Jon and Kate – what’s going on?

Jon and Kate Gosselin of Jon & Kate + 8 fame are in the midst of a divorce. While I do not know the specifics of what is going on in their case, based on the docket entries, I can surmise what may be happening in this case.

On June 22, 2009, Kate’s attorney filed a divorce complaint with the Court of Common Pleas of Montgomery County Pennsylvania. Once a complaint is filed, the person who filed has 30 days to serve the complaint on the other party. The Rules of Civil Procedure in Pennsylvania dictate who and how can effectuate service of a divorce complaint.

Service of a divorce complaint can be made in person (one person handing it to someone else) or by mail.

Service in person (called personal service) on the other party (the Defendant) can be made by either a sheriff or another person over the age of 18 who is not mentally incompetent. Personal service can be made by handing the complaint directly to any of the following people:

the Defendant

an adult in the Defendant’s family with whom the Defendant lives if serving the Defendant at home

the clerk or the manager of the building (apartment, hotel, etc.) where the Defendant lives

the adult in charge of where the Defendant works

If the Defendant is going to be served by mail, then the complaint has to be mailed by regular AND certified mail. The certified mail must be return receipt requested (the green card) and must be for the Defendant’s signature only. If the certified mail comes back refused and the regular mail does not come back, then there has been good service. If the certified mail comes back unclaimed then there is no good service.

There is a third way in which service can be effectuated. The Defendant’s attorney can accept service on behalf of the person. In Jon and Kate’s case, Jon’s lawyer accepted service on Jon’s behalf.

If a person can not effectuate service within 30 days, then the divorce complaint has to be reinstated and the plaintiff gets 30 more days to effectuate service. If a person can not be served personally or by mail, a petition for special service needs to be filed with the Court asking for special permission to serve the complaint by publication or by delivering it to another person who is believed to have contact with the Defendant.

So, since service has been accepted of the complaint, now Jon and Kate are in the midst of 2 possible waiting periods. If they plan to get a divorce based on separation, they have to wait to be separated for more than 2 years (2011) before asking the court to enter a divorce decree. More likely, they are both going to agree to the entry of a divorce decree. Their consent forms can not be filed until 90 days after the divorce complaint is served (which will be in late September for Jon and Kate).

In most instances, during this waiting period, the parties and their attorneys are trying to work out the economic issues incident to the divorce. Jon and Kate, through their lawyers, might be trying to identify and value all of the marital assets and debts. Maybe, they are working out support payments.

It is always advantageous to try to resolve as many of these issues as possible during these waiting periods. It allows for the prompt entry of a divorce decree.