Divorce Law
Sec. 46b-40. (Formerly Sec. 46-32). Grounds for dissolution of marriage; legal separation; annulment.
(a) A marriage is dissolved only by:
(1) the death of one of the parties or
(2) a decree of annulment or dissolution of the marriage by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(b) An annulment shall be granted if the marriage is void or voidable under the laws of this state or of the state in which the marriage was performed.
(c) A decree of dissolution of a marriage or a decree of legal separation shall be granted upon a finding that one of the following causes has occurred:
(1) The marriage has broken down irretrievably;
(2) the parties have lived apart by reason of incompatibility for a continuous period of at least the eighteen months immediately prior to the service of the complaint and that there is no reasonable prospect that they will be reconciled;
(3) adultery;
(4) fraudulent contract;
(5) willful desertion for one year with total neglect of duty;
(6) seven years’ absence, during all of which period the absent party has not been heard from;
(7) habitual intemperance;
(8) intolerable cruelty;
(9) sentence to imprisonment for life or the commission of any infamous crime involving a violation of conjugal duty and punishable by imprisonment for a period in excess of one year;
(10) legal confinement in a hospital or hospitals or other similar institution or institutions, because of mental illness, for at least an accumulated period totaling five years within the period of six years next preceding the date of the complaint.
(d) In an action for dissolution of a marriage or a legal separation on the ground of habitual intemperance, it shall be sufficient if the cause of action is proved to have existed until the time of the separation of the parties.
(e) In an action for dissolution of a marriage or a legal separation on the ground of wilful desertion for one year, with total neglect of duty, the furnishing of financial support shall not disprove total neglect of duty, in the absence of other evidence.
(f) For purposes of this section, “adultery” means voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a person other than such person’s spouse.
(P.A. 73-373, S. 1; P.A. 74-169, S. 1, 18; P.A. 78-230, S. 18, 54; P.A. 91-19, S. 1.)
Sec. 46b-42. (Formerly Sec. 46-33). Jurisdiction.
The Superior Court shall have exclusive jurisdiction of all complaints seeking a decree of annulment, dissolution of a marriage or legal separation.
(P.A. 73-373, S. 2.)
Sec. 46b-44. (Formerly Sec. 46-35). Residency requirement.
(a) A complaint for dissolution of a marriage or for legal separation may be filed at any time after either party has established residence in this state.
(b) Temporary relief pursuant to the complaint may be granted in accordance with sections 46b-56 and 46b-83 at any time after either party has established residence in this state.
(c) A decree dissolving a marriage or granting a legal separation may be entered if:
(1) One of the parties to the marriage has been a resident of this state for at least the twelve months next preceding the date of the filing of the complaint or next preceding the date of the decree; or
(2) one of the parties was domiciled in this state at the time of the marriage and returned to this state with the intention of permanently remaining before the filing of the complaint; or
(3) the cause for the dissolution of the marriage arose after either party moved into this state.
(d) For the purposes of this section, any person who has served or is serving with the armed forces, as defined by section 27-103, or the merchant marine, and who was a resident of this state at the time of his or her entry shall be deemed to have continuously resided in this state during the time he or she has served or is serving with the armed forces or merchant marine.
(P.A. 73-373, S. 3; P.A. 74-169, S. 2, 18; P.A. 78-230, S. 20, 54; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-11, S. 36, 70.)
Sec. 46b-69b. Parenting education program.
(a) The Judicial Department shall establish a parenting education program for parties involved in any action before the Superior Court under section 46b-1, except actions brought under section 46b-15 and chapter 815t. For the purposes of this section, “parenting education program” means a course designed by the Judicial Department to educate persons, including unmarried parents, on the impact on children of the restructuring of families. The course shall include, but not be limited to, information on the developmental stages of children, adjustment of children to parental separation, dispute resolution and conflict management, guidelines for visitation, stress reduction in children and cooperative parenting.
(b) The court shall order any party to an action specified in subsection
(c) of this section to participate in such program whenever a minor child is involved in such action unless
(1) the parties agree, subject to the approval of the court, not to participate in such program,
(2) the court, on motion, determines that participation is not deemed necessary, or
(3) the parties select and participate in a comparable parenting education program. A family support magistrate may order parties involved in any action before the Family Support Magistrate Division to participate in such parenting education program, upon a finding that such participation is necessary and provided both parties are present when such order is issued. No party shall be required to participate in such program more than once.
