Most North Carolina divorces are based on the spouses living separate and apart for at least one year, with at least one spouse intending the separation to be permanent. At least one spouse generally must have lived in North Carolina for six months before filing.

Potential equitable-distribution and alimony rights can be lost if they are not properly asserted before an absolute divorce is entered. Anyone with possible financial claims should obtain legal advice before finalizing a divorce.

Courts decide custody according to the child’s best interests. Relevant evidence may include caregiving history, stability, safety, the child’s needs, each parent’s circumstances and other facts affecting the child’s welfare.

Some custody and support orders may be modified when the legal requirements are met, often involving a substantial change in circumstances. The applicable standard depends on the order and the relief requested.

No. Many matters resolve through negotiation, mediation or a written agreement. When the parties cannot reach an acceptable resolution, the court may need to decide the disputed issues.

Yes. McIlveen offers consultations in person, by phone and through secure video meetings. Contact our team to confirm the right office and consultation format for your matter.

Yes. Our estate-planning practice assists with wills, trusts, powers of attorney, advance directives, probate and estate administration. Learn more about estate planning.

An absolute divorce is the court judgment that legally ends a marriage in North Carolina. It is granted on the ground of one year’s separation, or three years’ separation due to incurable insanity. It does not by itself decide custody, support or property; those claims are raised separately, and property and alimony claims must be pending before the divorce is entered or they are lost.

There are only two: living separate and apart for one year with the intent that the separation be permanent, or three years’ separation because of a spouse’s incurable insanity. North Carolina does not grant divorce for adultery, cruelty or abandonment, although those facts can support a divorce from bed and board and affect alimony.

At least one spouse must have lived in North Carolina for six months immediately before the complaint is filed. The case is filed in the county where either spouse lives.

Your spouse cannot stop an absolute divorce. Once you have lived separate and apart for one year and one of you has been a North Carolina resident for six months, the court will grant the divorce whether or not your spouse agrees or participates, as long as they were properly served.

Yes. The divorce itself is granted on separation alone, and no one has to prove wrongdoing. Fault still matters in other parts of a case: illicit sexual behavior by a dependent spouse bars alimony, the same behavior by a supporting spouse requires it, and a spouse’s conduct can be considered in custody and in a divorce from bed and board.

Custody has two parts. Legal custody is the authority to make major decisions about a child’s education, health care and religion. Physical custody is where the child lives and the schedule of time with each parent. Either can be joint or primary, and a North Carolina order addresses both.

No. North Carolina abolished any maternal preference decades ago. Judges apply the best-interests standard to both parents equally, focusing on each parent’s caregiving history, stability, ability to cooperate and the child’s needs.

The statute directs judges to consider all relevant factors bearing on the child’s welfare, including each parent’s relationship with the child, caregiving history, home stability, work schedules, mental and physical health, any domestic violence, each parent’s willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other, and, for older children, the child’s reasonable preference.

Not by themselves. A judge may consider the wishes of a child who is mature enough to express a reasoned preference, and older teenagers’ views often carry real weight, but the decision belongs to the court and is based on the child’s best interests, not the child’s choice.

Before you separate, if you can. Decisions made in the first weeks, such as who leaves the home, how bills are paid and what the children’s schedule looks like, often set the pattern a court later adopts. If you have already separated or been served with papers, contact an attorney right away; deadlines run from the date of service.