You may desire to file for divorce, but can't locate your spouse to serve him with the legal summons to complete the process. When this happens, you must file the notice of divorce in a publication. If your spouse doesn't respond to the notice in a specific amount of time, you will be granted a default judgment in your favor. You can't be awarded alimony, child custody and division of property with a published notice.
Instructions
1. Look for your spouse. You or your lawyer must make a true effort to first find your spouse. Send a notice to his last known address and search through the telephone directory. If you find a person who shares your spouse's name, you must find out if he is indeed your spouse. A lawyer will be able to search the election board records, the department of motor vehicles and the military. Keep all records related to the search such as a certified mail receipt.
2. Go to the court and file an "Order of Publication" with the county clerk. Pay any required fee. In this notice, you must describe the effort put forth to find your spouse and request that you file the notice of divorce in the newspaper. The county clerk will schedule a hearing date to make the request before a judge.
3. Show up for the scheduled hearing and ask the judge for permission to publish the divorce notice. The judge will want to see what effort was made to find your spouse. Describe and provide any proof of the search conducted. If the judge grants her permission, she will sign the order.
4. Contact the county clerk's office if the judge has granted permission to publish the notice. Ask the clerk which paper or publication you are required to publish your divorce notice in and how long the notice must be published (e.g., one week or three weeks). You must publish the notice in a publication that is allowed to publish legal notices and in the county in which your spouse was known to have lived last.
5. Go to the publication's office and present the signed order. Complete any form that the publication requires and pay the necessary fees. The notice of divorce will then be published in the newspaper. The paper will also send "Proof of Publication" to you by mail.
6. Copy the "Proof of Publication" and file the copy with the court clerk in the county in which you are filing for divorce.
7. Pay for the same publication to print a notice specifying that you are divorced from your spouse, if the divorce is granted. The publication may require that you provide proof of the divorce or the signed divorce order. Publishing that you're divorced is not required and is only useful as a means to communicate the legal separation with your ex-spouse. There will be a fee to publish this legal notice.
