Grounds for divorce in Florida

Florida only recognizes two reasons for divorce. The most common reason is that the marriage is “irretrievably broken.” The only other reason is that the spouse has been legally incapacitated for at least three years. This legal incapacity must be court-ordered from the Guardianship Court.

The concept behind these two grounds for divorce is called “no-fault divorce.” Florida has recognized no-fault divorce for the past 40 years. No longer does anyone need to allege adultery, abandonment or physical abuse in order to obtain a divorce. Judges do not want to entertain a discussion about fault because they view their job as solely to fairly divide the parties’ assets, debts and deal with the issue of children. Therefore, whether or not a spouse is a bad person is generally not a factor that the court will consider.