Arizona No-Fault Divorce

Arizona No-Fault Divorce can be simply defined by stating that the court system does not take into account which party is at fault for the fact that the couple wishes to dissolve their marriage and only requires that one, or both, members of the marriage feel that the marriage is irretrievably broken.  Marriage is a legal contract in the state of Arizona and when an individual meets the Arizona Divorce Requirements, the court will accept a filing for dissolution of marriage simply because that person wishes to end the legal contract of marriage.  Working with an Arizona Divorce Attorney is the best possible way to protect your rights and to maximize your chances of successful outcome when bringing your No-Fault Divorce case before the courts.

No-Fault Divorce was first introduced into law in the United States in 1953 by the State of Oklahoma and then, in 1970, Governor Ronald Reagan created what is considered to be the most well known reforms of divorce law by enacting No-Fault Divorce in the state of California.  Prior to No-Fault Divorce, there was a burden of proof upon one member of the marriage to prove that their spouse had been unfaithful, cruel, abusive or otherwise at fault for the marriage no longer being tenable.  Some of the reasons No-Fault Divorce was lobbied for so strongly on both sides was to eliminate a great deal of time in a slow court process, changing views on gender roles and women's rights and to alleviate a growing burden on the court due to the rising numbers in divorce cases.  By 1987, all 50 States had adopted No-Fault Divorce as their primary divorce model or an option when filing for divorce.

While Arizona does not examine reasons beyond the marriage being irretrievably broken when hearing a divorce case, they do examine some of these reasons in other areas.  Negative behavior that can place a child in physical, mental, emotional or moral danger is taken account when determining child custody issues that arise from divorce.  In Arizona, we also have a topic that is known as Community Waste that commonly is brought into focus when determining the Division of Property in a divorce.  Community Waste states that activities such as illegal drug use, alcoholism or extra-marital affairs that take away from the financial well-being of one member and that have no benefit to the overall marital community can be examined.  In cases where Community Waste has been determined, the Division of Property and financial assets can be adjusted to insure that the person who did not benefit from these activities during the marriage receives a larger share of these assets when the contract of marriage is dissolved.