Q: Can I ask the court to grant default if the defendant didn’t respond?
20 days are up. Can I ask the court to grant default? What’s the name of the paper if I can ask?
A:
There is a mandatory 60-day waiting period between the time a divorce petition is filed and when the court can grant a divorce. When the 60-day waiting period elapses, if your spouse was properly served and has not filed an answer, you can file a motion for default judgment, set it for hearing, prove up your divorce, and ask the judge to sign a Default Decree of Divorce.
Your spouse will be notified by the court of the entry of a default judgment and will have an opportunity to file a motion to set it aside. If not, the default decree will be the final decree of your divorce proceeding.
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