Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia
My wife stated she wanted a divorce yet no papers have been filed for separation. We still live in the same house, sleeping in separate rooms. This has been going for 5 months now. Are we legally separated?
1 Answer from Attorneys
There is no legal status in the Commonwealth formally recognized as "legal
separation". However, if you mean to refer to one of the conditions required for divorce per Va. Code Sec. 20-91, i.e., the spouses living separate and apart continuously without cohabitation for at least 12 months immediately preceding the divorce filing, then, no, what you've described would not appear to comport with these requirements (in my opinion).