Getting divorced
Getting Divorced? There's a Better Way to Manage the Whole Process
A divorce is far bigger than the legal case. Separate Ways is the free place to start and manage the whole transition: a free app on web and mobile, free core Divorce Concierge support and modern AI-assisted tools for your family and children, home and real estate, property and assets, finances, documents, and the professional help you may want, including an attorney when you need one.
Separate Ways works in any browser today. The iOS and Android apps are on the way.
My Divorce
What to work on next
When you are ready
Ask your concierge a question, or request attorney help.
- 01
Start free and tell us where things stand
Create a free account and put your situation in one place: dates, family, property, finances, documents and open questions.
- 02
See what your divorce actually involves
Your state's requirements plus the family, home, property, financial and document work that comes with the transition.
- 03
Work through it with your tools, concierge and the right professionals
Manage the transition in My Divorce with free core Divorce Concierge support, and bring in an attorney or other professional when your situation calls for it.
Divorce law and court procedure are set state by state, so this page is general educational guidance rather than legal advice.
Written by the Separate Ways editorial team. Updated August 28, 2026. For questions about your own case, use your state's guide and speak with an attorney licensed in your state.
Chapter one
What should I do first if I'm getting divorced?
Tell us where things stand. We will help you figure out what comes next.
You do not need to know the legal answers yet. The first move is capturing your situation once, in one place, so every decision after it has something to stand on.
What happens after you tell us
- 01
Divorce Scope captures the situation
A plain-language walkthrough of your family, home, property, finances, documents and urgent concerns.
- 02
My Divorce turns it into next actions
Your command center for what needs attention, what is done and what is waiting on someone else.
- 03
Divorce Concierge helps when you are unsure
Reach a Separate Ways Divorce Concierge when you do not know what comes next. Core concierge support is free.
The first product step in Separate Ways is Divorce Scope. It walks you through your current situation in plain language: important dates, children and schedules, assets, debts, real estate, income, any court papers you have received and the concerns that feel most urgent right now.
From there, Separate Ways turns that picture into personalized next actions inside My Divorce, your ongoing workspace for progress, documents and requests for help, with your free Divorce Concierge available when you are not sure who to ask.
Then find out which state-specific process applies to you. State law drives residency, filing, timelines and what the court will require, so that is the read that turns a general plan into real next steps. If you have been served or there is a safety concern, treat legal help as urgent and get it promptly.
Working this way is designed to reduce unnecessary cost, delay, duplication and confusion, and to help you arrive better prepared for the professional conversations that follow.
Chapter two
Start with your state's divorce guide
Divorce law is state-specific. Residency rules, filing requirements, waiting periods, response deadlines, disclosures, parenting requirements and local court procedure can all change depending on where you file. Start with the guide for the state that applies to you, then use the national chapters below to organize the rest of the transition.
The state guide explains the legal and procedural environment you are working in. Separate Ways helps you manage your actual divorce inside that environment: what you have gathered, what needs attention next and who you may want to bring in.
More state guides are being added as Separate Ways expands. Until a state guide is live here, use your state's official court self-help resources for current filing and procedural information.
Live state guide
Getting Divorced in Utah
Utah residency, filing, service, response deadlines, the 30-day minimum waiting period, financial disclosures, mediation, required parenting classes and what to expect next.
Chapter three
The parts of a divorce Separate Ways helps you organize and manage
A divorce is a whole transition, not a single legal event. These are not just topics to read about. They are the areas your Divorce Scope captures and My Divorce keeps organized, with your free Divorce Concierge available when you are unsure what comes next. These are organizational categories, not legal conclusions about your case. Divorce Scope and My Divorce are available today, and additional support areas are in development and will be added to the same app as they become available.
Children and parenting
Schedules, school and activities, holidays, communication and how parenting will work day to day.
Home and real estate
The family home and any other property, along with the records, loans and decisions attached to them.
