Maine Divorce Law Blog

Maine Allows Divorce Without Personal Jurisdiction

In the case of Van Shack v. Van Shack our Law Court has ruled that a person can get a divorce without the court having any personal jurisdiction over the defendant.  In this case Supreme Court found that the district court had jurisdiction even though it was undisputed that the defendant had “no contacts” whatsoever with the state of Maine and that the court lacked personal jurisdiction under Maine’s Long Arm Statute.  

Before you jump to conclusions, the Law Court only found that the district court had jurisdiction to dissolve the marriage — nothing more.  In other words, there still must be personal jurisdiction in order to determine what happens with the children, property rights, and finances.

Still, it’s very unusual for a court to find jurisdiction over someone with no contacts to the state.  

Protection From Abuse For You And Your Pet

Maine is the first state in the country to enact a new law that allows judges in Protection From Abuse cases to include pets in the order.  As reported in the Press Herald, the law would allow judges to include the pets of those who have been battered so that the person leaving can take the pet with them or else come back to the residence and retrieve the animal.  Police and others think that it’s not unusual for abusers to harm or threaten to harm pets.  It can be another method of keeping someone from leaving an abusive relationship.  The law allows fines or jail time for violators and goes into effect in 90 days.