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How Can I Serve My Spouse Divorce Papers If I Can’t Find Him/Her?

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Sad Parent with Child 2You want a divorce, but your spouse has vanished ”“ won’t answer phone calls or texts, has no online presence and no longer works at any job you know about. What do you do?

If your spouse has pulled a Houdini, it is still possible for you to get a divorce. But the courts will require you to make a good faith effort to find your spouse. There is no law dictating exactly what lengths you need to go to in order to sleuth out your spouse’s location, so it falls to the judge to decide when you’ve done enough. Here are a few things you should look into before you make your case before a judge:

  1. When and where did you last see your spouse?
  2. Check your spouse’s last known address by mail, and in person if possible
  3. Check at your spouse’s last known workplace
  4. Contact any of your spouse’s family members you can and ask if they’ve seen your spouse
  5. Search through the Denver phone books
  6. Search through the Internet
  7. Check Denver criminal court cases either online or at a courthouse
  8. Call the jails near your spouse’s last known address
  9. Check with the DMV
  10. Call local hospitals and homeless shelters

Once you’ve exhausted all possible avenues to find your spouse, you need to file a Motion to Serve by Publication or Posting with the court. After that, a judge will review your motion and decide whether you should be allowed to publish a notice stating your intent to divorce. From there, your divorce attorney can help you proceed if your spouse does not respond to your divorce filing.

Our Denver family law firm delivers strength, confidence and experienced legal representation to clients throughout Colorado.