Maryland’s requirements for divorce can be tricky. If the cause for the divorce took place within the state, a spouse may file for divorce in the county where either spouse resides, if spouses have been living separately. If the cause that led to the petition took place outside of Maryland, then the spouse seeking the dissolution must be a resident of the state for at least 1 year before they can file for a divorce in Maryland.
Divorce is potentially a long, complicated, and confusing process for all parties involved. However, following a divorce without regard to who is at fault can speed up the process and eliminate some of the complications.
In Maryland, there are two types of divorce: absolute divorce and limited divorce. An absolute divorce is a permanent termination of the marriage. If a court grants an absolute divorce, the final order of the divorce is set forth in a “divorce decree” or “decree.” A limited divorce is a legal action where a married couple is separated. A limited divorce is not a permanent termination of the marriage. Instead, the couple remains legally married while living separate and apart from one another. During a limited divorce, neither spouse may remarry, or have sexual relations with another person. If one spouse has sexual relations with another person, that spouse has committed adultery.
A divorce in Maryland is different in a lot of ways from a divorce in India. The majority of the time, the Indian clients who come to us for help get married back home. For a host of reasons, the marriage unfortunately does not work out and the parties decide to get a divorce.
Some of the reasons for getting a divorce are:
- Adultery
- Problems with the in-laws
- One spouse sending a lot of money back home
- Domestic violence
In Maryland, when the parties agree to shared parental rights and responsibilities, the court makes an award absent substantial evidence to the contrary. Like all jurisdictions, the court applies the best interests of the child standard. The court may not show the preference for one parent because of either parent’s gender or the child’s age and gender. The court may grant grandparent or third-party visitation.
In making the determination of custody and visitation, the court will consider a wide range of factors including who is the primary caregiver, whether there has been evidence of abuse, the willingness of the parents to work together, both the parents and the child’s preference regarding custody, how long a parent has been separated from the child, the possible disruption of the child’s life, and anything else the court considers relevant.
If you have children born here as a result of a wedlock that took place back home and if you are here on an H1B or a green card and your spouse wants to take the children back home, you have two options, let your spouse take the children back to your home country or you can fight to keep them in this country. If the children born in US, they are citizens of this country. The courts are going to favor the children staying here, so how do you resolve this child custody issue? Talk to an attorney as to what your options are before things get messy and your spouse takes the children back home.
In Maryland, if you need help with this type of an issue in Montgomery County, Charles County (Waldorf), Rockville, Bethesda, Howard County, Ellicott City or Frederick, do not hesitate to call us for a consultation. The SRIS Law Group can help you best possible outcome based on the facts of your case. If you wish to consult an SRIS Law Group, P.C. attorney, call us at 855-696-3348. B
