A covenant marriage is a type of marriage that is only available in Arizona, Arkansas, and Louisiana. In a covenant marriage the spouses promise that (1) they will participate in marriage counseling before filing for divorce; (2) agree to a longer waiting period before the divorce can be finalized; and (3) must allege fault grounds for the divorce (cannot seek a divorce on no-fault grounds such as irreconcilable differences).

Laws vary among states that recognize covenant marriages, but in a covenant marriage a spouse seeking a divorce generally must allege fault grounds such as:

• Adultery by the other spouse;

• Commission of a felony by the other spouse and sentence of imprisonment at hard labor or death;

• Abandonment by the other spouse for one year;

• Physical or sexual abuse of the spouse or of a child of either spouse; or

• The spouses have lived separate and apart for two years; or the spouses are judicially or legally separated and have lived separate and apart since the legal separation for (a) one year and six months if there is a minor child or children of the marriage; (b) one year if the separation was granted for abuse of a child of either spouse; or (c) one year in all other cases.

In Illinois, covenant marriages are not recognized as a distinct form of marriage. Illinois follows the more common practice of allowing both fault-based and no-fault divorces. In a no-fault divorce, spouses can cite irreconcilable differences as the reason for seeking a divorce without the need to prove fault. However, Illinois does allow for fault-based divorces as well, where one spouse must prove grounds such as adultery, desertion, habitual drunkenness, repeated physical or mental cruelty, felony conviction, or infection with a sexually transmitted disease by the other spouse. The state does not require marriage counseling before filing for divorce, nor does it impose a longer waiting period specific to a type of marriage, as is the case with covenant marriages in the states that recognize them. Therefore, the regulations surrounding covenant marriages in Arizona, Arkansas, and Louisiana are not applicable in Illinois.