Filing for divorce generally includes (1) filing the necessary paperwork with the appropriate state or county court; (2) paying the filing fee; and (3) having the paperwork properly served on (handed to) your spouse—known as service of process.

This paperwork generally consists of a complaint or petition that includes the names of the spouses, the grounds for the divorce (fault or no-fault), whether there are children involved in the marriage, and whether the spouse is seeking child custody, child support, or spousal support.

A spouse generally may file for divorce in the state and county in which the spouse resides—or in which the other spouse resides. In many states the spouse must have lived in the state or county for a specified period of time before filing for divorce. Laws regarding this residency requirement and where a lawsuit for divorce may be filed vary from state to state and with circumstances in which the spouses share minor children.

Laws regarding the requirements for filing for divorce are usually located in a state’s statutes—often in the family code or domestic relations code.

In Vermont, the process of filing for divorce involves submitting the necessary paperwork to the family division of the superior court in the county where either spouse resides. The paperwork typically includes a divorce complaint or petition, which outlines the names of the spouses, the grounds for divorce (Vermont allows for both fault and no-fault grounds), details about any children from the marriage, and any requests for child custody, child support, or spousal support. The filing spouse must pay a filing fee, and the other spouse must be properly served with the divorce papers, a process known as 'service of process.' Vermont requires that at least one spouse has been a resident of the state for a minimum of six months before filing for divorce. Additionally, before a final hearing can be held, one of the spouses must have been a resident for one year. The specific residency requirement ensures that the Vermont courts have jurisdiction over the divorce case. These regulations are found in Vermont's statutes, particularly within the family law or domestic relations sections.