Mark Required Fields In Legal South Dakota Civil Procedure Forms For Free

Even for uncontested divorces, South Dakota law requires spouses to wait 60 days from the date you file the divorce paperwork until the judge can finalize the divorce. (S.D. Codified Laws §25-4-34.) The law doesn't require either spouse to attend a final divorce hearing for uncontested divorces.

In South Dakota, getting divorced is relatively inexpensive. The average cost of a divorce per person in the state, including court and lawyer fees, is $8,595 ? the 12th lowest among all states. Nationwide, the average cost of a divorce per person is $9,969.

Under South Dakota law a divorce may be granted for any of these grounds: adultery, extreme cruelty (including bodily injury or grievous mental suffering), willful desertion, willful neglect, habitual intemperance, conviction of a felony, chronic mental illness or irreconcilable differences.

In South Dakota, the standard parenting guidelines will set out the custody arrangement to be followed by the parents. You can object to the standard guidelines and the judge will order a hearing within thirty days.

OBTAINING A NEW/AMENDED BIRTH CERTIFICATE: If your original birth certificate is from South Dakota, you need to submit a certified copy of the Order for Adult Name Change along with $8.00 check or money order, payable to the Department of Health, Office of Vital Records, to the following address: Office of Vital ...

South Dakota child custody laws don't prescribe a certain age when a child's preference may be considered. Judges have broad discretion when deciding how much weight to give the child's preference. In some South Dakota custody cases, judges have considered the well-reasoned preferences of children as young as 10.