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In Maryland Can I go the court and file an answer to a divorce complaint without being served first? Want to speed the process!
Anonymous2 views3 answers
My spouse filed for a divorce in Maryland and the court mailed the summons out to her on the 19th of March. She still has not served me? What can I do? Can I go to the court and file an answer without her serving me the papers first? I know that she had filed for a divorce. What are my options? I want to get this over with. I don't understand why she is taking so long to serve me.
You can certainly go to the court and file an answer to the complaint without having been served. This will bring the matter at issue and the court will, most likely, schedule a scheduling hearing. You may also wish to file a counter-complaint.
I strongly recommend that you speak with a lawyer before taking any actions.
There is no requirement under the Maryland Rules of Procedure that you must be served prior to the filing of an answer. However, you need to see what is in the Complaint before you file an answer. Depending on the relief she is seeking you can file an answer yourself by going to the State website for samples or contact an attorney. If she is asking for more then you thought or have questions then you should seek counsel. Better safe then sorry.
You may file an answer without being served. However, in order to know what to put in the answer, you will need to see the complaint. As a result, you may wish to ask the spouse to email or fax the complaint to you so you know how to respond.
Alternatively, you could file a divorce complaint against the spouse. The fact that the spouse has filed a complaint does not prevent you from filing your own case. This would give you some control over the initial timelines for the case, and prevent the spouse from holding-up the divorce indefinitely.