A party shall be deemed to have satisfactorily completed such program upon certification by the service provider of the program.
(d) The Judicial Department shall, by contract with service providers, make available the parenting education program and shall certify to the court the results of each party’s participation in the program.
(e) Any person who is ordered to participate in a parenting education program shall pay directly to the service provider a participation fee, except that no person may be excluded from such program for inability to pay such fee. Any contract entered into between the Judicial Department and the service provider pursuant to subsection
(f) of this section shall include a fee schedule and provisions requiring service providers to allow persons who are indigent or unable to pay to participate in such program and shall provide that all costs of such program shall be covered by the revenue generated from participants’ fees. The total cost for such program shall not exceed two hundred dollars per person. Such amount shall be indexed annually to reflect the rate of inflation. The program shall not exceed a total of ten hours.
(g) Any service provider under contract with the Judicial Department pursuant to this section shall provide safety and security for participants in the program, including victims of family violence.
Dissolution of Marriages and Civil Unions in Connecticut
“A marriage [or civil union] is dissolved only by
(1) the death of one of the parties or
(2) a decree of annulment or dissolution of marriage by a court of competent jurisdiction.
” Conn. Gen. Stat. § 46b-40(a) (2008). [“. . . wherever in the general statutes . . . the term ‘marriage’ is used or defined, a civil union shall be included in such use or definition.” .” Conn. Gen. Stat. § 46b-38oo (2008) [EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 1, 2005].
· “We recognize that an annulment and a dissolution of marriage differ fundamentally. An annulment renders the marriage void ab initio [from the beginning] while a dissolution is based upon a valid marriage which terminates as of the date of the judgment of dissolution.” Durham v. Miceli, 15 Conn. App. 96, 543 A.2d 286 (1988).
· Civil Union: “Wherever in the general statutes the terms ‘spouse’, ‘family’, ‘immediate family’, ‘dependent’, ‘next of kin’ or any other term that denotes the spousal relationship are used or defined, a party to a civil union shall be included in such use or definition, and wherever in the general statutes, except sections 7-45 and 17b-137a of the general statutes, as amended by this act, subdivision (4) of section 45a-727a, sections 46b-20 to 46b-34, inclusive, section 46b-150d of the general statutes, as amended by this act, and section 14 of this act, the term ‘marriage’ is used or defined, a civil union shall be included in such use or definition. .” Conn. Gen. Stat. § 46b-38oo (2008) [Effective October 1, 2005].
· “Parties to a civil union shall have all the same benefits, protections and responsibilities under law, whether derived from the general statutes, administrative regulations or court rules, policy, common law or any other source of civil law, as are granted to spouses in a marriage, which is defined as the union of one man and one woman.” .” Conn. Gen. Stat. § 46b-38nn (2008) [EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 1, 2005].
Read all the Contents of this chapter regarding;
§ 1 Grounds for dissolution of marriage, civil union or legal separation
§ 1.1 No fault grounds
§ 1.2 Fault grounds
§ 1.2a Adultery
§ 1.2b Fraudulent contract
§ 1.2c Wilful desertion
§ 1.2d Seven years’ absence
§ 1.2e Habitual intemperance
§ 1.2f Intolerable cruelty
§ 1.2g Imprisonment/Infamous crime
§ 1.2h Confinement/Mental illness
§ 1.3. Multiple grounds
§ 1.4 Defenses
§ 2.0 Procedures
§ 2.1 Jurisdiction
§ 2.2 Process
§ 2.3 Parties
§ 3.0 Pleadings
§ 3.1 Complaint
§ 3.2 Motion to dismiss
§ 3.3 Motion to strike
§ 3.4 Answer/Cross Complaint
§ 3.5 Amendment to complaint
Tables in this chapter
Table 1 Grimm v. Grimm
Table 2 Fault and Financial Awards
Table 3 Constructive desertion
Table 4 Domicile
Table 5 Badouder v. Abdennur
Table 6 Default in Family Matters
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Divorce in Connecticut