Fillable Printable Divorce Information and Forms - Arkansas

Divorce Information and Forms - Arkansas

OFFICE OF THE SEBASTIAN COUNTY CIRCUIT CLERK

P. O. Box 1179 P. O. Box 310

901 South B Street, Room #205 Town Square

Fort Smith, Arkansas 72902 Greenwood, AR 72936

Pro Se Divorce Form Information

please keep these instructions until you receive your court date from the Judge’s office

1. The Sebastian County Circuit Clerk’s Office furnishes forms to

assist people who have decided to file for divorce without the assistance of an

attorney (referred to as pro se). Because there may be legal issues of which

you are not aware you are urged to seek the assistance of an Attorney. The

Circuit Clerk‘s office is prohibited by law from giving you legal advice, and

assumes no responsibility if you choose to represent yourself. The purpose of

the Circuit Clerk‘s office in furnishing forms for pro se litigants is to ensure that

the Clerk’s office has legible and uniform forms to deal with and to ensure that

the basic information required in Arkansas to obtain a divorce is furnished.

2. You should not use the forms if you and your spouse have minor

children together, or if you have not already agreeably divided your real and

personal property and debts. If you have minor children together, or if you have

issues regarding property and debts that have not been resolved, you need to

seek the assistance of an Attorney.

3. You should fill in the blanks on the Complaint form with the

requested information and you should place an X in the appropriate boxes. You

MUST have your signature notarized. You should also fill out the Cover Sheet

with the requested information. (You will need the original and three copies of

the Complaint and the original and two copies of the Cover Sheet.) The

Clerk will give you the case number and the name of the Judge who will hear

your case when you file your Complaint. You do not need to fill in the

information on the Decreeof Divorce form until you receive your court date

from the judge hearing your case. The cost to file your Complaint is $165.00. If

your spouse will sign a Waiver of Service of Process and Entry of

Appearance form there will be no additional cost, but if it is necessary for the

Sheriff to serve your Complaint, the Sheriff will charge an additional fee of

$50.00. Your spouse MUST have his/her signature notarized.

4. If you live in the Greenwood District of Sebastian County you

must file with the Circuit Clerk’s office in Greenwood. All towns in Sebastian

County other than Fort Smith are in the Greenwood District. You need to fill in

either Fort Smith or Greenwood where it says “District” at the top of the forms.

5. After you file your divorce Complaint (four copies), you must

either give a file-marked copy to your spouse and have him/her sign the Waiver

of Service of Process and Entry of Appearance form or you must have a copy

of the Complaint and a Summons (which Summons the is included in this

packet) served on your spouse by the Sheriff or by certified mail. If the

Complaint and Summons is served by certified mail you must file the Affidavit

of Service, stating that you sent a file-marked copy of the Complaint and

Summons to the Defendant by certified mail, return receipt requested, and you

must attach the green receipt card which the post office will return to you. The

card must have your spouse’s signature on it. If someone else signs the green

card other than your spouse the service is invalid. Your signature on the

Affidavit of Service must be notarized. If you can’t get the Defendant to sign a

Waiver of Service and Entry of Appearance or sign the certified mail card then

you need to have the Defendant served by the Sheriff.

6. After you have filed your divorce Complaint and your spouse’s

Waiver of Service and Entry of Appearance or other proof of service you need

to send a letter (included in this packet) with a copy of your Complaint and a

copy of your proposed Decree of Divorce to the Judge and ask for a court date.

If the Judge finds you have correctly filled out your Complaint and Decree of

Divorce he will contact you by mail and advise you of your court date. The

addresses of the two Judges who hear divorce cases are:

Judge Annie Hendricks Judge Jim Spears

901 South B St, Room 214 901 South B St, Room 213

Fort Smith, AR 72901 Fort Smith, AR 72901

7. When you come to court you must bring a witness other than your

spouse who can testify that you have lived in Arkansas for the past 90 days and

that you are separated from your spouse. You need to bring four copies of your

completed Decree of Divorce form and each copy should be dated with the

date of your court date. You also need to bring a copy of the Cover Sheet

which you had filled out when you filed your Complaint.

Multiple claims. If a complaint asserts multiple claims which involve different subject matter divisions of the circuit court, the cover

sheet for that division which is most definitive of the nature of the case should be selected and completed.

COVER SHEET

STATE OF ARKANSAS

CIRCUIT COURT: DOMESTIC RELATIONS

The domestic relations reporting form and the information contained herein shall not be admissible as evidence in any court proceeding or

replace or supplement the filing and service of pleadings, orders, or other papers as required by law or Supreme Court Rule. This form is

required pursuant to Administrative Order Number 8. Instructions are located on the back of the form.

