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What is the difference between a Divorce and an Annulment in North Carolina?

  • A Divorce is a relatively simple lawsuit that can be filed after spouses have been separated for one year with the purpose of obtaining a Divorce Judgment that dissolves a marriage. The suit must be filed on or after the 366th day after separation - 367 days in a leap year. Unlike in other states, the divorce by itself will not resolve issues of custody, child support, alimony and property settlement (equitable distribution.) Hopefully these matters have been resolved by an agreement entered by the parties or by a lawsuit filed well before the years’ period is up. If this is not the case, to protect one’s right to alimony and equitable distribution the spouse seeking these will have to file the claims with the Complaint for Divorce or in a Counterclaim to the Divorce.
  • If the years’ separation is not contested or proven at a hearing, the Judge will enter a Divorce making the parties unmarried. Most divorces are uncontested and take between 7 and 12 weeks after service as there is a 30 day period for the Defendant to respond after being served.
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  • A civil Annulment is a lawsuit seeking a decree from the Court that finds there was a legal impediment to a marriage, i.e., that the marriage is invalid and never took place. The legal impediments in North Carolina are:
  • Your purported spouse is a close relative.
  • One spouse is underage, and the marriage took place without parental consent.
  • Bigamy
  • Lack of will or understanding (incompetency, drunk or on drugs to the pointof not being able to grasp the significance of the ceremony, and, impotency at the time of marriage.
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  • There is no get out of marriage free card based on a short-term marriage. If the ceremony was completed and there were no legal impediments to the marriage, an annulment is not available to you. In North Carolina, you must file for divorce after one year of separation. If you want to discuss a Separation Agreement, Divorce or Annulment with an experienced family law lawyer, contact Weaver, Bennett and Bland, in Matthews, Carolina. Our lawyers have been assisting residents of Mecklenburg and Union Counties since 1988.