Helping You Through Divorce ◊ Pittsburgh Family Law Attorneys
The family law firm of Notaro & Associates, P.C. provides professional, personal, experienced and cost-effective representation to help clients in Southwestern Pennsylvania (Allegheny, Washington, Butler, Beaver, Lawrence, Armstrong, and Westmoreland, among others) navigate the complex divorce process. The firm's attorneys have each focused their entire careers exclusively on the practice of family law. To every case, they bring an in-depth knowledge and understanding of this area of law.
If you would like to schedule a free initial phone consultation with a lawyer at Notaro & Associates, P.C. call 412-281-1988 or contact the firm online.
There are two ways to end a marriage in PA: annulment and divorce.
Annulments
Two types of marriages can be ended by annulments — those that are "void" and those that are "voidable". A void marriage is treated somewhat as if the marriage never existed. There are three general types of void marriages:
- A marriage where one or both of the spouses have insanity or serious mental illness;
- A bigamous marriage;
- An incestuous marriage.
Voidable marriages can only be annulled when a spouse successfully "attacks" it. The following are situations where a spouse may "attack" a voidable marriage:
- A spouse is under age.
- A spouse is intoxicated upon the marriage.
- Duress existed.
- Fraud existed.
- There is a lack of some physical capacity. For example, a spouse has an incurable physical or psychological inability to have normal sexual intercourse.
If you would like more information on proceeding with a divorce or an annulment, please contact Pittsburgh divorce lawyer Bethany L. Notaro, Esquire.
Divorces
There are generally two types of divorces in Pennsylvania: Fault Divorces and No-Fault divorces.
The following are all grounds for a fault based divorce:
- Imprisonment for 2 or more years
- Bigamy
- Indignities, or a course of conduct that makes a spouse's life burdensome or conditions intolerable
- Adultery, or voluntary sex with a non-spouse
- Cruel & Barbarous Treatment, or physical abuse
- Desertion, or willful and malicious absence from home without justification for a year or longer
- Insanity, or a situation where a spouse is institutionalized
Sometimes, even though a spouse is at fault, he or she may have "defenses" to the behavior. Common defenses are Provocation, Condonation or Insanity.
If you think you may be proceeding with a fault based divorce, please contact PA divorce attorney Bethany L. Notaro, Esquire for assistance.
Filing for divorce in PA
The "standard" for a No-Fault Divorce is one where the Marriage is "irretrievably broken". Where both parties agree that they want a divorce, and both parties consent to a divorce, the parties may sign an affidavit, wait 90 days, and assuming the paperwork is in order, a divorce may be granted.
A party can also request a decree in divorce (No-Fault) where the party alleges that the marriage is "irretrievably broken", and the parties are separated and apart for at least two years.
To proceed with a divorce in Pennsylvania, a spouse must reside in PA for at least 6 months before the divorce. The court of common pleas in the county where one or the other of the parties resides will generally have jurisdiction of the divorce case.
Working With Notaro & Associates
Bethany L. Notaro spends much of her time handling divorce and other family law cases in the Allegheny County Courthouse. Along with the firm's other two attorneys, she provides very personal, close and attentive service to each client. Notaro & Associates, P.C. handles the full spectrum of family law disputes, including issues involving:
- Child custody
- Child support
- Alimony
- Mediation
- ... and much more.
If you would like to learn more about divorce and family law in Pennsylvania, or if you would like to discuss your case with a family law attorney at Notaro & Associates, P.C. you can call 412-281-1988 or contact the firm online to schedule a free initial phone consultation.
