Is an uncontested divorce the same as a no-fault divorce?

If you’re looking into getting a divorce and need to figure out what works best for you and your family, then you have likely heard of an uncontested divorce. An uncontested divorce is a great way to get a cheap divorce where you live and is sometimes called a “no fault” divorce.

An uncontested divorce is not exactly the same as a no fault divorce, but they are used interchangeably. An uncontested divorce does list a fault in Alabama, and most other states, but the fault listed is usually incompatibility or irreconcilable differences. Generally, there have to be grounds, or fault, for a civil action such as a divorce, so the listing of these reasons such as incompatibility are a way to not blame either party for the divorce and is sometimes called no fault as a result of this.

Either way you call it, no fault or uncontested divorce, the process is the same. In Alabama, you can pay a divorce attorney to prepare you uncontested divorce paperwork. Then you and your spouse sign and properly execute the documents, including an agreement between the parties, and get them to the attorney’s office to file. Once filed, the judge waits thirty days and enters your divorce decree. No Court is necessary in most circumstances.

Most law firms require a flat fee to prepare the paperwork and the Court charges them a filing fee to file it. Therefore, those are the two common costs associated with doing an uncontested divorce. You can talk to the attorney via phone or in person, but your agreement should already have been hashed out by you and your spouse without an attorney involved. If the two of you are able to do all of the hard work yourselves, then the divorce can be done cheaper and easier.

Therefore, it is entirely possible to file for a no-fault, uncontested divorce. While the concepts are linked, they are not the same thing. It is an easy way to get a cheap divorce in Montgomery or wherever you live in the State of Alabama. If your state also allows for such an easy procedural divorce filing, then you may be able to do it there too. However, all states are different so you might not be able to get a divorce done cheaply and easily in the state where you reside.