New Mexico

Divorce Residency Requirements To Get Divorce In New Mexico

When filing for divorce in the state of New Mexico, at least one of the two divorcing spouses must have been a resident for six months or longer and maintain a home within the state.

Reasons For Divorce In New Mexico

New Mexico offers no-fault and fault-based grounds for divorce. The no-fault grounds are an incompatibility between spouses, without foreseeable reconciliation. There are a number of fault-based grounds, some of the more common include adultery, abandonment, and cruelty. Any of the grounds can be used in both contested and uncontested divorce situations, both for divorce without a lawyer and court-based cases.

Custody Of The Children In New Mexico

In the State of New Mexico, the general presumption is that joint legal custody would be in the best interests of most children. In this case, both parents are actively involved in making decisions regarding their children's raising and development. If there are disagreements as to how custody should be shared, the court will order mediation. If mediation fails, the court will decide on custody and keep the best interests of the child in mind.

New Mexico Child Support Guidelines

State-regulated child support guidelines apply in almost every case, barring exceptional circumstances. Gross income, child-rearing expenses and time that is spent in each parent’s home will be taken into consideration by the court when the child support obligation is calculated. Child support is continued through a child’s 18th birthday, and in some cases, it will extend through the end of the child’s secondary education.

Venue

Divorce without a lawyer in New Mexico can be filed in either the county that the plaintiff or the respondent live.

Divorce Mediation

The divorcing spouses may decide to submit any areas of contention for arbitration at any time either before or after the divorce is filed, to expedite the process. Additionally, parents may choose to enter into child custody mediation that is offered to resolve issues that come up regarding child custody. The two parties may proceed with an easy, uncontested divorce if an agreement is reached in mediation, making for an affordable divorce process.

Filing Fees

All local court filing fees are charged in addition to the costs of utilizing Divorce.com. These court filing fees may vary from area to area. For more information on the cost, we provide an easy way to look up the filing fees for your area. This ensures that you have a clear picture of all expenses specific to your situation before moving forward.