Divorce in Iowa

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  • Residency Requirements and Grounds for Divorce

  • Dividing the Property

  • Alimony

  • Child Custody and Visitation

  • Child Support

  • Modification of Court Orders

    Residency Requirements and Grounds for Divorce

    If the nonfiling spouse is a resident of Iowa and was personally served the dissolution of marriage papers, there is no residency requirement for the spouse filing the dissolution of marriage and the "petition for dissolution of marriage" is filed in the nonfiling spouse's county. If your spouse is not a resident of Iowa and has not been living in another state for more than one year, you must be a resident of Iowa for one year prior to filing for divorce and you may file for divorce in the Iowa county where you and your spouse last lived as husband and wife. The dissolution of marriage may be filed in a county where either spouse resides.

    There is a 90-day waiting period before a dissolution of marriage becomes final. The waiting period runs from the date that the nonfiling spouse is officially "served" with the divorce papers or signs an acknowledgment of service. A spouse is officially served when they receive notice from either a sheriff or other person appointed by the court to make legal serve that a divorce has been filed.

    Either spouse can get a divorce on the ground of irretrievable breakdown of the marriage, also called irreconcilable differences. This means that there is no reasonable hope that the marriage can continue.

    Dividing the Property

    In Iowa, assets and debts acquired during your marriage - called "marital property" - will be divided "equitably" when you divorce. The court will divide all property, except inherited property or gifts received by one spouse, equitably between the spouses after considering the following factors:

    • The length of the marriage
    • The property brought to the marriage by each spouse
    • The contribution of each spouse to the marriage, giving appropriate economic value to each spouse's contribution in homemaking and child care services
    • The age and physical and emotional health of the spouses
    • The contribution by one spouse to the education, training or increased earning power of the other
    • The earning capacity of each spouse
    • The desirability of awarding the family home or the right to live in the family home for a reasonable period to the spouse having custody of the children, or if the spouses have joint legal custody, to the spouse having physical care of the children.
    • The amount and duration of an order granting support payments
    • Other economic circumstances of each spouse
    • The tax consequences to each spouse
    • Any written agreement made by the spouses concerning property distribution
    • The provisions of any antenuptial agreement
    • Other factors that the court determines are relevant

    "Separate property" is retained by the owning spouse. Separate property includes the following:

    • Assets you had before you married if you kept that property separated from property acquired during the marriage
    • The income produced by a separate property investment as long as it hasn't been "commingled" - mixed together with marital property
    • Property you inherit from your family during your marriage if it was willed exclusively to you and you did not commingle it with marital property during the marriage

    It is important to collect all the information you can about all your property, including when you purchased it, approximately how much it is worth and details such as account numbers, serial numbers and so forth. Collecting this information before you see an Iowa divorce lawyer can save you a lot of time and money.

    Alimony

    A court can order alimony or support payments to either spouse for their support and maintenance after the divorce. In deciding whether to award support, a court will consider the following factors:

    • Length of the marriage
    • Age and physical and emotional health of the spouses
    • Distribution of property
    • Education level of each spouse at the time of the marriage and at the time the action was commenced
    • Earning capacity of the party seeking maintenance
    • Feasibility of the spouse seeking maintenance to become self-supporting at a standard of living reasonably comparable to that enjoyed during the marriage and length of time necessary to achieve this goal
    • Tax consequences to each spouse
    • Any mutual agreement made by the spouses concerning financial or service contributions by one spouse with the expectation of future reciprocation or compensation by the other spouse
    • Provisions of an antenuptial agreement
    • Other factors that the court determines are relevant

    Spousal support is not awarded to punish a guilty spouse but rather to lessen the financial impact of divorce on the other spouse. Support payments may be for a limited or indefinite length of time.

    Child Custody and Visitation

    Iowa law requires the court to order a child custody award, including liberal visitation rights, to assure the child the opportunity for maximum continuing physical and emotional contact with both parents and to encourage the parents to share in the rights and responsibilities of raising the child, unless it is likely that it would harm the child.

    "Custody" means that a parent has legal custodial rights and responsibilities toward a child. "Joint custody" means that both parents have legal custodial rights and responsibilities toward a child. A parent may have joint custody even though a child resides with another parent. "Joint physical care" means an arrangement in which both parents have joint custody and share parenting time.

    When determining the custody arrangement that is best for the child, the court considers the following factors:

    • Whether each parent would be a suitable custodian for the child
    • Whether the psychological and emotional need and development of the child will suffer due to lack of active contact with and attention from both parents
    • Whether the parents can communicate with each other about the child
    • Whether both parents have actively cared for the child before and since the separation
    • Whether each parent can support the other's relationship with the child
    • Whether the custody arrangement is in accord with the child's wishes or whether the child has strong opposition, taking into account the child's age and maturity
    • Whether one or both parents agree or are opposed to joint custody
    • The geographic proximity of the parents
    • Whether the safety of the child, other children or the other parent will be jeopardized by the awarding of joint custody or by unsupervised or unrestricted visitation
    • Whether a history of domestic abuse exists

    In Iowa, parents must attend a court-approved course about the affect of divorce on children. Parents are required to attend within 45 days of the service or original notice or application for modification of an order. Grandparents may petition the court for visitation rights. Custody and visitation orders may be modified if the court finds that a substantial change of circumstances has occurred, but a parent must apply to the court for a modification of an order.

    Child Support

    The court may order either parent or both parents to pay an amount reasonable and necessary for supporting a child. In determining the amount of support, the court considers the following factors:

    • The responsibility of both parents to support and provide for the welfare of the minor child
    • The child's need for a close relationship with both parents

    There is a presumption that the amount of child support that would result from the application of the Iowa child support guidelines is the correct amount of child support to be awarded. A judge may not vary from the guidelines except when the application of the guidelines would be unjust or inappropriate.

    Child support continues until the child is 18 years old, even if the child has graduated from high school before age 18. A supporting parent may be required to pay a post-secondary education subsidy through age 22 if ordered to do so by the court.

    Modification of Court Orders

    Orders providing for the support and custody of children are subject to modification after the divorce if there is a substantial change in the circumstances of the parties such as an increase or decrease in income or a change in the living arrangements of the children.

    Related Web Links:

    - Iowa Judicial Branch
    - Iowa Child Support Guidelines
    - Iowa Domestic Relations Select Statutes, 2005 Merged Iowa Code,
    Title XV, Subtitle 1
    - Iowa Child Calculator
    - Iowa Child Support
    - Iowa State Profile
    - Family Law: Selecting a Good Lawyer
    - Divorce - General message board for more help
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