Why Do Some Divorces Take Longer Than Others?

Did you know that about 40% of divorces happen during the first 10 years of marriage? And that almost 22% of divorces are tied to marriages that lasted for 25 years? From what the research says, around 673,000 divorces take place each year in the United States.

Divorce is an emotionally challenging time. And for the involved parties, the dissolution of marriage is not just a legal proceeding. According to https://www.sfullerlaw.com/, it is often a life-altering event that can be fraught with confusion, stress, and uncertainty.

But no two divorces follow the same timeline. While some couples end up with their divorce fast, like in a few months, others linger for years, handling legal disputes, before they finally hit a settlement.

The reasons that drive a divorce toward the long end are not random. They usually follow a pattern, they are fairly predictable, and in most situations they sit within the parties’ partial control.

Understanding why divorce takes time matters because every month a divorce remains open, and preparing in advance is not a loss of time but an advantage.

The Contested/Uncontested Divide Is the Starting Point

How long does a divorce take in New York or other states?

You must first understand that each state has their own divorce laws. They have mandatory waiting periods, residency requirements, and court procedures that influence how quickly a case can be.

But the single most important factor in determining the duration of a divorce process is its being either contested or uncontested.

An uncontested divorce refers to the situation when both parties have already reached mutual agreement on all important aspects such as property division, child custody, child support, and alimony before the court becomes heavily involved.

It only needs to review the agreement and deliver the final divorce decree. An uncontested divorce can be expected to last between three and six months.

A contested divorce is where disagreements arise among the couple regarding one or several important aspects.

Contested divorces tend to include hearings, discovery, evaluation, mediation, and even trial in some cases. As a result, contested divorces are bound to last much longer than one to two years.

Financial Complexity Directly Extends the Timeline

Complicated financial affairs make it take longer for couples to settle on dividing their property. Couples whose financial affairs include business ventures, stock market investments, property ownership in several places, stock options, pension plans, or secret assets need the services of forensic accountants, appraisers, and long negotiations to reach an agreement.

Ownership in business ventures is one of the major reasons why it takes longer to resolve divorce cases due to complicated financial affairs because the valuation of a business involves different opinions of experts, which may not always agree.

Retirement accounts also cause it to take longer to solve divorce cases due to complicated financial affairs since a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO), which is a separate legal document, needs to be approved by the court and the retirement account plan.

Child Custody Disputes Add Both Time and Intensity

Custody cases are one of the longest processes in a contested divorce since the court must figure out what is best for the child.

The situation with custody issues differs from that with financial issues in terms of the long-term consequences on the relationship between the child and each of the parents.

If the parents fail to agree, the court orders a custody evaluation, where a psychologist or another mental health professional examines the case and provides recommendations about what kind of custody should be applied.

Such an evaluation takes around three to six months and can be contested through a number of hearings.

Courts usually make temporary custody orders while the case is pending. As a result, both the child and parents get used to such an order and use it as an argument in favor of litigation.

Court Dockets and Mandatory Waiting Periods

There are some cases where the delay is out of the hands of the spouses themselves. In most states, mandatory waiting periods are required before a divorce is finalized, regardless of whether it is an uncontested divorce.

These mandatory waiting periods can be anywhere from 30 days to a year or even more.

There are also times where delays can be attributed to court schedule issues. In many areas, there is a six-to-twelve-month backlog in the family courts’ schedule to hear divorce cases and go to trial.

Control What Is Controllable

A bunch of the things that can drag out a divorce are connected to how well both people manage to agree and also to how complex the money issues and custody matters become. Some of these things are beyond influence, though.

If one party is acting in bad faith, or hiding assets, or treating custody litigation like a maneuver instead of a real attempt to safeguard the children’s interests, then it can prolong almost any case. The court proceedings are not something either side can speed up.

What can be influenced is how the parties come at the areas where agreement might actually be possible.

Early financial disclosure, professional mediation on the disputed issues before the litigation postures harden, and clear-eyed priority setting about what really matters versus what is worth arguing over are the tools that often separate cases that resolve in months from the ones that drag on for years.

The cost of delay, measured in legal fees, emotional strain, and the ongoing disruption to both parties’ lives, is real, and it builds over time.

Cases that settle usually do so because at least one party decided what they needed more than they needed to keep fighting.