Home/Practice areas/Uncontested Divorce
This is a separate page of general information about South Carolina family law. It is not legal advice. Opening this page does not create an attorney-client relationship.
What “uncontested” means here
In ordinary usage, an uncontested divorce is one in which the spouses are not asking the judge to decide the same issues two different ways. They present an agreement. The judge reads it to determine whether it is fair, whether it serves the best interests of any minor children, and whether it conforms to South Carolina law.
The divorce page on this site describes the grounds on which South Carolina will grant a divorce. An agreement does not create a new ground. The most common path is the no-fault ground: the husband and wife have lived separate and apart, without cohabitation, for one year.
What still has to be done
One spouse files a summons and complaint. The other spouse is served or accepts service, and answers or allows the case to proceed by agreement. Financial information is exchanged. If there are minor children, the agreement has to address custody, a parenting schedule, and child support in a way the court can approve.
A case that begins by agreement can become contested if the spouses later disagree. This page describes the agreed path only. It is not a prediction of how long a particular case will take or what a judge will approve.
The Bluffton office
Mary Kay Siren handles uncontested divorces from the office in Bluffton, Beaufort County. The hearing, when one is required, is in Beaufort County Family Court. People who live on Hilton Head Island or in the city of Beaufort use that same office. There is not a separate Hilton Head or Beaufort office.
One office, in Bluffton
This work is handled from the Bluffton office. There is no second office. People in Hilton Head Island and in the city of Beaufort are served from that same office, and their cases are heard in Beaufort County Family Court.