When Can You Remove A Spouse From Your Marital Home?

If you and your spouse decide to separate, living together can become a major problem. What happens if your spouse refuses to leave the family home, however? Can you legally have him or her removed? This is a question that a lot of people have during a divorce. The answer is that you can evict your spouse, but only under specific circumstances. Here is what you need to know about removing your ex from the home.

Violence Towards You and Others

Domestic abuse is the biggest exception if you want to evict your spouse from the marital home. Allegations of violence towards you or your children are taken seriously by the courts. If you can prove a history or pattern of domestic abuse, then you can have your spouse evicted. Even if you own the property together, you can evict him or her. To have your spouse removed, you should begin by filing a temporary restraining order.

Threatening Behavior Towards You and Others

Threats are not acceptable. Even if your spouse does not act violently towards you, you should take all threats seriously. If you feel like you are in danger, you can file for an emergency protective order. To do this, you can contact the police to have your spouse removed from your home as soon as possible.

Lesser Claim to the Property

If your home is considered separate property, then you would have an easier time removing the other spouse from the home. The problem is that even if your spouse is not on the mortgage, courts will likely consider the home to belong to both of you. If you bought the home before the marriage, you may be able to evict the other. How your home is handled will depend heavily on whether you live in a community property or common law state. To find out more about your claim to the home, you may want to speak with a lawyer.

To evict your spouse, you can obtain a court order. You file an order for eviction known as an Order for Temporary Relief.  This isn’t an immediate eviction, however. You can also file an Exclusive Use Motion. This would give you exclusive rights to the house.

To evict a spouse from your home is complicated. For help removing your ex from the family home, contact a family lawyer in Tampa, FL, like from The McKinney Law Group A consultation can help provide you with the steps to take to evict your spouse.