Nfl Football Player Balks Signs Divorce Papers
Posted on Sep 21, 2012 12:00am PDT
Many Georgia residents have witnessed firsthand the emotional and financial
challenges inherent in a divorce. The stakes are higher for couples when
the divorce involves children, high-value assets and division of property.
During this often-contentious time, divorcing spouses may try to come
to an agreement on these aspects of divorce before involving the court
system. One NFL football player is now facing the challenges of divorce
after being served divorce papers by his spouse.
Football player Chad Johnson recently received a petition to divorce from
his wife, Evelyn Lozada. It was reported early on in this case that Johnson
was refusing to sign the divorce papers because he believed the marriage
could still work. This was despite the fact that there had been an alleged
head-butting altercation between the two and a judge had issued a no-contact
order for Lozada.
More recently, though, there is word that Johnson (who also uses the moniker
Ochocinco) has signed the divorce papers ending the couple's 41-day marriage.
While a certain element of fault may be in play in the dissolution of the
Johnson-Lozada marriage, it does not need to be the case in Georgia. Our
state is considered a no-fault state, which means that the spouse who
is filing for divorce does not have to prove that the other spouse committed
any sort of fault. In no-fault states, the other spouse cannot object
to or stop a no-fault divorce from proceeding.
If couples are unable to work out a settlement agreement on issues such
as child custody, child support and property division, through the various
forms of alternative dispute resolution, the courts are available to facilitate
the proceedings. Regardless of the route taken to achieve divorce, the
help of experienced legal counsel is advisable.