If you wish to divorce in Milwaukee, you do not need to cite a reason. Wisconsin is a no-fault state. You only need to say that your marriage has broken down and you cannot repair it.
However, if you are considering divorce, you do have your reasons. A recent study of motives for divorce shows just how diverse those reasons can be.
In many cases, it is a combination of factors that finally pushes someone to end their marriage. For example, it is very common for there to be a “last straw” combined with concerns that are more long-term in nature.
These are some of the reasons people gave when interviewed for the study:
- We are incompatible
- It’s never going to change
- Money problems got in the way
- We argue all the time
- We don’t talk
- My spouse cheated on me
- There is no warmth in our marriage
- We were too young to marry
- My spouse abuses me
- My spouse has a drinking/drug/shopping/gambling problem
Those are merely the most common reasons cited by study participants. Less common, although still important, factors included:
- We had unrealistic expectations
- Our in-laws caused conflict
- One spouse gained weight
- A sense of lost identity
- One spouse refuses to work on the marriage
- One spouse developed a serious illness or disability
Keeping your reasons confidential
You do not have to prove your spouse was at fault for the end of your marriage. Thanks to Wisconsin’s no-fault treatment of divorce, you can keep your divorce reasons confidential. This means that the reasons behind your and your spouse’s separation will not factor into the outcome of your case.
Indeed, you can keep the details of your life, how you are to divide your property, the arrangements for your children and decisions about support private. You can negotiate your own solutions to the issues of divorce and present them to a court as settled. That way, your private business remains your own.