There were times, admit it, that you sat in one of your lawyer’s twin leather office chairs stacking his neon yellow, magnetic paper clips to form miniature sky scrapers while he talked with your spouse and thought to yourself, “I don’t get it. What is the difference between a divorce petition and a complaint?” As Rod Serling’s Night Gallery once so succinctly put it, “For your consideration…”
Divorce Complaint
A complaint is a legal document. It is the initial case related pleading which functions to set out the plaintiff’s claim for relief against the defendant. It must contain a short jurisdictional statement, a short statement detailing the claim and showing that the claimant is entitled to relief for the claimed injury and finally a demand for judgment in the plaintiff’s favor. Therefore, in the context of a divorce action, there would need to state some claim of fault concerning the breakdown of the marital contract and some element of redressibility of the resultant “fault based injury” by way of some type of judicial action. A complaint is used to file a fault based divorce action such as a claim arising due to acts of adultery, physical or mental abuse, abandonment, incurable insanity, or the imprisonment of one of the marital partners. Those are examples of possible injury claims but as we all know, in a marriage, the fault allegations are sometimes nothing short of endless.
Divorce Petition
A petition is also a legal document. It is also an initial case pleading but this type of pleading will make a formal state request that the court take some action on a matter and the reasons that the court should take this action. In a petition to the court, unlike the complaint, there is no element of “fault based injury” required and no element of resultant, redressible damages needed. A petition addressed to the court is the document used to ask the court to act to dissolve a marriage where both parties have agreed there is an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage and that the situation has evolved on a “no fault” basis. As always, fault seems to be the key. Fault, think complaint, no fault, think petition.
Getting Legal Help
If you or a member of your family is seeking to end a marital relationship if may be very helpful to access the guidance of a divorce attorney. An attorney can provide valuable experience and guidance that can help to end the marriage while inflicting the least financial and emotional pain and suffering for both spouses.
