Louisiana Divorce

You can file for divorce in Louisiana if, at the time of filing, one or both of the spouses are “domiciled” in Louisiana.¹ The law assumes that a person is “domiciled” in Louisiana if s/he has established and maintained a residence there for at least six months.² The divorce must be filed in a parish where either party is domiciled, or in the parish where you were domiciled together in the marital home.³

¹ LA Code Civ Pro 10(A)(7)
² LA Code Civ Pro 10(B)
³ LA Code Civ Pro 3941(A)

Spousal support, also known as alimony, is financial support paid by or to your spouse.  To get interim periodic support, which is awarded during the divorce, or final periodic support, which is awarded at the conclusion of the divorce, the judge must believe that:

• you are in need of support; and
• you are not “at fault” for the divorce.¹

To get final periodic support, the judge must also consider your spouse’s ability to pay support.¹ The judge will assume that you should be granted final periodic support if:

• the judge determines that your spouse committed domestic abuse against you, your child, or your spouse’s child; or
• you were granted a judgment of divorce based on one of the four fault-based grounds explained in What are the grounds for divorce in Louisiana?²

When deciding the amount of support that you will get and for how long you will receive support, the judge will consider all relevant factors, including:

1. the income and finances of each spouse;
2. the financial obligations of each spouse, including any interim support that is ordered or a final child support obligation;
3. how much each spouse is capable of earning, including the effect that having custody of children has upon a spouse’s earning capacity;
4. the time necessary for you to get appropriate education, training, or employment;
5. the health and age of the parties;
6. the length of the marriage;
7. the tax consequences to each spouse; and
8. if your spouse committed domestic abuse against you, your child, or against your spouse’s child, the judge will consider:
   • the effect of such abuse; and
   • the length of time that the abuse went on.³ Note: To determine if your spouse committed domestic abuse against you, the judge will consider any criminal convictions for an offense committed against you during the marriage. If there are no such convictions, the judge can order an evaluation of both parties by an independent licensed mental health professional who has experience in the field of domestic abuse to help determine if there was abuse and the nature of the abuse.⁴

Your interim or final periodic spousal support will end if:

• either spouse dies;
• you remarry; or
• if there is a judicial determination that you live (“cohabitate”) with someone else in a way similar to a married couple.⁵

¹ LA Code Civ Pro 111; 112(A)
² LA Code Civ Pro 112(C)
³ LA Code Civ Pro 112(B)
⁴ LA R.S. § 9:327
⁵ LA Code Civ Pro 115

If you are a victim of domestic abuse and you are covered under your spouse’s policy, you may be able to convert that insurance coverage to your own policy for you and your dependent children once you get a judgment of divorce or legal separation from the abusive spouse. The converted policy is supposed to provide the same benefits, including deductibles, coinsurance, and copayments, as the policy from which coverage is being converted.¹

In order to convert the coverage to your own individual policy, you should:

• notify the health insurance company that you want to convert your spouse’s policy into your own individual policy within 30 days of receiving the notice of termination of the policy; and
• provide the health insurance company with a copy of the divorce decree or separation order.¹

¹ LA R.S. § 22:1078(C)

If the judge believes that there is family violence, the judge is supposed to issue an injunction as part of the divorce. The injunction, which takes the form of an abuse prevention order, would prohibit the violent spouse from contacting the abused parent or the children except for specific purposes such as communication about the children’s education, health, and welfare. The injunction will also order the violent parent to stay at least fifty yards away from the abused parent and children as well as their home, school, place of employment. It will also state that the abuser cannot come within fifty feet of the abused parent’s automobiles, except as may otherwise be necessary for court-ordered visitation.¹

A violation of the injunction can punished as contempt of court and will result in the termination of all court-ordered child visitation.²

A judge can also grant an injunction that specifically prohibits a spouse from physically or sexually abusing the other spouse or a child of either of the parties.³

Lastly, a judge can issue an injunction prohibiting one spouse from harassing the other spouse.⁴

¹ LA R.S. §§ 9:366(a); 9:362(5)
² LA R.S. § 9:366(b)
³ LA R.S. § 9:372(a)
⁴ LA R.S. § 9:372.1