Arizona’s No Fault Divorce System

Arizona operates under a no-fault divorce system, meaning that spouses do not have to prove fault or wrongdoing to dissolve their marriage. Instead of having to show that one spouse was at fault for the breakdown of the marriage (e.g., through infidelity or abuse), the only requirement is that one party alleges that the marriage is “irretrievably broken.”

For someone concerned about exposing their spouse’s extramarital relationship in a divorce, “fault” is typically irrelevant. A spouse in an extramarital affair is not required to disclose the affair or prove it was the reason for the divorce. In a no-fault divorce, the court is not concerned with the reasons behind the marriage’s breakdown. While an affair itself is not relevant to “fault” or the divorce process generally, it may be raised in the context of monies spent by the spouse on the new love interest or other forms of community waste.

Other forms of community waste may also include monies spent on addiction(s) and gambling. If community waste is proven in court, no fault is assessed; however, the offending spouse would be ordered to compensate the non-offending spouse for half of the monies spent on community waste during the marriage. If you believe your spouse is committing community waste of any kind, it is best to seek legal consultation sooner rather than later to avoid complications in proving waste before the court in the future.

By Kaitlin Bokal, Edits by Amber Guymon