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Grounds for Limited Divorce
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To obtain a limited divorce
, you must first prove at least one of four grounds. These grounds include the following:
- mutual and voluntary separation
- cruelty of treatment
- excessively vicious conduct
- desertion
- Actual desertion is where one party unjustifiably abandons the other or actually ejects the other spouse from the home.
- Constructive desertion is where one party is forced to leave the home because of the misconduct of the other.
- Actual desertion is where one party unjustifiably abandons the other or actually ejects the other spouse
The more frequently used ground is desertion. There are two types of desertion, actual and constructive.
There is no certain amount of time needed to prove desertion in a limited divorce. Any reasonable time period will justify the action.
Also, a spouse may obtain a limited divorce where one spouse engages in cruelty of treatment or excessively vicious conduct toward the other spouse or a minor child of the party who is filing for a limited divorce. A victimized spouse who leaves the marital home because of abuse also has a legal action for a limited divorce on the grounds of constructive desertion, as well as a justifiable defense to an abusing spouse’s claim of desertion.
Read the law: Md Code, Family Law § 7-102
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