A growing number of U.S. states are shortening or eliminating mandatory waiting periods before couples can divorce, responding to accounts of financial hardship and physical danger caused by prolonged proceedings, while other states have considered making divorce harder to obtain.
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A growing number of U.S. states are shortening or eliminating mandatory waiting periods before couples can divorce, responding to accounts of financial hardship and physical danger caused by prolonged proceedings, while other states have considered making divorce harder to obtain.
North Carolina requires couples to live in separate homes for a full year before they can file for divorce. South Carolina and Arkansas have similar separation mandates. Most other states impose waiting periods after a couple files — ranging from 20 days in Wyoming and 30 days in Missouri to six months in California — rather than before.
In 2023, Maryland eliminated fault-based divorce, cut its separation requirement from one year to six months, and allowed couples to count as separated while still living under the same roof. Washington, DC, the same year, unanimously eliminated its pre-divorce separation requirement. A Virginia law that took effect in recent weeks allows people to appear before a judge on the first day they separate, rather than waiting six months or a year to resolve custody, support, and housing.
Until the late 1960s, ending a marriage in the United States required proving in court that a spouse had committed a recognized wrong such as adultery or abandonment. California enacted the first no-fault divorce law in 1969, and most states followed within a decade. Divorce rates, which were already rising, peaked around 1980, according to the article.
Republican lawmakers in Missouri, Tennessee, and Texas have in recent years considered new restrictions on no-fault divorce. House Speaker Mike Johnson has long endorsed making divorce harder to obtain. Vice President JD Vance has said no-fault divorce allows people to 'shift spouses like they change their underwear,' though a spokesperson subsequently said Vance does not support changes to divorce law.
Mississippi requires both spouses to agree to a no-fault divorce. When one spouse does not agree, the other must prove fault in court — grounds include adultery or desertion. Author Hadley (Vlahos) Fairley spent nearly three years attempting to end her marriage in Mississippi. In May, after eleven days in court, a judge granted her a divorce, finding that her ex-husband's conduct met the state's legal standard for 'habitual cruel and inhuman treatment.' The judge cited a DUI he lied about under oath, more than $200,000 in secret trading losses that were mostly her earnings, a cancer diagnosis he faked, and months of messages the judge characterized as harassing and manipulative. Custody and asset division remain unresolved, with additional trial days set for September.
The March 2026 killing of Cerina Fairfax by her husband, former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, in the home they continued to share during divorce proceedings, has become a focal point for advocates pushing further reform in Virginia. Virginia law at the time required couples with children to be separated for one year before filing, though they were permitted to spend that year under the same roof. When Cerina Fairfax filed for divorce in July 2025, her husband argued she had not specified the separation was intended to be permanent; a judge agreed with that technicality in January, and she was told to amend her complaint and try again. A judge granted her sole physical custody on March 30 and ordered Justin Fairfax to vacate the home within a month. He had not yet left when he shot her in mid-April and then killed himself. Their two teenagers were home at the time and cameras Cerina Fairfax had installed throughout the house were recording.
Virginia's new divorce law had been signed days before the killing. It includes a directive for a work group to study whether the state should eliminate fault-based divorce entirely, with a report due to the legislature in December.
- The source does not state the current status or prospects of the North Carolina reform bill described as pending in the legislature.
- The source does not provide the specific text or bill number of the North Carolina legislation beyond a linked reference.
- The source does not state what share of couples reconcile during mandatory waiting periods, citing critics' assertion that reconciliation is rare without quantifying it.
- The source does not include any response from Justin Fairfax's representatives or estate regarding the events described.
- The source does not state the specific grounds or timeline on which Cerina Fairfax's amended divorce complaint was proceeding at the time of the killing.
- The source does not identify which party controls the North Carolina legislature or governor's office in the context of the pending reform bill.