If you are divorcing in the State of Washington, you probably already know most of the basic procedures that you must follow in order to obtain the divorce. You are also most likely aware that filing for the dissolution of a marriage in which children are involved is quite a bit more complicated.
For example, if you are filing for divorce in the state of Washington and have no children, you only need three things to file a divorce: a confidential information form, the summons, and a petition for dissolution of marriage. When all of these three forms are completed, and you and your spouse are in agreement, a court date is set and a judge can finalize the divorce.
When children are involved, however, the divorce process involves quite a bit more paperwork. Specifically, the person filing for divorce needs to provide the following things:
- A Proposed Parenting Plan
- A Declaration in Support of Parenting Plan
- A Completed Child Support Worksheet and Proposed Order of Child Support.
The reason why filing for divorce in a marriage where children are involved requires more paperwork should be obvious. It is the responsibility of the court to ensure that children are not unduly harmed by their parents’ divorce proceedings. Subsequently, the state of Washington requires divorcing parents to ensure that they have adequately provided for their children’s support and rearing even after the divorce is finalized.
If you are looking to divorce in the state of Washington and children are involved, you should consider contacting an experienced divorce attorney to help you work through this process step-by-step.