FILING INFORMATION

County: SEBASTIAN District: 12TH Docket Number: DR-

Judge: Division: Filing Date:

Plaintiff: Defendant:

Last Nam e First Name Last Nam e First Name

Date of Marriage:

Month Day Year

Attorney Providing Information: ______________________________ _____________________________________________________

[ ] Plaintiff [ ] Defendant Address

Litigant, if Pro Se: _________________________________________ _____________________________________________________

Address

Related Case(s): Judge ________________________________________ Case Number(s) ________________________________________

Type of Case: (Select One) [ ] IV-D Case (For OCSE use only)

[ x ] (DV) Divorce [ ] (CS) Custody/Visitation [ ] (DA) Domestic Abuse

[ ] (DS ) Divorce w/Support[ ] (SP) Child Support [ ] (FJ) Foreign Judgment

[ ] (AN ) Annulment [ ] (PT) Paternity [ ] (CT) Contempt

[ ] (SM) Sep arate Maintenance [ ] (PS) Paternity/Support[ ] (BA) Body Attachment

[](OT) Other_____________________

Manner of Filing: [ x ] Original [ ] Re-Open [ ] Transfer

DISPOSITION INFORMATION

Disposition Date: [ ] Bench Trial [ ] Non-Trial [ ] Jury Trial

Decree or Judgment Type: Dismissal Type: Other:

[ ] (JD) Divorce Granted [ ] (DW) Dismissed with Prejudice [ ] (TR) Transferred to Another Jurisdiction

[ ] (OD) Other Decree [ ] (DN) Dismissed without Prejudice

[ ] (OJ) Other Judgment

Family Information:

[x ] There are no children born of the marriage.

[ ] There are children born of the marriage; See Conf idential Data AOC Form 35

Public Law 104-193 Information:

[ ] ( ) Custody Placed With: [ ] Plaintiff [ ] Defendant [ ] Other (Name)______________________________

[ ] ( ) Child Support [ ] New [ ] Modified [ ] Terminated

[ ] ( ) Spousal Support[ ] New [ ] Modified [ ] Terminated

[ ] ( ) Order of Protection [ ] Plaintiff [ ] Defendant [ ] Child

[ ] ( ) Income Withholding

Judgment Amount $_______________________

Clerk Signature_______________________________________________ Date____________________________________________

AOC 24 7-05 Send 1 paper or electronic copy to AOC upon Filing.

625 Marshall Street Send 1 paper or electronic copy to AOC upon Disposition.

Little Rock AR 72201 Keep original in Court file.

Effective 8-12-2005

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF SEBASTIAN COUNTY, ARKANSAS

___________________ DISTRICT

Fort Smith / Greenwood

DOMESTIC RELATIONS DIVISION ____

_____________________________ PLAINTIFF

Name of Plaintiff

_____________________________

Street Address

_____________________________

City / State/ Zip Code

VS. CASE NO. DR-________________

_____________________________ DEFENDANT

Name of Defendant

_____________________________

Street Address

_____________________________

City / State / Zip Code

COMPLAINT FOR DIVORCE

Comes now the plaintiff, , pro se, and for his/her complaint

Name of Plaintiff

for divorce against the defendant, , states and alleges:

Name

of Defendant

 The plaintiff is a resident of the Fort Smith District of Sebastian County, Arkansas,

and has been a resident of the state of Arkansas for more than sixty days before filing of this

complaint.

 The plaintiff is a resident of the Greenwood District of Sebastian County, Arkansas

and has been a resident of the state of Arkansas for more than sixty days before the filing of this

complaint.

2. The parties were lawfully married on and separated on

Date

since which time they have lived separate and apart.

Date

3.  No children who were born of the marriage and none are expected.

 There are no children who were born of the marriage who are now under the age of

eighteen, and none are expected.

4. The parties have already divided their personal property to their mutual satisfaction.

5.  There is no marital real estate to divide.

 The parties have already divided their marital real estate to their mutual satisfaction.

6. The parties have agreed that each party will be responsible for those debts in his or her

separate name.

7. The defendant has treated the plaintiff with such general indignities as to make plaintiff’s

life intolerable and to entitle plaintiff to an absolute divorce.

 Wife desires to be restored to her former name of .

 Wife desires to retain her present name.

WHEREFORE, plaintiff prays that the court award plaintiff an absolute divorce and for all

other relief to which plaintiff is entitled.

Plaintiff

VERIFICATION

I, , plaintiff, state that the statements contained in the foregoing

compliant are true and correct to my knowledge and belief.

Plaintiff

STATE OF ARKANSAS )

) ss.

