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Divorce

Respected Overland Park Divorce Lawyers

Overland Park attorneys provide strong counsel for clients when their marriage ends

The dissolution of your marriage is an emotional and stressful event. By effectively managing the legal aspects of your divorce, our caring, composed and compassionate attorneys at The Henry Law Firm, P.A. seek to ease your pain and frustration so you can concentrate on your well-being and that of your children. Drawing on over 30 years of combined legal experience, our skilled Kansas attorneys guide you through every step of the divorce process. We are committed to partnering with you, protecting your rights, and advancing your goals as you transition from one phase of life to the next. Our Overland Park firm regularly represents clients from the LGBTQ community, and we are ready to advise on the special considerations that affect many same-sex marriage dissolutions, as well as other family law matters.

Knowledgeable advice on custody, alimony, child support and property division

Before the court can issue a divorce decree, you must resolve four key issues:

  • Spousal maintenance — Determining if financial support should be ordered for a spouse who relied on their partner’s income is often a contentious matter.
  • Child custody — It is vital to establish appropriate terms relating to your children’s residence and the legal authority to make important decisions affecting their health and welfare. We help to develop a detailed parenting plan that suits the particular circumstances.
  • Child support — Both parents have a duty to provide material support for their children. We help you pursue a fair child support order based on parental finances and your children’s needs.
  • Division of property — Dividing marital assets and debts can be a complex process, even for couples who don’t consider themselves to be wealthy. The valuation of a family business, the possession or sale of the family home and the division of retirement accounts often leads to sharp disagreements.

Our family law attorneys assert your financial and parental rights effectively in order to help you start the next phase of your life on a secure footing.

What are the grounds for getting a divorce in Kansas?

In Kansas, a petitioner can file for divorce citing one of the following three types of grounds:

  • Incompatibility — This is the Kansas version of a “no-fault” divorce. The law only requires one party to claim that the couple is not compatible, and the other party’s objection to the divorce cannot stop the proceeding.
  • Failure to perform a marital duty — Spouses allege this ground if they seek to dissolve their marriage based on abandonment for one year, adultery, extreme cruelty, habitual drunkenness, gross neglect of duty, inability or refusal to engage in sexual intercourse or felony imprisonment subsequent to the marriage.
  • Incompatibility by reason of mental illness — A wife or husband may seek a divorce if their spouse has been confined to a mental institution for two or more years; or a court has adjudicated that their spouse is incapacitated by mental illness and at least two of three court-appointed physicians have testified to a poor prognosis of recovery.

The no-fault ground is the easiest and quickest since there is no requirement of proof other than the petitioner’s assertion.

Understanding the divorce process in Kansas

Our Overland Park divorce attorneys take their role as educators very seriously. We know from experience that preparing our clients for what lies ahead builds confidence and bestows peace of mind. When you partner with us for your divorce, we make sure you are fully informed about the law, how it applies to your situation, and what the process ahead will be like.

The process for divorce in Kansas depends heavily on two questions:

  • Are there minor children of the marriage?
  • Will the divorce be contested or uncontested?

If there are no minor children, negotiations might be much quicker because decisions do not have to be made regarding child custody or child support. Reaching a marital settlement agreement usually benefits both parties, but sometimes going to trial is the only way to obtain a fair outcome. Legal steps in a Kansas divorce include the following:

  • Establishing residency — To file for divorce in Kansas, a petitioner must have lived in the state for at least 60 days.
  • Choosing a venue — A petitioner may file suit for divorce in the county where either party resides.
  • Filing the petition — The petitioner files a petition for divorce and submits a filing fee, asking the court to dissolve the marriage and proposing terms for a divorce decree. Filing requirements for couples with children are different from those without children. If you have minor children, you must file additional paperwork, a domestic relations affidavit, a child support worksheet, and a proposed parenting plan.
  • Service of process — The petitioner must arrange for the respondent spouse to receive legal notice of the pending divorce action.
  • Filing an answer — The respondent spouse may file an answer to the petition but is not required to do so.
  • Notice of hearing — Once the final hearing date has been determined by the court, the petitioner has a duty of providing a formal notice to the respondent spouse as provided by applicable Kansas statute. Kansas law does not allow that hearing to take place until 60 days have passed since the date the petition was filed.

If you have a signed marital settlement agreement, you can present that to the court by your hearing date and complete an uncontested divorce, where terms of the agreement are incorporated into the divorce decree. However, if you have not reached an agreement, the judge might order mediation to resolve these issues or set a date for trial.

Skilled family law mediators encourage cooperation and courtesy

Mediation gives you and your spouse the opportunity to negotiate a divorce settlement in a private, informal setting under the guidance of a professional facilitator. The mediator is trained to find creative ways to reach a compromise while avoiding the stress and hostility usually associated with litigation. Mediation often reduces the time and costs of divorce and puts the decisions in your hands. Our experienced negotiators can help you obtain the most equitable divorce settlement, fair child support agreement, and healthy child custody arrangement.

Our divorce attorneys in Overland Park stand by your side

Sometimes litigation is necessary to resolve your divorce issues. Having a strong divorce lawyer by your side can alleviate the uncertainty and stress of the arduous process and help you obtain the most favorable trial outcome. Through tactical trial strategies and dynamic courtroom presence, our skilled litigators successfully represent clients throughout the adversarial litigation process when necessary.

Contact Kansas divorce attorneys you can trust

The Henry Law Firm, P.A. understands how stressful divorce can be. We work closely with you to lighten your emotional burden while providing capable representation focused on optimal results. Call us at 913-381-5020 or contact us online to schedule a consultation with one of our family law attorneys in Overland Park.

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