Bank, investment and retirement accounts
What accounts exist, where they are held and what statements you can access.
Debts and ongoing expenses
Credit cards, loans, recurring bills and the everyday costs that continue during the transition.
Income and financial records
Pay, self-employment income, tax returns and the documents that show your financial picture.
Insurance and beneficiaries
Health, life, auto and home coverage, plus beneficiary designations you may need to revisit.
Business interests
If either spouse owns part of a business, the ownership records and financials matter early.
Documents and court papers
Anything already filed or served, along with the personal records you will be asked for.
Professional help you may want
Legal, financial, real estate or family support, depending on what your situation actually needs.
Post-divorce transition tasks
Name and title changes, accounts, benefits, housing and the follow-through after a decree.
Property and assets can be cataloged and organized in one place, which is designed to reduce duplication and confusion later and to help you arrive better prepared when a professional does need to get involved. Handoffs to specialists such as valuation and appraisal professionals, mortgage and real estate professionals and other local services are part of the broader platform direction and are being developed alongside the support areas above. Attorney help is available in the app today where Trusted Attorney options exist in your area.
Chapter four
Do I need a divorce attorney?
It depends on your situation, and not everyone needs the same level of legal help.
Separate Ways is not a law firm. Reviewing options or meeting an attorney does not create an attorney-client relationship.
An attorney handles the legal work. Separate Ways helps you manage the divorce around it. Attorney help is an important professional handoff inside a larger platform, not the whole product, and coming to that conversation already organized is designed to reduce unnecessary cost, delay and repeated explanation.
Practical reasons someone may want an attorney involved can include being served with papers, significant disagreement about children or money, safety or power concerns, complex assets or business interests, uncertainty about whether an agreement is reasonable, or a spouse who already has counsel. If your situation is urgent, legal help may need to happen right away, before anything else. Only an attorney licensed in your state can advise you about your own case.
Separate Ways does not choose your attorney. If you request attorney help in the app, eligible Trusted Attorney options can be presented where they are available in your area based on objective factors such as jurisdiction, service area and availability. You review the options, put them in your own order and decide whom you want to contact.
For what to prepare, what to ask and how Separate Ways attorney help works, see our guide to finding a divorce attorney.
Chapter five
What should I gather before I start?
Collect the records that describe your household, your finances and your family schedule.
This is organization guidance rather than a list every state or court requires. Gathering it early tends to make later steps calmer, whether or not you end up working with an attorney.
- 01Identification and current contact information for both spouses
- 02Marriage date, and separation date if that applies to your situation
- 03Any court papers you have filed or been served with
- 04Income, payroll and recent tax records
- 05Real estate records, mortgage statements and loan documents
- 06Bank, investment and retirement account statements
- 07Credit card, loan and other debt balances
- 08Insurance policies and beneficiary designations
- 09Business ownership and financial records, if any
- 10Children's schedules, school details and care arrangements
- 11Your immediate questions, deadlines and concerns
Chapter six
Your roadmap from here
- 01
Understand your current situation with Divorce Scope
Divorce Scope captures where you are today so nothing important stays in your head.
- 02
Learn the state and process rules that apply
Requirements come from your state, so the next read should be your state's guide.
- 03
Identify immediate deadlines, safety needs or urgent legal issues
If you have been served or there are safety concerns, those come first and legal help may be needed right away.
- 04
Decide what professional help is useful
Some people want an attorney early, others want help with finances, housing or parenting first.
- 05
Work through family, property, financial and document tasks
Break the transition into pieces instead of trying to resolve everything at once.
- 06
Keep managing progress in My Divorce with your Divorce Concierge
Your progress, next steps and attorney-help status stay together in one workspace.
Most people do not need to resolve everything at once. They need the next right step, in order, with the earlier work already captured.
Chapter seven
Divorce laws are different in every state
There is no single national divorce process, so the details have to come from your state.
