Arkansas Divorce

Residency Requirements

To obtain a divorce, either the plaintiff or defendant must have been a resident of Arkansas for 60 days before the commencement of the action and a resident in the state for three full months before the final judgment granting the decree of divorce. No divorce shall be granted until at least 30 days have elapsed from the date of the filing of the complaint.

The proceedings shall be in the county where the complainant resides unless the complainant is a nonresident of the state of Arkansas and the defendant is a resident of the state, in which case the proceedings shall be in the county where the defendant resides and, in any event, the process may be directed to any county in the state.

 

Grounds for Divorce

Divorce can be granted in Arkansas for the following causes:

  1. a) When either party, at the time of the contract, was and still is impotent;
    b) When either party shall be convicted of a felony or other infamous crime;
    c) When either party shall be addicted to habitual drunkenness for one year; be guilty of such cruel and barbarous treatment as to endanger the life of the other; or offer such indignities to the person of the other as shall render his or her condition intolerable;
    d) When either party shall have committed adultery subsequent to the marriage;
    e) When husband and wife have lived separate and apart from each other for 18 continuous months without cohabitation;
    f) In all cases in which a husband and wife have lived separate and apart for three consecutive years without cohabitation by reason of the incurable insanity of one of them;
    g) When either spouse legally obligated to support the other, and having the ability to provide the other with the common necessaries of life, willfully fails to do so.

 

Division of Property

At the time a divorce decree is entered, all marital property shall be distributed one-half (1/2) to each party unless the court finds such a division to be inequitable. In that event the court shall make some other division that the court deems equitable taking into consideration:

  1. a) The length of the marriage;
    b) Age, health, and station in life of the parties;
    c) Occupation of the parties;
    d) Amount and sources of income;
    e) Vocational skills;
    f) Employability;
    g) Estate, liabilities, and needs of each party and opportunity of each for further acquisition of capital assets and income;
    h) Contribution of each party in acquisition, preservation, or appreciation of marital property, including services as a homemaker; and
    i) The federal income tax consequences of the court’s division of property.

Marital property means all property acquired by either spouse subsequent to the marriage except:

  1. a) Property acquired prior to marriage or by gift or by reason of the death of another, including, but not limited to, life insurance proceeds, payments made under a deferred compensation plan, or an individual retirement account, and property acquired by right of survivorship, by a trust distribution, by bequest or inheritance, or by a payable on death or a transfer on death arrangement;
    b) Property acquired in exchange for property acquired prior to the marriage or in exchange for property acquired by gift, bequest, devise, or descent;
    c) Property acquired by a spouse after a decree of divorce from bed and board;
    d) Property excluded by valid agreement of the parties;
    e) The increase in value of property acquired prior to marriage or by gift or by reason of the death of another, including, but not limited to, life insurance proceeds, payments made under a deferred compensation plan, or an individual retirement account, and property acquired by right of survivorship, by a trust distribution, by bequest or inheritance, or by a payable on death or a transfer on death arrangement, or in exchange therefore;
    f) Benefits received or to be received from a workers’ compensation claim, personal injury claim, or social security claim when those benefits are for any degree of permanent disability or future medical expenses; and
    g) Income from property owned prior to the marriage or from property acquired by gift or by reason of the death of another, including, but not limited to, life insurance proceeds, payments made under a deferred compensation plan, or an individual retirement account, and property acquired by right of survivorship, by a trust distribution, by bequest or inheritance, or by a payable on death or a transfer on death arrangement, or in exchange therefore.

 

Spousal Support

When a decree is entered, the court shall make orders concerning the alimony of the wife or the husband and the care of the children, if there are any, as are reasonable from the circumstances of the parties and the nature of the case. Unless otherwise ordered by the court or agreed to by the parties, the liability for alimony shall automatically cease upon the earlier of:

  1. a) The date of the remarriage of the person who was awarded the alimony;
    b) The establishment of a relationship that produces a child or children and results in a court order directing another person to pay support to the recipient of alimony, which circumstances shall be considered the equivalent of remarriage; or
    c) The establishment of a relationship that produces a child or children and results in a court order directing the recipient of alimony to provide support of another person who is not a descendant by birth or adoption of the payor of the alimony, which circumstances shall be considered the equivalent of remarriage.

 

Child Custody

The award of custody of a child shall be made without regard to the sex of a parent but solely in accordance with the welfare and best interest of the child. In determining the best interest of the child, the court may consider the preferences of the child if the child is of a sufficient age and capacity to reason, regardless of age.

 

Child Support

In determining a reasonable amount of support, initially or upon review to be paid by the noncustodial parent, the court shall refer to the most recent revision of the family support chart. It shall be a rebuttable presumption for the award of child support that the amount contained in the family support chart is the correct amount of child support to be awarded. Only upon a written finding or specific finding on the record that the application of the support chart would be unjust or inappropriate, as determined under established criteria set forth in the family support chart, shall the presumption be rebutted.

 

Sources

Arkansas Family Law Code (http://law.justia.com/arkansas/codes/2010/title-9/)

 

Arkansas Resources

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Laws & Courts:

Arkansas Law – state statutes: click ‘Arkansas Code’ located in the lower right hand side of the webpage, then click on ‘HTML’ tab. Next, click ‘Arkansas Code (Non annotated)’ and click on ‘Title 9 – Family Law’. Click on the ‘Subtitle 2. Domestic Relations’ and then click on the specific chapters for the information you are searching for.
Arkansas Judiciary Homepage – search Supreme Court & Court of Appeals published opinions (Sept. 1994 Present), view court rules and other legal resources for the state of Arkansas.
Arkansas Government – complete listing of all Arkansas and regional law and courts pages.

Additional Resources:

Children’s Rights Council – national nonprofit organization based in Washington, DC that works to assure children meaningful and continuing contact with both their parents and extended family regardless of the parents’ marital status.
Arkansas Bar Association – CLE (continuing legal education) information, association handbooks, mock trial program and several public information pamphlets are available.

Public Access to Court RecordsSupreme Court and Court of Appeals Docket Search allows you to search the state’s docket by case number or name. Benton County Online Public Records allows you to search the court dockets. Pulaski County/County Clerk allows searches in civil and domestic relations cases. District Court of Sebastian County is the Fort Smith Division allowing for the search of civil cases. (Source: National Center for State Courts)


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The State Resource pages are provided for informational purposes only. Do not take any actions based upon the information contained within the State Resource pages without first consulting an attorney licensed in your state. We at DadsDivorce.com strive to keep our information up-to-date; however state laws are not static and subject to change without notice.