If an individual is served with a divorce complaint and he or she simply failed to respond to the complaint by filing an answer or otherwise defending the action after a certain amount of time, which is slightly different in every State, the clerk of court will enter a default judgment against him, which after a certain number of days will become a final judgment of divorce, usually for fault, against the named defendant. This type of undefended legal judgment, not based on a review of the merits of the claims, can be a blessing or it can be a curse.
“Blessing”
Some people like to use this method of obtaining a divorce. It allows them to have a judgment of divorce entered without ever paying court fees, attorney fees in appearing at hearing and trials, there is no need to publicly provide private financial information concerning earnings and other holdings which would be required by the court in the financial statements the must be provided by each party to a divorce. Many people work their divorce out with a lawyer or lawyers outside the courtroom in a very confidential manner without any emotionally wrenching and humiliating public hearings or trials and then the lawyers agree on all the elements or claims to be included in the final drafted complaint for divorce which one the spouses will then arrange to file against the other. The other has agreed that he or she will not take any action to defendant the complaint and the divorce enters on a default judgment entered by the clerk. It is a “back door” method of obtaining a private divorce but it is replete with risks for the spouse who tacitly agrees to forego his due process and substantive rights by intentionally failing to respond to the “pre-crafted” complaint for divorce.
“Curse”
There are many unscrupulous divorce lawyers who will knowingly deny the defendant due process rights by intentionally serving a divorce defendant with papers in a manner the all but assured that the defendant spouse will never receive the papers within the time period required to file some kind of legal response to them. That way the lawyer gets his client quick and painless default judgment against the other spouse and the other spouse is left to fight the default judgment if he or she even can at that point. If the defending spouse does not have the funds to hire counsel to defend against the default judgment in time that judgment will become a final judgment and he or she will be denied any genuine opportunity to contest the claims presented by the complaint. This practice is unethical but it is employed commonly by lawyers with underground networks strong enough to get the pleadings served without the subsequent knowledge of the defendant.
Getting Legal Help
If you have been a default judgment for divorce by the clerk has entered against you it is important to immediately seek the assistance of counsel in a divorce attorney.
