bad situation/good friend

[bendvorced]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Louisiana
I could come on here and lie saying it's me getting a divorce, but I won't. So here are the details; regular marriage (didnt know there was a special one), living apart over 180 days (but it's complicated), no children, "adultery" although I've heard that's pretty hard to prove I do have witness (again it's complicated), mental abuse, verbal abuse.
You guessed it . .it's complicated! I'm not sure who to trust, but am in dire NEED of reliable information. PLEASE I've GOTTA find a legal means/way to get a divorce. One where each party takes what they had and moves on. I would greatly appreciate ANY advice. I am new to this site and using my phone so I can't create my profile. I will HOWEVER be at a computer in 3 days, so anything I can do till then would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

[Taxing Matters]

I'm not sure who to trust, but am in dire NEED of reliable information. PLEASE I've GOTTA find a legal means/way to get a divorce. One where each party takes what they had and moves on.

You get a divorce by filing a petition for divorce in court. Unless both parties agree on the property split, the court will decide that based on the applicable state law. Louisiana is a community property state, so if the marriage has lasted for any significant length of time there is probably community property to divide up, and in that case it won’t be where each one walks away with “what they had.” The friend needs to see a family law attorney to get started.

 

[bendvorced]

I do understand, and I wish I knew that you didn't know either party, let's say the "time in marriage" is far different than the time married as she was in a mental institution. They do not live in the same state she lives in his house in Louisiana and he lives where his business is Connecticut they were married in LO inside the institute (she is troubled she's my sister I should know). She will try to get ANYTHING but lives on the street anyway. How (if there's any way) can this end without more damage?! Trust me "I told you so" is the least of his worries (he's an accountant with several 'means'). He does not want to label should say will not label her as mentally unfit, trust me I've tried. Thank you for taking your time I REALLY appreciate it.

 

[bendvorced]

I'm sure you realize she has no property, and there is no martial property. I wasn't sure if that was important.

 

[Taxing Matters]

I'm sure you realize she has no property, and there is no martial property. I wasn't sure if that was important.

If they have been married any significant length of time they likely do have marital or community property unless they are both broke. As he is an accountant “with means” that indicates there may be property to which she has a claim. You need to understand that under community property, half of what he earned during the marriage belongs to her as community property. Any assets bought with those earnings are thus also community property. If the divorce is done in Connecticut, it will use equitable division of assets, and while there are differences, the underlying idea of equitable division is not a lot different from community property: assets acquired during marriage are generally treated as marital property. If he thinks that he can walk away and leave her with nothing he may be in for a shock. If it was very short-term marriage this won’t be much of an issue. But if it lasted some period of years, she likely is entitled to a share of what was acquired during that marriage.

He made the choice to marry a woman who was apparently at the time in a mental hospital. I don’t know why he chose to do that when that situation is not a good one for a stable marriage, but whatever the reason he made that choice and that carries consequences.

 

[HighwayMan]

I'm sure you realize she has no property, and there is no martial property. I wasn't sure if that was important.

How can we realize that? There is always marital property of some sort.

Your friend needs to sit down with a divorce attorney to get the process started. There seem to be far too many small details involved here to say anything more. Many attorneys offer free or reasonably priced consultations.

If both parties agree to pretty much everything they can have a go at mediation which is generally a much more affordable route to divorce. However, I am guessing that an attorney will have to get involved.

 

[not2cleverRed]

I'm sure you realize she has no property, and there is no martial property. I wasn't sure if that was important.

"Marital property" does not refer to just a house.

It means money accrued during the marriage and assets obtained during marriage from that money. Generally. Inheritances, if handled properly are not marital property. Stuff owned before the marriage, are not marital property.

If he has a retirement account, what has been added to his retirement account during the marriage, from the money he has earned, is marital property.
If he bought a car during the marriage, that is marital property.
If there is a mortgage on his home, the equity accrued during the marriage is marital property.

Legally, marriage is a 50/50 partnership.

Is the husband filing for divorce, and if so, in which state? LA or CT? Has he fulfilled the residency requirements to file for divorce in CT?
It does not matter *where* your sister married. It matters where the husband and wife are living now, and whether they have lived there long enough to establish residency there for the purposes of divorce.

It does not matter what sort of marriage this was in determining it's length. Just give a straight answer. Months, years, or decades. If they married Sept 4, 1992 then today would be their silver anniversary, even if she were institutionalized the entire time.