DMR.2.3.020 Legal Separation

(a) Legal separation is the status where the respective rights and responsibilities of the parties to a marriage have been set forth in a judgment of separation entered by the Court. The Court may include in a judgment of separation or in any temporary separation order the same provisions as it may include in a proceeding for divorce, except that it may not dissolve the marriage.

(b) The only ground for legal separation is that the marriage is broken.

(c) Married parties who have separated are under no obligation to obtain a legal separation but may choose to do so if they cannot establish their respective rights and responsibilities without court involvement, or if either requires for any reason a court order that may be issued in a separation proceeding.

(d) If one party petitions the Court for legal separation, and the other party objects to the petition, the Court shall grant the petition if it finds that the marriage is broken.

(e) If one party petitions the Court for legal separation, and the other party petitions the court for divorce, the Court shall determine which petition to grant.

(f) At any time during the pendency of an action for legal separation, the parties may jointly petition the Court to convert the action to one for divorce.

(g) At any time after entry of a judgment of separation, the parties may jointly petition the court to convert the judgment to one of divorce.

(h) At any time after entry of a judgment of separation, the parties may jointly petition the court to vacate the judgment.

(i) Except as specifically provided in this chapter, the procedures applicable to divorce are applicable to legal separation.