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DIVORCE IN
WISCONSIN
In order to file for
divorce in Wisconsin, one party must reside in
the county in which the action is being filed
for thirty days and reside in Wisconsin for at
least six months. The process of filing for
divorce is begun by the filing of a summons and
petition for divorce with the clerk of Circuit
Court in the county of residence. After the
petition and summons are filed, it must then be
served on the other spouse. This puts the other
spouse on notice that a divorce action has been
commenced. Because the Wisconsin Statutes
require a four month waiting period before a
divorce can be finalized, the divorce process
can take anywhere from four months to over a
year if it is contested.
If the parties can come
to an agreement over the terms of their divorce,
it is possible to have an uncontested divorce.
In a stipulated or uncontested divorce the
parties or the parties' attorneys draft a
marital settlement agreement. This agreement
states how the parties' debts and assets are to
be split up, disposition of the parties'
residence, whether there will be maintenance
(formerly known as alimony) and other important
concerns of the parties that should be
stipulated to in writing. If the parties have
minor children, the agreement would also specify
how legal custody, physical placement and child
support for the children are to be allocated.
The Wisconsin legislature
has recently redefined the concepts of custody
and visitation. Legal custody is "the right and
responsibility to make major decisions
concerning the child." Major decisions include,
among other things, consent to marry, enter
military service, obtain a motor vehicle
operator's license, and choice of school and
religion. If the parties are awarded joint legal
custody, then both parents share legal custody
and neither party's legal custody rights are
superior unless specified in decisions by the
court or the parties.
Physical placement has
replaced the concept of visitation and is
defined as "the right of a party to have a child
physically placed with the party and the right
and responsibility to make routine daily
decisions regarding the child's care during that
placement." These routine decisions may not be
inconsistent with any major decisions made by
the party with legal custody.
Under the statutes, the
court is to allocate periods of physical
placement with both parents unless the court
finds, after a hearing, that physical placement
with a parent would endanger the child's
physical, mental, or emotional health. In
addition, the court may specify one parent as
primary caretaker and one home as the child's
primary home for purposes of determining
eligibility for aid or other purposes.
Child support is
determined by a percentage standard which is
established by the Department of Health and
Social Services. The percentage standard is
based on the payer's gross income with certain
adjustments. Currently, the standard is 17% for
one child, 25% for two children, 29% for three
children, 31% for four children and 34% for five
or more children. The court may require either
or both spouses to pay support, must
specifically assign responsibility for health
care expenses, and is allowed to express support
as either a fixed sum or as a percentage of
parental income.
After a divorce is
granted in Wisconsin, the parties are required
to wait six months before remarrying. In
addition, if both parties agree, a divorce
judgment may be revoked by the court if the
parties apply to the court within six months of
the granting of their divorce.
If you would like more information on
Divorce or any topics which concern a legal
matter, please contact Rob Wertheimer for a free
initial consultation at 715-381-1273 or
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