Louisiana Divorce: When Abuse Allows For a Quicker Divorce

In Louisiana, there are a few different requirements to getting a divorce from one’s spouse.  One of the most common is the “separate and apart” requirement.  This means that spouses who are seeking a divorce must live separate and apart (and by that we mean different domiciles entirely) for one hundred and eighty days in cases where there are no children, and three hundred and sixty five days in cases where there are children.  Nevertheless, there can be situations where these requirements are relaxed given particular circumstances.
For example, let’s take a hypothetical couple: Jimmy and Janet.  Jimmy and Janet were married for five years before they had a child, Chris.  All three lived in the family home in Baton Rouge.  Janet worked as a public school teacher, and Jimmy worked in a factory in Laplace.
Jimmy was a recovering alcoholic.  His alcoholism caused him and Janet a good deal of grief while they were dating.  Actually, Janet refused to marry Jimmy until he cleaned up his drinking problem.  One night, before they got married, Jimmy hit “rock bottom.”  Rock bottom is a phrase that many alcoholics use to describe an event which was so awful and humiliating and damaging, which came about as a consequence from their drinking, that they realized the err of their ways.  In Jimmy’s case, it was quite an awful rock bottom.  After binge drinking for nearly 72 hours during Memorial Day weekend, Jimmy went by himself to go watch the local AAA baseball team play.  At the stadium he became so intoxicated that he took off all of his clothes and ran out onto the field.  Jimmy is a pretty large guy, and in order to detain him, the police had to use multiple Tasers.  The damage from the Tasers was extensive, and Jimmy went into cardiac arrest.  He was transported to the local hospital where he barely survived from his injuries.
This event made Jimmy completely sober.  After two years of sobriety, Janet agreed to marry him.  As previously noted, five years later they had Chris.  Now let’s fast forward to ten years later.  Jimmy is still sober, but he just lost his job at the factory he worked at.  His mother and father just perished in a car accident.  To top it all off, Janet tells him that she no longer loves him.
This is too much for Jimmy, and he starts drinking again.  His alcoholism comes back with a vengeance.  When he drinks he becomes very violent, and he takes his anger out on both Janet and their son.  One day he beats Dan so badly that Dan suffers two black eyes.  The next day in school, the school psychologist calls Janet to inquire about the injuries.  She explains that it is Jimmy who is causing them, and that she is filing for divorce.
Now, normally in Louisiana, Janet would have to wait 365 days to get a divorce from Jimmy because they have a child together.  However, given his abuse of both the child and Janet, as well as the fact that there is evidence to corroborate her testimony, there’s a good chance that a Louisiana family court will only require Janet to wait less, given the abuse which is occurring.
Will Beaumont practices law in New Orleans.  The above is just information and not legal advice.