may have proposed certain terms and conditions, which you can either accept or contest. For instance, if your spouse wants sole custody of your child, you could contest this on the grounds that you believe custody should be shared jointly.
If you do not respond to the petition, however, you are not involved in the default divorce process. This means that the court may simply go with whatever your spouse proposed, leaving you without any input on the outcome. This is why it is best to respond, and why you need to understand all of the legal options at your disposal.
