Paperwork can be filed in person or by mail with the court clerk once all terms for divorce have been agreed on and it is an uncontested no-fault divorce (1A Divorce in Massachusetts). You may write the separation agreement yourself, but usually it is best to hire an attorney or a mediator to do it for you, which then is signed by both parties, notarized, and filed with the court along with other required documents. The separation agreement must contain all of the terms in detail related to the divorce, such as asset division, custody, child support, alimony, and visitation rights.
In Massachusetts, terms within separation agreements can either be modified (merged) or cannot be modified (survive) after judgement is entered. This is decided when the divorce agreement is being written, but the court may on rare occasions make changes in extraordinary situations, even if the terms were survived.
Required documents for an uncontested no-fault divorce (1A)
- A certified copy of your marriage certificate: you can get this from the city or town you were married in
- A prepared separation agreement
- Joint Petition for Divorce form (CJD-101A) signed by both spouses or by their attorneys
- Affidavit of Irretrievable Separation signed by both spouses
- Record of Absolute Divorce (R-408) from the state Registry of Vital Records
- A financial statement from each spouse
- Filing fees
The following documents are required if you have a child under the age of 18.
- Affidavit disclosing care or custody proceeding (OCAJ-1 TRC IV)
- Child Support Guidelines worksheet (CJD304)
The process will proceed as follows: Hearing ➡︎ Judgement nisi ➡︎ Nisi period ➡︎ Divorce
For cases where an agreement cannot be reached: Trial ➡︎ Judgement nisi ➡︎ Nisi period ➡︎ Divorce