In Hawaii, Section 580-41 allows the family court to issue a divorce if it finds that one of the following four situations have occurred:

  1. The marriage is permanently broken.
  2. The parties have lived separately under a decree of separation, the term of separation has expired, and the parties have not attempted to reconcile.
  3. The parties have lived separately for two or more years under a decree of separate maintenance, and the parties have not attempted to reconcile.
  4. The parties have continuously lived separately for two years or more immediately preceding the application for divorce, there is no reasonable likelihood that they will resume cohabiting, and the court believes in the particular case that it would not be harsh or oppressive or against public interest to grant the plaintiff’s divorce application.

A divorce can be either contested or uncontested.  If both parties can agree to all of the material terms of the divorce, it is uncontested.  If the divorce is uncontested, it will be less expensive to complete than a contested divorce, and will take several months to finalize.  If the divorce is contested, it will proceed through the family court, cost significantly more, and it may take as long as take one to three years.

Property Division

Under Hawaii law, once the court grants the divorce decree, it also determines several additional issues, including child custody, child support, alimony, and division of the assets and debts from the marriage.  For division of property, Hawaii courts use an “equitable distribution” system.  Under this system, courts use a variety of factors to determine the fairest distribution of assets and debts without considering which party might actually hold title to a certain asset.  These factors include: the length of the marriage; each party’s financial situation ability to support and maintain his or her own needs; each party’s age, physical condition, and needs; each party’s occupation and earning capability; and each party’s responsibilities to any children from the marriage.

After-Divorce Disputes

Even after a divorce decree has been finalized, disputes can unfortunately arise.  Typical post-divorce disputes include:

  • Change of child custody
  • Change of time-sharing (change in visitation)
  • Children relocating out of Hawaii
  • Change of alimony

It is important to have legal representation in any post-decree proceedings to ensure that your rights are continually being protected.  Generally, to obtain post-decree relief, you must demonstrate that there has been a material change in circumstances.  As with other aspects of divorce proceedings, it is difficult to predict the time and cost of a post-decree matter.  Depending on the complexity of the issue that arises, it can cost between $5,000 and $15,000 and take several months to resolve certain post-divorce disputes.