Written By
Valerie Catalano, J.D.
Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner links on Forbes Advisor. Commissions do not affect our editors' opinions or evaluations.
Divorce can be one of the most challenging experiences in life. Even if your marriage ends amicably, the dissolution of a relationship can bring about a whirlwind of emotions and conflicts, particularly when determining asset division and addressing child-related matters. Whether you anticipate an uncontested divorce or want to explore your options, a skilled divorce lawyer can provide the invaluable support and guidance you need.
Below, you’ll find 10 of the best divorce lawyers in Boston. You’ll also gain insights into the divorce process, Massachusetts’s approach to child custody and support and other divorce-related laws.
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Best Boston Divorce Lawyers
Gene Dahmen
MA Bar Association Status
Active
Year Admitted to MA Bar
1967
Law School Attended
University of Virginia School of Law
Why They Made Our List
Practice Areas
Notable Facts and Recognitions
George M. Ford
MA Bar Association Status
Active
Year Admitted to MA Bar
1965
Law School Attended
Boston College Law School
Why They Made Our List
Practice Areas
Notable Facts and Recognitions
Regina Snow Mandl
MA Bar Association Status
Active
Year Admitted to MA Bar
1974
Law School Attended
Boston College Law School
Why They Made Our List
Practice Areas
Notable Facts and Recognitions
Carlos A. Maycotte
MA Bar Association Status
Active
Year Admitted to MA Bar
2010
Law School Attended
Boston University School of Law
Why They Made Our List
Practice Areas
Notable Facts and Recognitions
Patrice E. Morse
MA Bar Association Status
Active
Year Admitted to MA Bar
1998
Law School Attended
Boston College Law School
Why They Made Our List
Practice Areas
Notable Facts and Recognitions
Anita W. Robboy
MA Bar Association Status
Active
Year Admitted to MA Bar
1974
Law School Attended
Boston University School of Law
Why They Made Our List
Practice Areas
Notable Facts and Recognitions
Joanne E. Romanow
MA Bar Association Status
Active
Year Admitted to MA Bar
1980
Law School Attended
Boston College Law School
Why They Made Our List
Practice Areas
Notable Facts and Recognitions
Mary H. Schmidt
MA Bar Association Status
Active
Year Admitted to MA Bar
1971
Law School Attended
University of Chicago Law School
Why They Made Our List
Practice Areas
Notable Facts and Recognitions
Donald G. Tye
MA Bar Association Status
Active
Year Admitted to MA Bar
1976
Law School Attended
Washington University in St. Louis School of Law
Why They Made Our List
Practice Areas
Notable Facts and Recognitions
Emily A. Weber
MA Bar Association Status
Active
Year Admitted to MA Bar
2010
Law School Attended
Boston University School of Law
Why They Made Our List
Practice Areas
Notable Facts and Recognitions
Compare Top Boston Divorce Attorneys
Lawyer Name MA Bar Association Status Year Admitted to MA Bar Law School Attended Learn More
Filing for Divorce in Boston, Massachusetts
If you’re considering ending your marriage, it’s important to know about the different divorce laws and regulations in Massachusetts. The following section offers an overview of the process itself, covering crucial topics such as child custody, property division and other key aspects of dissolving your marriage. This information will help you set realistic expectations and prepare for the journey ahead.
Massachusetts Divorce Requirements
All states have their own set of requirements you must meet to be able to file a divorce petition. Here’s what that looks like in Massachusetts:
Residency requirement. To file a divorce petition in Boston, one or both of the following must be true:
- You must have resided in the state for 12 consecutive months immediately before filing for divorce. This is to prevent people from moving to Massachusetts just to divorce.
- The grounds for terminating your marriage occurred in Massachusetts and you have lived together in the state as a couple.
Legal separation. Massachusetts does not recognize legal separation. However, you can live separately from your spouse without the court’s permission. You can seek court assistance for issues such as child support, a parenting plan or spousal support by petitioning for separate support and maintenance.
To file for separate support, you must prove your spouse has failed to support you, they have deserted you, you are living apart for a justifiable reason or you live together but have a justifiable reason to live apart.
Filing for divorce. To file for a divorce in Massachusetts, you need legal grounds to do so. This could be a reason based on fault, such as adultery, impotence, abandonment, imprisonment or substance abuse. Or it could be a no-fault divorce, which means your marriage is irretrievably broken beyond repair.
