Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1897-10-01
UNlFoRM DIVORCE LAWS.

The present divorce laws of Vermont
are in the main wise and well considered.
They are administered in a conservative
and iudicious manner, and it is rarely
that divorce in this state is uniustly OBJ
tanned The suit must be brought in
the county where one of the parties re-
sides, and our system of assistant Judges
is peculiarly valuable in these cases, as
the character and reputation of parties
and witnesses is almost certain to be
known to one or more members OF the
court. The provisions relating to ali
mony and to custody of children give
the court large discretionary powers,
which in most cases are so wisely eXer-
clsed as to leaye no just cause for COM
plant. The petitioner must have resided
in the state one year at least next pre-
ceding the filing of the petition; and if
the cause alleged accrued out of this
state and before the parties lived together
in the state. and while neither resides
therein the statute requires residence
by the petitioner of two years in the
state, and six months in the county
where the petition is filed, next preced-
ing such filing. a statute passed in
1884 required that all divorce cases en-
tered at any term of the county court
should be continued to the succeeding
term but after ten years operation this
statute was repealed in 1894, mainly OH
the ground that it imposed too great a
burden upon petitioners, about nine
tenths Of whom are women, mostly
poor. Divorce from bed and board may
be decreed in any case warranting a
divorce from the bond of matrmony.
The causes for divorce in this state
are adultery, sentence to state prison
for three years or more and confinement
therein; intolerable severity; wilful de-
sertion for three consecutive years; alb
sence, unheard of, for seven years; and
Gin favor of wife when the husband,
being able, without cause, grossly or
wantouly and cruelty refuses or neglects
to provide suitable maintenance for the
wife.
Abuses under divorce laws are mainly
due to the fact that in some of the states
the law in respect to residence and no.
tice is so lax that a party may go tenn
porarily to such state and there after a
short stay, procure a divorce without
actual notice to the opposite party.
| These conditions have naturally been
utilized by rascals and the divorces thus
obtained have frequently, if not general
ly. been in favor of the guilty party. Tc
correct this great evil various eXpedients
have been suggested.
Latest among these remedies is thai
urged by the committee of the American
Bar Association upon uniform laws
This committee does not suggest the
causes for which a divorce ought to bC
granted. leaving that for the various
states. But it recommends that a uni
form statute in respect to residence anC
notice be urged before the legislatures o
all the states, which, if passed by all
would 90 far to remedy the evil. |
provides fol- a residence of two years IL
the state where suit is brought, and re
quires that the defendant shall be served
personally with notice within the stat
unless he shall voluntarily appear In tn
action. 1t also provides that the cour
may order notice by publication if tn
defendant be nonresident of the state
provided the cause of action arose Will
he was a resident of the state, and he ha
been absent from the state for one yea
after return of summons not found
All divorce hearings must be held i
, open court and no divorce shall b
granted for default unless the cour
shall be satisfied by evidence that a
proper means have been taken to motif
, the defendant, and the cause of divOrc
has been fully proved. The full teS
I of the uniform law proposed is given
p the American Lawyer, for September
1897, published at 20 Murray stree
q New York. 1t is similar to the la
now in force in the District of Columbi
q and is not radically different from ii
. existing system in Vermont. The sui
f iect is worthy of careful considerable
n by the people of every state in tt
T. dnion, with view to organized an
p energetic action.