When going through a divorce, many couples do choose to go to counseling first. Some of them are trying to see if they can save the marriage before ending it. Others may just want to learn more about where they stand before breaking up.
But can the court order you to go to counseling? Say you have no desire to do so, and you just want to get a divorce and be done with it. Your spouse, however, wants to go to counseling first. Do you have to honor that desire?
The court can order counseling in some cases
There are cases where the court may require you to go to counseling. This does not happen in every case, and they will only do it if you or your spouse requests it. If they order it, though, you do have to go, despite the fact that your spouse was the only one who made the request.
One thing to note is that they’re only going to require three sessions. With the length of most divorce cases, that doesn’t really change your time frame by a lot and you do not have to worry about spending months in counseling.
Additionally, the court will not force you to see a specific person or make you choose from a list of local professionals. You and your spouse are free to choose your own counseling center.
Navigating the legal divorce process
The divorce process may have a few more steps than you anticipated. Be sure you are well aware of what they are and what you’ll need to do to keep your divorce on track. The more you know, the more prepared you’ll be to navigate this process.