Divorce

Grounds are legally acceptable reasons for divorce. You can get a divorce in Virginia without claiming that your spouse is at fault if:

1. you and your spouse live separate and apart without “cohabitating” for at least one year; or
2. you and your spouse enter into a separation agreement, do not share any biological or adopted children, and live separate and apart without “cohabitating” for at least six months.¹

Note: “Cohabitating” means that you and your spouse live together as if you were a married couple.¹

The judge can also grant you a divorce in Virginia for certain “fault-based” grounds. The judge can grant you a fault-based divorce if your spouse:

1. is guilty of cruelty, causing you reasonable fear of bodily harm;
2. willfully deserts or abandons you for one year;
3. commits adultery, sodomy outside of the marriage, or a sexual act with an animal (“buggery”), unless:

• you continued living with your spouse after finding out about the act;
• it has been more than five years since your spouse committed the act; or
• you convinced or coerced your spouse to commit the act;² or

4. is convicted of a felony after you are married and all of the following are true:
   • s/he is sentenced to prison for more than one year for the conviction;
   • s/he goes to prison; and
   • you do not continue to live together as a married couple when s/he gets out of prison.³

You can also be granted a divorce if either you or your spouse has been legally judged insane.¹

Note: A judge may choose to grant a divorce on no-fault grounds, even if you ask for a fault-based divorce; or grant a divorce on fault-based grounds, even if you ask for a no-fault divorce. This is up to the judge to decide.⁴

If your spouse claims that you are at fault for the divorce, it may affect whether you are able to get alimony. Learn more about this at Can I get alimony?

¹ Va. Code § 20-91(A)(9)(a)
² Va. Code § 20-94
³ Va. Code § 20-91(A)(1), (A)(3), (A)(6)
⁴ “Divorce in Virginia,” Virginia State Bar