Separate Ways stays the same wherever you live. The organizing work, your Divorce Scope, My Divorce and your Divorce Concierge run the same way. Only the legal and procedural requirements change from state to state.
This page is organizational and educational guidance. It can help you see what to capture and what questions to ask, but it does not replace the state rules and local court procedures that control your actual case.
Requirements that commonly vary by state and by local court include:
- Residency requirements before you can file
- Where and how a case is filed
- How the other spouse must be served
- Waiting periods before a decree can be signed
- Financial disclosure requirements
- Parenting class and parenting plan requirements
- Whether mediation is expected before a hearing
- Local court procedure, forms and timelines
That is why this page hands off to state-specific guides instead of describing one process that would be wrong somewhere.
State coverage
State divorce guides
The product
One place to run your divorce
- 01
Divorce Scope: understand the situation
Capture your family, home, property, finances and documents once, in plain language, so nothing important stays in your head.
- 02
My Divorce: your command center
One workspace for progress, next actions, records and requests for help across the whole transition.
- 03
Divorce Concierge: free human support
Reach a Separate Ways Divorce Concierge when you need help coordinating a next step. Core concierge support is free.
- 04
AI-assisted tools: help with the work
Modern tools help you organize documents, details and open questions instead of spreading them across notes and email.
- 05
Professional handoffs when you need them
Request attorney help and review Trusted Attorney options available in your area, then decide for yourself whom to contact.
- 06
Keep managing the transition in one place
Your decisions, records and next steps stay visible as the divorce moves forward, which is designed to reduce duplication and avoidable friction.
Additional support areas covering family, assets, real estate and financial transition are in development and will be added to the same app as they become available.
Utah local guides
If Utah is the state that applies to you, go deeper on the local process and attorney help: Getting Divorced in Utah, Find a Divorce Attorney in Utah, Divorce attorneys in Salt Lake City, Divorce attorneys in Provo, Divorce attorneys in St. George.
Common questions
- What should I do first when getting divorced?
- Get organized before making decisions that are hard to undo. Write down your current situation, important dates, children and schedules, income, accounts, debts, real estate, insurance and any court papers you have received. Then find out which state's process applies to you and what that state requires.
- Do I need an attorney to get divorced?
- It depends on the situation. Some people resolve a divorce without ongoing legal representation, and others want an attorney involved from the start. Legal help is often worth considering if you have been served, if there is significant disagreement, if there are safety or power concerns, if assets or a business are complex, or if your spouse already has counsel. Talk with a licensed attorney in your state about your own case.
- How do I know which state's divorce rules apply?
- Divorce is governed by state law and local court procedure, and states set their own residency and filing requirements. Where you and your spouse currently live, and how long you have lived there, usually drive the answer. Confirm the details with your state's court self-help resources or an attorney licensed in that state.
- What financial information should I gather?
- As a general organizational starting point: income and payroll records, recent tax returns, bank and investment statements, retirement account statements, real estate and mortgage records, loan and credit card balances, insurance policies and beneficiary designations, and business records if either spouse owns a business.
- What if I have already been served with divorce papers?
- Being served usually starts a response deadline set by that state's rules, and missing it can affect the outcome. Read the papers carefully, note any dates, and get guidance quickly from your state's court resources or an attorney licensed in your state.
- Is Separate Ways a law firm?
- No. Separate Ways is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice or represent you. Separate Ways helps you organize your divorce transition, understand next steps and, when you ask for attorney help in the app, review Trusted Attorney options available in your area so you can decide whom to contact.
Start free
Tell us where things stand
Start free, capture your situation with Divorce Scope, and get an organized plan for what comes next, with your free Divorce Concierge and attorney help when you want it.
The app and core Divorce Concierge support are free. Separate Ways is not a law firm.
Separate Ways provides general educational information and organizational tools. This page is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Divorce requirements are set by state law and local court rules and can change. Confirm current requirements with your state's courts or a qualified attorney in your state.