Question:

Hello, I'm trying to get information to help my girl friend get a divorce from someone in the Army. She has tried and tried to get a divorce, but he just won't do it. He is also seeing other people and now lives in a different state. Every time she brings it up,  he just gets nasty:  talking about taking the kids, hope she has a good lawyer, how he doubts it because he makes better money. (Pays almost no child support) I've read she still has access to some benefits,  but he did his best to make sure she knows nothing about things like that. Any info on services she can call for help would be great.

Jim's Reply:

If your friend wants a divorce all she has to do is to file for it. She can do this with or without a lawyer to help her in most states. If she can't afford a lawyer all she has to do is go to the family court facility and ask the clerk of court for papers to file for divorce. They will then deliver that to him and he will have no choice but to respond to the court. The court is where child support orders and all the rest of the issues are resolved. Unless and until she does this, there is no other help available. She has to take the first step to protect herself and yes, he'll be angry and make threats but that's too bad, the court will deal with all that.

• PS from StatesideLegal:  Using the "Find Legal Help" directory, she can look for a local LRS provider and ask for a low-cost consultation with an attorney who has experience with military divorce to understand the issues and her rights in this case.