What is No Fault Divorce?

Nevada is a no-fault divorce state, this means a spouse does not have to prove wrongdoing by the other spouse to proceed with the divorce. Most spouses will file for divorce on the grounds of incompatibility and the other spouse does not have to agree in order for the other partner to file for divorce.

What is Community Property?

Nevada is a community property state in which all property and debt acquired during the marriage is presumed to be community property. During proceedings, the community property will be equally divided.

What is Separate Property?

Nevada law proves that property acquired prior to the marriage or acquired through an inheritance or gift is that person’s individual property. To keep property gained during marriage out of the property division, a party needs to give the court clear and convincing proof that it was theirs before marriage, or was a gift intended only for the party.

What is Discovery?

In Nevada, there are laws requiring the exchange of legal information and known facts of a case so all parties involved may receive the necessary information about income, assets, debt and other information. With the information, the parties involved can decide the best options for each and determine ownership of the estate, alimony and child support if appropriate.

Download Gloria Petroni’s book on Family Law in Nevada for more information.

What is an Uncontested Divorce?

It is a divorce where every issue in the divorce is resolved. Filing for an uncontested divorce can save time and money through streamlined court procedures.

What is a Contested Divorce?

It is a divorce where at least one party cannot agree to the terms including the division of assets, allocation of debts or alimony. When spouses cannot arrive at an agreement, they must approach a court to adjudicate their dispute.

Is child support awarded with joint physical custody?

Nevada law proves that when a court awards the parties “Joint Physical Custody” and they share the children on an equal basis that neither parent could be required to pay child support to the other parent.

I’m not sure what my spouse earns or what they have in their retirement, savings or checking account. Can I start the divorce process?

Yes. Once you start the formal divorce process by filing a divorce compliant, your attorney may request necessary information including banking from the other party. This process is called discovery.

1. One of the best ways to save money is to purchase a scanner to scan all important documents. This will allow you to create a digital PDF and send to your attorney. By doing so, your attorney will be able to dedicate their time to other important matters in your case. Additionally, screenshots from cell phones are difficult to read and can lead to more time spent on attempting to read the documents.
2. Keep a list of items to discuss with your attorney at one time. This will assist in not calling with every small question that may arise. However, important or time sensitive questions should be addressed with your attorney or law firm.
3. Try to be reasonable when developing the divorce agreement with your attorney. If you are saying “I will never agree to pay that much in alimony” or “That child custody agreement won’t work” that will lengthen the divorce process which in turn will cost more money. The faster your divorce is settled, the lower your legal fees will be.