COUNTY OF )

On this Day of , , personally

appeared before me, a Notary Public for the aforesaid state and county, , to me

well-known or satisfactorily proven, who stated that the statements in the foregoing complaint were

true and correct to the best of his/her knowledge and belief.

SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN TO before me this day of , .

NotaryPublic

My Commission Expires:

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF SEBASTIAN COUNTY, ARKANSAS

___________________ DISTRICT

Fort Smith / Greenwood

DOMESTIC RELATIONS DIVISION ___

_____________________________ PLAINTIFF

Name of Plaintiff

VS. CASE NO. DR-________________

_____________________________ DEFENDANT

Name of Defendant

WAIVER OF SERVICE OF PROCESS AND ENTRY OF APPEARANCE

The defendant, , comes before the court and states that the

defendant has received a file marked copy of the complaint that has been filed in this case and

that he/she waives the necessity of having the complaint served on him/her by the sheriff or by

mail. The defendant further states that the court may proceed to hear this matter without further

notice to the defendant and that the relief requested in the complaint by the plaintiff may be

granted to the plaintiff without objection by the defendant.

Signature of defendant

STATE OF ARKANSAS

COUNTY OF SEBASTIAN

Subscribed and sworn to before me, a Notary Public, this day of , 201__

Notary Public

My Commission Expires: _____________

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF SEBASTIAN COUNTY, ARKANSAS

DISTRICT

DIVISION ____

SUMMONS

Case No.:

PLAINTIFF(S): DEFENDANT(S):

PLAINTIFF’S ATTORNEY: DEFENDANT’S ADDRESS:

THE STATE OF ARKANSAS TO DEFENDANT(S):

NOTICE

1. You are hereby notified that a lawsuit has been filed against you; the relief asked is stated in the attached complaint.

2. The attached complaint will be considered admitted by you and a judgment by default may be entered against you for the relief

asked in the complaint unless you file a pleading and thereafter appear and present your defense. Your pleading or answer must

meet the following requirements:

A. It must be in writing, and otherwise comply with the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure.

B. It must be filed in the court clerk’s office within THIRTY (30) days from the day you were serv ed with this summons.

3. If you desire to be represented by an attorney you should immediately contact your attorney so that an answer can be filed for

you within the time allowed.

Additional notices:

WITNESS my hand and the seal of the court this date

Address of Clerk’s office: DENORA COOMER

Sebastian County Circuit Clerk CIRCUIT CLERK

Sebastian County Courts Building

_________________ , Arkansas 72901 By: _________________________________________ D.C.

(SEAL)

RETURN

STATE OF ARKANSAS, COUNTY OF :

On this day of , 201 at o’clock .M.,

I have duly served the within summons by delivering a copy thereof (or stating the substance thereof),

together with a copy of the complaint, to

such person being:

CHECK APPLICABLE SQUARE:

 the person named therein as defendant.

 a member of the defendant’s family above 14 years of age at defendant’s usual place of abode, namely

 the duly designated agent for service of process for the defendant, namely

OTHER:

, SHERIFF

By:

DeputySheriff

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF SEBASTIAN COUNTY, ARKANSAS

___________________ DISTRICT

Fort Smith / Greenwood

DOMESTIC RELATIONS DIVISION ___

_____________________________ PLAINTIFF

Name of Plaintiff

VS. CASE NO. DR-________________

_____________________________ DEFENDANT

Name of Defendant

AFFIDAVIT OF SERVICE

I, , after being duly sworn, state that on ,

name of plaintiff

, 201 I mailed copies of the complaint for divorce and a copy of the summons to the

defendant, , at his/her address of

____________________________, by certified mail, restricted delivery, return receipt

requested.

The complaint and summons were delivered to the defendant as is shown by the return

receipt attached to this affidavit which bears the signature of the defendant.

Signature of plaintiff

STATE OF ARKANSAS

COUNTY OF SEBASTIAN

Subscribed and sworn to before me, a Notary Public, this day of

, 201__

Notary Public

My Commission Expires:





_____________________

Date



Honorable_____________________

CircuitJudge

901SouthBStreet

FortSmithAR72901



RE:____________________________vs________________________

PlaintiffnameDefendantname

SebastianCountyCircuitCourtCaseNumberDR‐__________________



DearJudge__________________:



PleasesettheabovereferencedcaseforanUncontestedHearingattheCourt’searliest

convenience.



TheDefendant:_____wasservedwithaSummons



_____signedaWaiverofServiceofProcessand

EntryofAppearance



Thankyouforyourattentionandconsiderationinthismatter.



Sincerely,





_______________________signature



_______________________printname



________________________address



________________________address