To begin a divorce, you file a petition with the Probate and Family Court in the county where you and your spouse last lived together. The court charges a filing fee, typically $200 plus a surcharge, totaling $215. If you cannot afford the fee, you can submit an Affidavit of Indigency to request to have the fee waived.
Types of Divorce and Separation in Massachusetts
If you’re looking to terminate your marriage, Massachusetts gives you a few options to do so.
No-Fault Divorce
Most divorces that happen in Massachusetts are no-fault, where you don’t have to prove that your spouse did something wrong. You need only show that your marriage is broken beyond any possibility of reconciliation.
Fault-Based Divorce
This type of divorce requires proving that your spouse did something wrong. Here are some acceptable grounds for divorce.
- adultery: voluntary intercourse by your spouse with someone else
- impotence: physical or psychological inability to copulate
- abandonment: Your spouse deserted you with no contact for at least a year before filing.
- substance abuse: excessive use of alcohol, narcotics or drugs
- cruel and abusive treatment: intentional infliction of physical or mental harm by your spouse
- failure to provide support: Your spouse has the ability to support you but refuses to do so.
- imprisonment: Your spouse has been sentenced to prison for at least five years.
Uncontested or Contested Divorce
There are situations where you both may want a divorce, but you don’t agree on certain terms. To accommodate this possibility, Massachusetts allows for two types of no-fault divorce.
- 1A divorce. Also known as uncontested divorce, here both spouses agree the marriage is irretrievably broken and have a written agreement on all terms, including spousal support, child support, parenting time and marital property divisions.
- 1B divorce. This is also known as contested divorce and applies in situations where one or both spouses believe the marriage is broken, but they cannot agree on separation terms. You can switch from 1B to 1A if an agreement is reached after filing.
Annulment
A legal annulment nullifies the marriage as if it never happened. There are certain situations where annulling a marriage is permissible:
- One spouse was already married to someone else.
- The marriage was with a close relative, such as a stepparent, grandparent or stepsibling.
- One spouse lacked the mental capacity to consent to the marriage.
- One spouse is physically incapable of consummating the marriage.
- One spouse was under 18 at the time of marriage and did not have parental permission to marry.
- One spouse had fraudulent motives when entering the marriage.
Child Custody, Support and Visitation in Massachusetts
Massachusetts recognizes four types of child custody arrangements.
- Sole legal custody. One parent makes major decisions about the child’s education, health, religion and emotional development without input or agreement from the other.
- Shared legal custody. Both parents are involved in the decision-making responsibilities for the child.
- Sole physical custody. The child lives with one parent, and the other parent is granted visitation rights.
- Shared physical custody. The child splits time living with each parent.
The court may also require the noncustodial parent to pay the other parent child support to help with their financial needs. The exact payment is calculated based on both parents’ incomes using the state child support guidelines. The approved amount is automatically deducted from the noncustodial parent’s paycheck and sent to the Department of Revenue, which then forwards it to the custodial parent.
Property Division in Massachusetts
Massachusetts follows the principle of equitable distribution when it comes to dividing assets. Under this rule, property and debts are divided fairly between the spouses, but not necessarily equally.
Note that equitable distribution law in Massachusetts usually applies to all property, regardless of which spouse acquired it and even if the property was acquired before marriage.
The court considers various factors when fairly dividing assets and debts. This includes the length of the marriage, each spouse’s contributions and the nature and timing of the property acquisition. If there are legally sound pre and postnuptial agreements stating how certain assets should be divided, the terms of the agreement will supersede equitable distribution law.
Filing and Serving Your Divorce Papers
First, you must decide whether you are seeking a fault-based, no-fault, contested or uncontested divorce. Then complete the paperwork relevant to your divorce, which you can find at the official website of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
If you have children with your spouse, you must fill out additional forms such as an affidavit of care and custody and a child support guidelines worksheet.
You can submit your forms in person, by mail or online at eFileMA. If filing in person, file with the Probate and Family Court where you and your spouse lived together or in the county where you currently reside.
After filing, the court will mail you a summons. You’ll then have to serve the complaint for divorce and summons to your spouse through a sheriff or constable, or your spouse can accept it directly from you by signing the summons in front of a notary public.
If you have children, you must attend co-parenting classes.
Once your spouse is served and returns their response, both parties must exchange financial statements and write a separation agreement covering all divorce-related issues. If you cannot agree on all terms, a pretrial hearing is scheduled by the court and the case will go to trial.
