Start your divorce online in Nevada

Meeting the residency requirements is one of Nevada’s main conditions for getting a divorce decree. It will grant the courts jurisdiction over the spouses, their property, children-related issues, and other matters.

One or both spouses must be a Nevada resident and have lived there for six weeks before starting the divorce action.

The judge will require proof of residency from a witness who lives in Nevada. This person must sign an Affidavit of Resident Witness, confirming that the petitioner or respondent meets residency requirements.

Nevada law provides several grounds for divorce, i.e., reasons the couple is ending their marriage. These are purely no-fault grounds:

• incompatibility
• insanity for two years before filing for divorce
• separation without cohabitation for one year

If the reason for dissolution is insanity, the judge will need evidence. Additionally, the court will require the filing spouse to support the mentally incapacitated ex-spouse.

The judge may only consider fault-based grounds, such as adultery or abandonment, while determining alimony, child custody, etc.

A filing party must collect and file specific papers to open a divorce case. They include a Complaint for Divorce (or a Joint Petition for summary dissolution), Civil Cover Sheet, Summons, and an Affidavit of Resident Witness.

The petitioner must also make two copies of the original papers for personal use and service process.

The appropriate venue to file these papers is a courthouse in a county where either spouse lives or the county where the reason for divorce occurred.

When the papers are ready, a petitioner should take them to the district court and pay a filing fee. The amount of the filing fee differs from county to county. For example, the district courts in Clark county charge $300.

If a person cannot afford this payment (e.g., they receive public assistance or have a low income), they can ask a judge for a fee waiver by filing an Application and Order to Waive the Filing Fee.

The filing party must notify the other spouse about the start of divorce proceedings by sending them copies of the filed papers which should include a Divorce Complaint, Summons, or Joint Preliminary Injunction.

A petitioner has four months (120 days) to serve the other spouse, or the case will be dismissed. This service is performed by a third party not involved in the case. For example, it may be a sheriff or a private process server.

Nevada has no waiting period for couples who file jointly. However, if the petitioner filed separately, they must wait 21 days for the other party to respond. The petitioner may file a Default form if the other party hasn’t filed a response.

If the other party filed response papers, the spouses must wait until the court date, which can be set in the following 90 days. The parties will receive a notice from the court with the hearing date.

The couples filing a Joint Petition must submit several final papers to the judge. They are three copies of the Joint Petition, one copy of other filed documents, and the original Decree of Divorce with two copies.

If the papers are completed correctly, the judge will review the proposed settlement agreement and issue a final judgment, by signing the Decree. The spouses will obtain this form by email and must file it with the court.