File for Divorce in Allegheny County

Does PA Require Separation Before Divorce?

Pennsylvania does not have a legal separation process. However, couples can file for a separation agreement to make decisions about child support and spousal support.

The “separate and apart” requirement can be tricky. Pennsylvania law presumes that a couple begins living separate and apart no later than the day one party serves the divorce complaint on the other. 

Although, this can sometimes change if there have been attempts at reconciliation. It is also possible to begin living separate and apart before the divorce complaint is served.

Pennsylvania law recognizes that not all people ending their marriages can afford to move out of the marital home, so the separate and apart requirement doesn’t discriminate against parties that are still living in the same house. 

Instead, the law looks at various other factors that indicate the parties have stopped acting like spouses (e.g., no longer sharing a bed, going on dates, sharing vacations). If at the end of the waiting period one spouse disputes that the parties have lived separate and apart for one year or denies that there has been an irretrievable breakdown in the relationship, the court can decline to grant the divorce right away and order more court proceedings.

Fault Divorce in PA

Another type of divorce that Pennsylvania offers is called fault divorce. Just as its name suggests, a fault divorce recognizes that one party is at fault for the dissolving of the marriage.

The following are grounds for a fault-based divorce:

• Imprisonment for 2+ years
• Bigamy
• Indignities, or a course of conduct that makes a spouse’s life burdensome or conditions intolerable
• Adultery, or voluntary sex with a non-spouse
• Cruel and barbarous treatment, or physical abuse
• Desertion, or willful and malicious absence from home without justification for 1+ year
• Insanity, or a situation where a spouse is institutionalized

Unlike no-fault divorces, Pennsylvania does not impose a mandatory waiting period for this type of divorce. This can be extremely helpful for those in situations involving domestic violence. However, despite not having a waiting period, these proceedings can still be quite lengthy. Not only will the court need to hear your reasons for requesting a fault divorce, but it will also need to hear evidence from the other spouse, including any defenses they might have. Common defenses to fault-based divorce include provocation, condonation, or insanity. The first time all this evidence will be heard will be before a master.

A master is not a judge, but rather, a court official who makes a recommendation to the judge. The master will generally make a recommendation in favor of a fault-based divorce if you can show the other spouse committed the act you are accusing them of, the act ruined your marriage, and that you are innocent of any wrongdoing. If either party disagrees with the master’s recommendation, they can challenge it later at trial. Only after the master makes his recommendation will there be a hearing before a Judge, who will make the final decision as to whether there are grounds for a fault-based divorce.

When it comes to distributing property after a divorce, Pennsylvania is an “equitable distribution” state. Equitable distribution means that the marital property is distributed fairly between the parties. In fault-based divorces, courts will not consider marital misconduct when distributing the property. So, if you are granted a Fault Divorce in Pennsylvania, it does not necessarily mean you will receive a bigger share of the marital property.

PA Divorce Law for Abandonment

In Pennsylvania, abandonment or desertion may be used as grounds for divorce only if the spouse physically abandoned their partner without notice and without warning. The spouse must have abandoned the other for a minimum of one year. If the parties reunite and cohabitate for any amount of time, the one year time period starts from their last separation.

Annulments

The second way to terminate your marriage in Pennsylvania is through an annulment. Annulments differ from divorce because instead of just terminating the marriage, an annulment completely erases it from your past. To be eligible for an annulment in Pennsylvania, one spouse must have lived in the state for at least six months. Two types of marriages can be ended by annulments—those that are “void” and those that are “voidable.”

A marriage that is void is one that was invalid or illegal from the beginning. A void marriage is treated as if it never happened, so it doesn’t require a court order to be annulled. However, because of this, parties to a void marriage would not be entitled to anything that depends on the status of being married. For example, a spouse in a void marriage may not be able to inherit from their spouse if they die without a will, whereas a spouse in a voidable marriage would.

There are four types of void marriages in Pennsylvania:

• A marriage where one or both spouses have insanity or serious mental illness;
• A bigamous marriage
• An incestuous marriage
• A purported common law marriage where either party was under the age of 18 years.

In contrast, a voidable marriage is one that is valid until it is declared invalid. An invalid marriage means that there must be a hearing in front of a judge, who will determine if there are grounds for an annulment. It also means that parties to a voidable marriage are still legally married until the day they get their annulment decree. Voidable marriages can only be annulled if a spouse attacks the marriage’s validity while both spouses are still alive, so if it is attacked by a third-party, or by a spouse after the other spouse has died, the marriage will remain valid in the eyes of the law.

There are four types of voidable marriages in Pennsylvania:

• Marriages where one party was underage (rules vary slightly for those under the age of sixteen)
• A spouse was under the influence of liquor or drugs when he or she entered the marriage
• One party entered the marriage under duress, coercion, force, or fraud
• A party has a lack of some physical capacity that was unknown to the other party before the marriage (e.g., a spouse has an incurable physical or psychological inability to have normal sexual intercourse).

Call Our Legal Team Today at (412) 281-1988

When you are going through a divorce, decisions are made that change the rest of your life. The best way to obtain decisions that are beneficial to you is to ensure that your divorce lawyer has the experience needed to obtain results.

For over 20 years, Notaro Epstein Family Law Group, P.C. has been proudly helping people through some of the most difficult parts of their lives. Each of our attorneys has specific training in family law and has made it the focus of their career. Because of our dedication to family law practice, we offer the experience that helps our clients achieve the results they are looking for. Whether it is through skillful mediation or aggressive representation in a courtroom, the attorneys at Notaro Epstein Family Law Group, P.C. are ready to help you.

Find out how we will help you today by calling (412) 281-1988 for a free consultation.