Draper is a city in Salt Lake and Utah counties in the U.S. state of Utah, located about 20 miles (32 km) south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 42,274, having grown from 7,143 in 1990. Draper is part of two metropolitan areas the Salt Lake County portion is included in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, while the Utah County portion is part of the Provo-Orem metropolitan area. The Utah State Prison is located in Draper, near Point of the Mountain, alongside Interstate 15. The execution of Gary Gilmore took place there on January 17, 1977. Draper lies roughly midway between Salt Lake City and Provo. Draper is bordered by Riverton and Bluffdale to the west, South Jordan to the northwest, Sandy to the north, Alpine to the southeast, Highland to the south, and Lehi to the southwest. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 30.1 square miles (78.0 km2), of which 30.1 square miles (77.9 km2) is land and 0.015 square miles (0.04 km2), or 0.05%, is water.

A divorce begins when a petitioner files a petition for divorce. Then, papers will be served. Proof of service is filed with 120 days of serving. Though, a Stipulation will be filed if both parties agree.

Divorce In Draper Utah

Once papers have been served, the respondent will need to reply. The summons will state how many days the defendant has to respond. In most cases, if they are served in Utah, they must file their response within 21 days of being served. If they are served outside of Utah, the defendant has 30 days after service. If the defendant does not reply or reply within the allotted timeframe, the plaintiff can ask the court to enter a default judgment (the plaintiff wins, and the defendant loses the chance to tell their side). Parties will then exchange financial declaration and initial disclosures. Each party must reveal their income, any assets, and debts and expenses to the other party to determine child support, alimony, and division of debt and property. Parties also need to disclose any information, documents, and witnesses that help prove or defend their case. Both parties must complete at least one session of mediation in an attempt to resolve any disputed issues. If mediation does not resolve disputed issues, a trial will be necessary. In a trial, a judge will determine the case and tells parties to prepare and file final documents. If at any point, before the trial, either party can file a motion for a temporary order. A temporary order will determine child custody, parent time, alimony, attorney fees, and other matters. Both parties must file this temporary order until it changes or until the final ruling.
If Parties Agree
If both parties agree, a Stipulation will be filed. Parties must wait 30 days from the date petition was filed. Final documents will be filed next.

Final documents are filed. If there are children involved, proof of income for both parties will need to be submitted. Additionally, both parties must attend a mandatory education class from an approved provider. Online or in-person courses are available. This education course can be waived by filing a motion. Certificates of completion of this education course must be presented.

When The Divorce Case is Finished

After final documents have been filed, a judge will review documents and sign the divorce decree.
Things No One Tells You About Getting a Divorce in Draper, Utah.
• There Are Predictors for Divorce in Utah: If you enter into marriage under the age of 20 and/or have an income of less than 25,000, your risk of divorce skyrockets. Throw in a spouse losing their job or a surprise pregnancy, and your marriage may be doomed before it begins. Here in Utah, we have a tendency to marry quite young. The median age of marriage in the United States is 27 for women and 29 for men. Now compare that to the average age of marriage in Utah, which is 24 for women and 26 for men.
• Divorce Has Declined Nearly Everywhere Except Utah: Utah’s divorce rates run slightly higher than the national average. Statistics often attribute this to Utah having larger families than the national average, citing more than 5% of families have 7+ family members compared to the 3.25 national averages.
• Utah Requires Divorcing Couples to Attend a Divorce Education Class: Utah legislators have created a mandatory divorce orientation course that couples must complete. Your divorce cannot be finalized until both you and your significant other have completed the course. You are only required to take the divorce education class if there are minor children involved. The one-time class reviews resources for custody and child support issues, clarifies the divorce process, and consequences of divorce.

