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 New Mexico, either spouse may file for divorce in the state as long as at least one of the spouses has been a resident of New Mexico for at least six months immediately preceding the filing of the divorce. Additionally, the spouse must have a domicile in New Mexico, which means a true, fixed, and permanent home and principal establishment to which they intend to return whenever absent. The divorce should be filed in the district court of the county where either spouse resides. If there are minor children involved, New Mexico law requires that the children must have resided with a parent or a guardian in New Mexico for at least six months before the divorce proceedings begin, or since birth if they are less than six months old. These requirements are set forth in the New Mexico Statutes Annotated (NMSA) within the family law or domestic relations sections.