How do I file for a divorce in Maryland?

To file for a Maryland divorce, a party must establish residency and grounds for divorce. To establish residency, at least one party must have resided in Maryland for a minimum of 6 months prior to filing the Complaint for Absolute Divorce.

Under Md. Fam. Law § 7-103, Marylanders must establish grounds for an Absolute Divorce by showing one of the following:

• Six (6) month separation. Parties may reside in the same residence if they have pursued separate lives.
• Irreconcilable differences based on reasons stated by the Complaint for Divorce; or 
• Mutual Consent where the parties have entered into a signed agreement resolving all issues related to distribution of property/assets, alimony, and the care, custody and support of the minor children.

Once residency and grounds for a Maryland Divorce have been established, the divorce case begins by filing a Complaint for Absolute Divorce or Complaint for Consent Divorce. The Complaint lets the court know that you are seeking a divorce and requesting the court’s assistance. The Complaint includes basic marriage statistics, grounds for divorce, and a list of the requests that you are asking of the court. The Complaint must be signed under oath, stating that the facts in the Complaint are true.

Once the Complaint has been filed with the court, the court clerk reviews the Complaint and issues a Summons which is sent back to the filer along with the Complaint to serve on the opposing party. Once your spouse has been served the Summons and the Complaint, your spouse has been placed on notice that you have filed a lawsuit against them and signals the beginning of your case. Once service is completed, an Affidavit of Service is filed with the court letting the court know that the opposing party has been successfully served. 

The court’s involvement with your case begins with a Scheduling Conference to set deadlines, hearing dates, and determine whether an early hearing, called a Pendente Lite Hearing, is appropriate to issue temporary orders for support or custody. At the Scheduling Conference, the court charts the course of your case up to a final Settlement Conference prior to trial and maps out all case deadlines. 

Following the Scheduling Conference, the court will encourage and require that the parties engage in a meaningful way in alternative means of resolution to address as many issues as possible prior to trial. Generally, in cases involving child custody, the court will order that the parties attend mediation to resolve child custody issues. In cases needing a marital asset determination, the court will generally recommend mediation to resolve property disputes.

Throughout your case, we will be actively involved in both settlement negotiations as well as trial preparation. Should the case settle, the parties will not participate in a contested trial. Rather, their agreement, which resolves all issues arising from the marriage and related to the divorce, will be incorporated into the Judgement for Absolute Divorce. If the case does not settle, the parties will proceed with litigation and a hearing on the merits to complete the divorce process. 

Whether your matter is resolved out of court or proceeds to litigation, we will advocate and protect your interests under the law. We understand that you will have to live with the outcome of the negotiations or litigation and take that responsibility very seriously.  We are driven and advocate for each individual client and their unique goals and needs. 

Written by Michelle M. Gohary, Esq.

Updated June 5, 2026