Q: If my final court hearing ends up being scheduled in August or September, can I request to postpone it for a while?
I filed for divorce on Jan 4th and my husband can not be located. I've attempted to serve him a couple of times, and I think soon I will have to file for a summons of publication. I understand that without his compliance, I will have to appear in court for the divorce, and I read "4-6 months setting" which I believe to mean that after the 91 days from the summons of publication (or properly serving my spouse) there will be an additional 4-6 months waiting period?
I will be out of the state from July-September taking care of my great grandfather in Montana and won't be able to schedule any court hearings in Colorado during these months.
A:
Your reading is correct, but the exact timing of cases is always hard to predict. Timing really depends on the case. The length depends on the number of hearing that are required (i.e. emergency hearing and/or temporary order hearings). There can also be delays if experts are used, a party requests a continuance or other timing matters. A highly contested divorce usually runs between 9 months to a year from filing. The average contested divorce last between 6-9 months.That said, if you can get service before the initial status conference and if you ex does not appear/file (and is not a Colorado resident) you can be divorced as quickly as 91 days from filing.
As for scheduling, you have some control over court dates. If you have an attorney you can also appear by phone for most hearings. The courts are not terribly accommodating to schedule conflicts, so it is unlikely that you can easily delay your case for three months without showing cause.
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A: You can certainly request to postpone the hearing, but realistically you should request to "continue" it via the filing of a "motion to continue hearing." In essence, you would be asking the court to reschedule the hearing. Given you would be doing everything by publication there is a pretty good chance the court would grant such a request given your circumstances.
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