Arkansas law is unique in allowing covenant marriage. Just two other states (Louisiana and Arizona) have it codified in the law. If you and your spouse chose a covenant marriage, you did so with the intention that it would last forever, and you fulfilled the necessary requirements, like premarital counseling.
Covenant marriages are not intended to be easy to end. However, it is possible to get a divorce if you’re in a covenant marriage. Doing so, however, requires that the law be followed, and it can take considerable time. Let’s take a brief look at how this works.
Obtaining a judicial separation
Judicial separation is the first step toward divorce in a covenant marriage. To qualify for a judicial separation, the person seeking it must show that their spouse did at least one of the following things:
- Committed adultery
- Was sentenced to prison for a felony
- Has physically or sexually abused them or their child
- Has been “addicted to habitual drunkenness” for a year or more
- Engaged in “such cruel and barbarous treatment as to endanger the life of the other”
- Engaged in “such indignities to the person of the other as shall render his or her condition intolerable”
If none of these is applicable, a couple may obtain a judicial separation if they have lived apart “continuously without reconciliation” for at least two years.
How long before a divorce can be granted?
Once a judge approves a judicial separation, there’s an additional mandatory wait time before a divorce can be granted. That is two years if the couple doesn’t have minor children and an additional six months if they do. If a parent can provide evidence that their spouse is abusing a minor child, the wait time can be reduced to one year.
Certainly, no one should continue to live with a spouse who is abusing them, their child or anyone in the family. They need to take steps to protect themselves and their loved ones. Just one of those steps can include seeking an order of protection.
Even if there’s no abuse, a spouse may need to get temporary orders for spousal and/or child support while they’re waiting for the divorce. The best first step if you and/or your spouse are considering ending a covenant marriage is to get experienced legal guidance.