Where will my divorce be filed?
Where to file for divorce?
In Mississippi, the state constitution provides that chancery courts have exclusive jurisdiction to hear matters in divorce and alimony. In order to file for divorce in Mississippi, one of the parties to the divorce must have been a resident of Mississippi for at least six (6) months preceding the filing of the divorce. Miss. Code § 93-5-5. See my previous post for exceptions concerning members of the military. Generally speaking, a person “resides” where they permanently live. Residency usually becomes an issue when a person has recently moved from one place to another and the question is whether they intended to permanently change their residency. But the Mississippi Code prohibits a person from filing for divorce if they moved to Mississippi for the “purpose of securing a divorce.” Miss. Code § 93-5-5
The next question is in which chancery court is the divorce filed? In order to answer this question, you must determine where venue lies. Venue, that is where you file your case, is governed in divorce cases by Mississippi Code § 93-5-11.
There are two different scenarios. The first is a divorce based solely on irreconcilable differences (agreed to by both parties). In this case, venue is proper in the:
- county in which either party is a resident if both parties are residents of Mississippi; or
- county in which the resident party resides if the other party is a resident of another state.
The second scenario is a divorce based on something other than solely irreconcilable differences (fault-based grounds). In that case, venue is proper in the:
- county in which the plaintiff (person filing the divorce) resides, if the defendant (the other spouse) is a nonresident of the state or is absent from the state and can not be served with process;
- county in which defendant resides or may be found; or
- county in which the parties resided when they separated, if Plaintiff is still a resident of that county and the defendant resides in Mississippi.
For example, if you live Jackson (Hinds County), Mississippi when you file for divorce, but your spouse has permanently changed their residence to another state, the action would be filed in the chancery court for Hinds County.
However, if you live in Ridgeland (Madison County) with your spouse at the time you filed for divorce, the divorce action would be filed in the chancery court for Madison County—the county where your spouse (defendant) resides.
Finally, if you and your spouse lived in Canton (Madison County) at the time you separated, but your spouse moved to Kosciusko (Attala County) prior to you filing for divorce, then you now have two choices of where to file your divorce—Madison County or Attala County.
Determining in which county to file your divorce is an important matter which must be discussed with your attorney. All chancellors (chancery court judges) are not created equal and do not always hold the same opinion of what the law is. If there is an option to file in more than one chancery court, an experienced attorney can make the decision on the best court to hear your case. If you have questions on these matters, please feel free to call.
