Henry and Samantha have been married for 10 years. They don’t fight. They have been faithful to each other. They certainly haven’t been physically abusive toward each other. But hey don’t get along. They have no mutual interests. They aren’t interested in each other and they are getting just plain irritated with each other. They both agree that they do not want to be married anymore. They agree that they want to be divorced.
Can they?
Well, of course say their friends. Even though the traditional grounds aren’t there, they can get a no fault divorce. Everybody knows that. So Samantha trots off to a divorce lawyer and says she wants a no fault divorce.
Like any good lawyer, hers asks lots of questions and at the end of the interview tells her that no, she can’t get a divorce. Or at least not yet.
The lawyer explains that Samantha’s friends are right – and wrong. While there is such a thing as a no fault divorce (in Illinois more properly called an irreconcilable differences divorce), but that is not enough. In Illinois, a couple has to live separate and apart for two years before that can get divorced on those grounds. If both parties agree, they can waive the two-year period, but they still must have lived separate and apart for a full six months before the divorce can be finalized.
So let the waiting begin!
Chuck from Watson Law, LLC
Just a Lawyer in Lincoln's Hometown 