• People May Judge You and Ask Why: The news that you are getting divorced has spread through your church, neighborhood, and/or workplace, and we are a curious species. Don’t be surprised when people you barely know ask you why you the nitty-gritty on why you are getting divorced.
Parenting After Divorce May Become More Difficult
There will be many disagreements maybe not fair or logical ones. There may be pain when you refer to your ex as “mommy” to your kids, however that is her name to them, and you need to be the adult about it. You may think with the other spouse out of the picture, that you can make all parenting decisions by yourself. If you’re granted sole legal custody, then you can make major decision about the kid(s) by yourself. Having sole physical custody simply means that you are the parent the kid(s) live with. Make a choice to try to co-parent as best you can. If you can’t get along, you may need to have separate birthdays, and the more times in your kids’ lives you are going to miss out on. Just because you are divorced, doesn’t mean that you have to be enemies. Once the court has ruled and the papers have been signed, both parties are bound to the terms set forth in the divorce decree. Violating any part of the agreement may put the violator in contempt of court, and your family law attorney can help you file a contempt motion. The most common divorce violations are non-payment of child support, not complying with the visitation schedule, withholding visitation, and non-payment of alimony. If your ex does not bring the kids back at the time set forth in the divorce decree, the police will not help you bring them back unless there is an immediate threat to them. What the police will do is come to your house and makes a record of “visitation interference,” which your family law attorney can use as evidence in a contempt hearing. In your court hearing you must be able to state what areas of the decree have been violated, and the burden of proof always lies with the accuser. If you are found in contempt, the violator may be given a period of time to correct the issue or they may face jail time until the matter is resolved. If you ex is not paying alimony or child support due to unemployment, you can’t make your spouse pay if they do not bring in an income, however, past due child support will accrue. Your family law attorney will likely recommend that you contact the Utah Office of Recovery Services (ORS). The ORS makes sure that Utah parents are responsible for their children’s support, and can help you collect a judgment.
“Although separating certainly can have benefits, living apart from your spouse without a formal written separation agreement can put you at risk. If you separate, you still remain liable for your spouse’s debts and legal issues in which they are involved notwithstanding the fact that you are not living together,” she says. “A written separation agreement would appropriately address those issues providing for indemnification for example, or limiting your liability for debts incurred by your spouse during the separation. If your spouse fails to pay certain marital debt, because you are still married although not living together, the creditor can seek remedies against you for the joint debts. Informal separations without a document detailing the terms of your separation, that is , how you will share the marital assets, what do you do about joint credit cards, who pays maintenance and how you will distribute assets acquired during the separation, can cause difficulties down the road leading to litigation.” What’s more, some people remain separated for months or even years, so it’s essential that you protect yourself upfront and have all the necessary issues settled and agreed to in writing. In order to move forward, you need to know who gets which asset, who is responsible for debts, how much alimony is to be paid and for how long, etc. The legal separation agreement helps settle these issues, and if you ultimately decide to divorce, it can easily become your divorce settlement agreement. “Indeed, as time goes on, communication and cooperation with your estranged spouse may no longer exist. Your agreement should give you ready access to liquid assets you may need these assets to pay bills.”
Divorce laws vary from state to state, and so it’s no surprise that regulations governing legal separation vary from state to state, too. In general terms, each state falls into one of three broad categories:
• Some states require a legal separation before you can file for a divorce.
• Other states recognize a legal separation, but do not require it.
• A few states neither require nor recognize legal separation.
Legal separation may be a good financial option for you if you need to meet the 10-year requirement for social security benefits. If a marriage has lasted at least 10 years, a divorced spouse who has not remarried is entitled at age 62 (with various other requirements) to social security benefits equal to the greater of: those based on her (assuming she is the lesser earning person) own work record or 50 percent of what her ex-husband is entitled to based upon his work record. Because of this law, many people who have been married for seven or eight years will separate until they cross the 10-year threshold then, they get divorced. Continue receiving health insurance benefits under your husband’s plan. Naturally, once a couple is divorced, most employer health plans will no longer cover the employee’s ex-spouse. Separating, but not divorcing, may solve that problem although you’ll have to carefully check the fine print in your husband’s employment benefit package to know for sure. Some employers view a legal separation the same as a divorce and will deny benefits accordingly. Not everyone opts for a legal separation based solely on financial reasons. In some cases, other considerations come into play. For example, some couples remain separated for religious reasons. One spouse, or both, may come from a religious background that frowns upon divorce. Separating, but not divorcing, may be the “ideal” solution for them. Other couples may find that they still love each other, but just can’t live together. Separation may be the optimal choice for them, too.

Do I Need To Have A Reason To Get A Divorce?

You need to choose a “grounds” (legal reason) for your divorce. One grounds for getting divorced is that you simply do not get along with your spouse anymore and you do not want to be married. You can always get a divorce if you want one, no matter what your situation is. There are two “no fault” grounds and seven “fault” grounds. The “no fault” grounds means that the marriage needs to end but neither person is to blame. The “fault” grounds mean that one person did something so wrong that the marriage needs to end.
“Fault” grounds
There are “fault” grounds for divorce. With a “fault” grounds, one spouse files for the divorce and blames the other spouse for the end of the marriage. Although there are several fault grounds, “cruel and abusive treatment” is the one that survivors of domestic violence use the most. You can ask for a hearing 21 days after the sheriff or constable serves your spouse with the Domestic Relations Summons and the Complaint for Divorce. You can get the divorce even if your spouse does not show up for the hearing. After the judge hears your case, the court issues a Judgment of Divorce. The divorce becomes final 90 days after Judgment of Divorce Nisi.
The “fault” grounds for divorce are:
• Cruel and Abusive Treatment is the most common fault grounds for divorce. You need to show that your spouse did something on purpose that hurt or upset you. Physical abuse is cruel and abusive treatment. Emotional abuse is cruel and abusive treatment if it caused you physical harm (made you sick). For example, his drinking and staying out all night caused you headaches and stomach problems.
• Desertion you will have to show that your spouse left you, has been gone at least a year, and is not planning to return.
• You will also have to show that he left on his own, you didn’t agree and he did not have a good reason to leave.
In some cases, there is desertion even though the spouse never physically left the home. In those cases, the judge has to look at the facts of the case to see if it amounts to desertion.
• Gross and confirmed habits of intoxication means that your spouse has a pattern of using a lot of drugs or alcohol. You have to prove that your spouse uses “excessive” amounts of (too much) drugs or alcohol, and that he does it on his own without being forced. You also need to prove that he does this regularly, rather than just every once in a while.
• Gross or wanton and cruel refusal or neglect to provide suitable support means that your spouse refuses to give you enough money to live on. To use this ground, you have to show that your spouse is able to support you but refuses or fails to do so. You also have to show that this has hurt you physically (you have gotten sick) or puts you in danger of physical harm.
• Adultery is not used very often. It means that your spouse had sex with someone else. You will have to prove that your spouse had sex with someone else. This is very difficult to prove. Most people do not use this ground even if they think their spouse had sex with someone else.
• Impotency: This means your spouse is unable to have sex. This ground for divorce is rarely used.
• Sentence of Confinement in a Penal Institution: This means your spouse has been sentenced to spend five years or more in prison. This ground is based on how long the sentence is, not how much time he actually spends in prison.

Lawyers For Draper City Utah Divorce

When you need to get divorced, please call Ascent Law LLC for your free consultation (801) 676-5506. We want to help you.