Finalizing Your Divorce
You must wait at least six months for a hearing from the filing date. At the hearing, the judge will review and, if necessary, amend the separation agreement. If there are still unresolved issues, there will be a trial to determine the final terms.
The divorce becomes final 90 days after the judgment is entered. For a 1A divorce, the finalization period is 120 days from the judgment date.
How Can an Attorney Help You?
If you and your spouse agree on all aspects of your divorce, such as parenting time, child custody and property division, you might be able to proceed without a lawyer. However, if disagreements exist or if you are navigating a fault-based divorce, having a divorce lawyer can be invaluable. Here are some ways an attorney can assist you:
- Answering questions. An attorney can address your questions about the divorce process, including how the property or debt will be divided and your eligibility for child support or alimony.
- Providing advice. Lawyers offer advice on how different decisions might affect you and your children in both the short and long term. They can predict likely outcomes based on their experience with similar cases, ensuring you make informed decisions that protect your interests.
- Handling custody and support issues. If you and your spouse disagree on child custody, child support or parenting time, an attorney can help negotiate terms that work for both parties while also ensuring that the matter is resolved in alignment with your child’s best interests.
- Protecting victims of domestic violence. If you are experiencing domestic violence, a divorce lawyer can help you obtain restraining orders against your spouse and handle all communications with them on your behalf.
- Guiding the divorce process. Divorce proceedings can be complex, with numerous forms and deadlines. A lawyer can manage the paperwork, court dates and necessary documentation, making sure you’re complying with all legal requirements.
- Safeguarding financial interests. Financial concerns are significant stressors for those considering divorce, whether you relied on your spouse financially or were the primary caregiver. An attorney can help clarify how assets may be divided and ensure any financial arrangements are fair and in your best interest.
- Mediating and negotiating. If you and your spouse cannot agree on certain terms, an attorney can negotiate to reach a fair settlement and potentially avoid a lengthy and expensive court battle. They can represent your interests in discussions and work toward a resolution that satisfies both parties.
How To Find the Best Divorce Lawyer in Boston, MA
A good divorce lawyer can be the key to a smooth and stress-free divorce journey. With many options available, here are some tips to help you find the best lawyer for your case:
- Know your divorce type. If you anticipate a high-conflict divorce, you want a lawyer that has vast amounts of experience handling heavily contested separations.
- Seek recommendations. Ask friends, family or coworkers who have gone through a divorce which attorney they used and if they would recommend them. This can help narrow down a long list of prospective lawyers to a few candidates you can look into further.
- Interview them. Once you have a few potential attorneys you’re interested in, ask about their history with divorce cases, their approach to specific issues like property division and spousal support and their predictions on your case’s outcome. If an attorney seems inexperienced or gives vague answers, consider looking elsewhere.
Our Methodology for Finding the Best Boston Divorce Attorneys
Forbes Advisor considered many factors to determine the best personal injury lawyers in Boston of 2024. Its mathematical analysis considers and weighs the information collected to calculate a specific rating and reviews these results to find the best attorneys in a given practice area.
Within the model, we take into account factors that legal professionals and consumers value in an attorney’s qualifications. After assigning weighted scores to hundreds of data points, we narrowed the field down to our top choices based on:
- Legal experience
- Special licenses and certifications
- Ethics and bar disciplinary measures
- Legal thought leadership
- Education and employment background
- Scholarly lectures and writings
- Awards and honors
Forbes Advisor collects public data from a variety of sources, including state bar associations, court records and other published sources on the internet. However, this information should not be considered comprehensive. It might not include additional relevant information on an attorney’s legal skills and experience.
Each lawyer listed here has their own merits. Bear in mind that our list relates to these lawyers’ legal backgrounds but does not evaluate their personalities or their knowledge of the law. One attorney may be more suitable than another for your specific legal situation.
One thing that can’t be quantified, though, is the rapport you establish with your attorney. Personality goes a long way when teaming up with an attorney, especially when going through a potentially difficult legal situation. These rankings should serve as a reference and potential starting point in your search for the right lawyer for you and your legal concerns.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Divorce in Boston
How long does it take to get divorce in Boston?
Is Massachusetts a 50/50 divorce state?
What is the average retainer fee for a divorce lawyer in Massachusetts?
The information on this page does not constitute legal advice, nor does use of or access to this page create an attorney-client relationship between any parties. Information provided on Forbes Advisor is for informational purposes only. Your legal situation is unique and the attorneys and services we rank may not be right for your circumstances. Consult with an attorney to obtain advice on your particular legal matter.
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