Guides

The automatic orders: what you can and cannot do during a divorce

General information about Connecticut court procedure, not legal advice.

The moment a Connecticut divorce starts, a set of court orders takes effect with no judge and no hearing. They are called the automatic orders, they bind both spouses, and violating them can be contempt of court. Most people are bound by them before they have read them. The same orders attach in legal separation, annulment, and custody or visitation cases. This guide is the plain-language tour; the form itself (Notice of Automatic Court Orders, JD-FM-158) is the controlling text.

When they start binding you

If you started the case, the orders took effect against you when you signed the complaint or application.
If you were served, they took effect against you at service.
In a nonadversarial joint petition, they take effect against both spouses when the petition is filed.

They stay in force until the case ends or a judge changes them.

Property and money

While the case is pending, without the other spouse's written consent or a court order, neither spouse may:

Sell, transfer, give away, or otherwise dispose of property, except in the usual course of business, for customary and usual household expenses, or for reasonable attorney's fees in the case
Hide any property
Mortgage or encumber property, with the same exceptions
Move a jointly owned asset into their name alone
Take on unreasonable debt, including borrowing against a credit line secured by the family home or running up credit cards and cash advances

Everyday life continues: groceries, the mortgage payment, the usual bills. What the orders stop is moving the pieces on the board while the case is pending. The form has detailed provisions on buying and selling securities in the usual course of investing; if your situation involves investment accounts or a business, read those provisions on the form itself.

Insurance

Neither spouse may remove the other from medical, hospital, or dental insurance, and existing coverage must stay in force. Neither may change the beneficiaries of existing life insurance, and life, automobile, homeowner's, and renter's policies must stay in force.

The home

If you are living together when the papers are served, neither spouse may deny the other the use of the home without a court order. One spouse cannot lock the other out; moving a spouse out takes a court order, which is what a pendente lite motion for exclusive use of the home asks for. See our guide on temporary orders.

The children

In a case involving children:

Neither parent may permanently remove the children from Connecticut without the other's written consent or a court order.
A parent who moves out must give the other a written address for communication within 48 hours.
Parents living apart must assist the children in having contact with both of them, consistent with the family's habits.
The children stay on existing medical, hospital, and dental insurance.
Both parents must complete the parenting education program within 60 days of the return day, or within 60 days of the filing in a custody or visitation application.

The 30-day financial exchange

Both spouses must complete and exchange sworn financial affidavits within 30 days of the return day. After the exchange, the spouses may submit an agreed interim order to the court allocating income and expenses.

If you object, or need them changed

The automatic orders are court orders, so disobeying them can be punished as contempt. They are not unchangeable: either spouse can file a motion to modify them, and the form states the right to a hearing before a judge within a reasonable time. The orders also do not override any existing court order, including criminal protective and civil restraining orders.

Where to get help

Connecticut's Court Service Centers offer free help for self-represented parties. The clerk's office can answer questions about procedure but cannot give legal advice. Legal aid organizations serve people who qualify. If you want legal advice, talk to a licensed Connecticut attorney.

ProSay is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. ProSay is a self-help document preparation service.