Filing for divorce can feel overwhelming, especially if you’re unable to locate your spouse to serve them the divorce papers. In Pennsylvania, the law provides solutions for these situations, but the process requires persistence and thorough documentation. Here’s what you need to know about perfecting service when you can’t find your spouse.
Filing for Divorce Without Knowing Your Spouse’s Location
You can file for divorce even if you don’t know where your spouse is currently living. In Pennsylvania, once you file, you typically have 30 days to serve the divorce papers.
Service can be completed through personal service, which involves handing the papers to your spouse directly or via an authorized person, such as a sheriff or process server. If personal service isn’t possible, there are alternative steps you can take.
Extending the Time to Serve
If you’re unable to serve your spouse within the initial timeframe, you can file a motion to reinstate the divorce complaint. This allows you to extend the case and keep it active while you continue your efforts to locate and serve your spouse.
Exhausting All Avenues to Find Your Spouse
Before resorting to alternate service methods, the court will require proof that you’ve made significant efforts to locate your spouse. These efforts may include:
- Searching social media platforms: Check Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and other sites.
- Reaching out via email: If you have an email address for your spouse, attempt to contact them.
- Hiring a private investigator: A PI can help track down your spouse using tools and resources not typically available to the public.
- Asking friends or family: Sometimes mutual acquaintances may have updated information.
- Checking public records: Look into property records, voter registration, or other publicly available databases.
Courts want to see that you’ve tried everything reasonable to find your spouse before approving an alternative method of service.
Requesting Alternate Service: Publication
If your spouse remains unlocatable after exhaustive efforts, you can petition the court for alternate service, most commonly through publication. This involves publishing a notice of the divorce filing in a newspaper that serves the last known location of your spouse.
- Choosing the right publication: If your spouse’s last known address was in Chester County, Pennsylvania, you might use the Daily Local News. For Philadelphia, you’d use a Philadelphia-based newspaper. If they were last known to reside out of state, such as in California, you may need to publish in a local paper from that area.
- Proving your efforts: When requesting permission for alternate service, you’ll need to document all the steps you took to try to locate your spouse.
Completing Service and Moving Forward
Once the court approves service by publication and it’s completed, your case can proceed. The court will consider the publication as valid service, allowing the divorce process to move forward even without your spouse’s direct participation.
Final Thoughts
Navigating this process can be complex, but it’s not insurmountable. Consulting with a Pennsylvania family law attorney can help you ensure that you meet all legal requirements, document your efforts appropriately, and move your case forward effectively. While serving a missing spouse takes extra time and effort, the court provides pathways to ensure the process can proceed fairly.