Question: What happens at the final hearing for an uncontested divorce in Florida?
Once you arrive at the courthouse, you should wait outside the judge’s hearing room. When I arrive, we will go into the judge’s hearing room, sit down, and wait our turn to talk to the judge. When we talk to the judge, I will ask you these simple questions.
1. What is your name?
2. What is your spouse’s name (I know, these questions are simple)?
3. Is your marriage irretrievably broken? You should agree that your marriage is irretrievably broken since that is one of the legal requirements in Florida to get a divorce.
4. I’m going to ask you to tell the judge why you feel your marriage is irretrievably broken. You do not need to tell the judge your whole story. Simply tell the judge a few sentences that describe why your marriage is broken and cannot be fixed.
5. I will ask you if any amount of counseling would help you fix your marriage. You should answer “no.” If any amount of counseling could help you fix your marriage, then your marriage is not irretrievably broken.
6. I’ll ask if any children were born during the marriage. So simply answer that question.
7. I’ll ask you if your wife (or yourself) are currently pregnant. Usually the answer to that question is “no.”
8. Next, I will ask you how long you have been a current and continuous resident of the State of Florida. You need to have been a resident for the 6 months immediately preceding the filing of your Petition for Dissolution of Marriage. This is typically proven by showing the judge your valid Florida driver’s license that has an “issued on” date 6 months before the date of filing.
9. Lastly, I will ask you if you recognize the Consent Final Judgment – that’s the settlement agreement – and ask you if you signed that document. After you say “yes,” the judge will sign the settlement agreement and you will get a copy of the Order to take with you.
