Divorce can be legally complex and emotionally draining. Some cases are resolved quickly, while others seem to drag on for years without closure.
Extended legal battles can also damage finances, mental health, and children.
Common Reasons Divorces Drag On
Not every divorce follows a quick or cooperative path. Some unravel into long, drawn-out legal battles with months—if not years—of back-and-forth.
Several key factors often combine to slow progress. Emotional strain, financial disputes, and legal maneuvering each have a role.
Recognizing where delays originate is the first step toward managing or avoiding them.
Court System Delays
Courts in busy jurisdictions like Los Angeles and Texas often deal with overwhelming case loads. Judges have full calendars, and finding an available trial date can take several months or even years.
In Texas, for example, there’s a mandatory 60-day waiting period after filing before the divorce can even be finalized.
Some states require even more time depending on the complexity of the case or issues related to children.
Scheduling delays often snowball. Postponements caused by attorney availability, judicial scheduling conflicts, or paperwork errors can push dates further down the road.
Filing backlogs make it difficult to expedite proceedings once a case enters the system.
Emotional Factors and Lack of Compromise
Many divorces drag on because one or both parties struggle to separate emotional pain from legal decisions. A desire to “win” or punish the other spouse often fuels unnecessary conflict. Couples may argue over minor issues—furniture, pets, or holiday schedules—as though these disputes carry symbolic weight.
Treating divorce like a business transaction rather than a personal vendetta, reduces delays.
Emotional stubbornness often results in increased attorney involvement, court motions, and long-term resentment—all of which prolong the case.
Financial Complexities
Financial disputes often cause delays. In many partnerships, one spouse typically handles the finances. When divorce proceedings start, the other partner might need to catch up by obtaining records, consulting experts, and evaluating future financial needs.
Hidden assets, disputed property valuations, or questions about business income often require forensic accountants. Financial discovery alone can take months, especially if one party is uncooperative or evasive. The more money involved, the longer the process tends to be.
Spouse Using Delay Tactics
Some spouses deliberately slow things down. Motivations include trying to maintain financial control, avoiding child support, or emotionally manipulating the other person. Common tactics include switching attorneys, refusing service of documents, filing excessive or frivolous motions, and simply not responding to legal communication.
Deliberate delay often signals that the spouse is either not ready to move on or trying to gain leverage. When these tactics go unchecked, cases can remain open for years, draining both sides financially and emotionally.
High-Conflict or Contested Issues
Disagreements over child custody, property division, or spousal support are major reasons for delay. These issues require legal clarity and careful planning. When children are involved, courts prioritize their welfare, which often means custody evaluations, guardian ad litems, and child psychologists may become part of the process.
Contested divorces require more court time, more evidence, and often involve multiple hearings. Reaching a resolution becomes a long, drawn-out ordeal if the parties can’t find common ground.
Legal and Systemic Constraints on Speeding Up Divorce
Even the most cooperative couples face legal limits on how quickly a divorce can be completed. Courts have mandatory procedures and timelines that must be followed.
No matter how motivated someone is to move on, legal structures often slow progress.
Statutory Waiting Periods
Certain jurisdictions require mandatory waiting periods before a divorce can be finalized. Texas enforces a 60-day waiting period, even in uncontested cases. These timelines are in place to allow both parties a cooling-off period, giving them a chance to reconsider or settle outside court.
Some states allow exceptions, such as cases involving domestic violence or mutual agreement to waive the waiting period. However, these exceptions are not guaranteed and require legal approval.
Required Procedures
Each divorce case must go through specific legal steps. Discovery requires both parties to share financial and personal information. Mediation is often required before trial. Pre-trial hearings and motions can be scheduled weeks apart due to court availability.
Failure to follow these steps delays the process further. Missing a deadline, submitting incomplete paperwork, or failing to attend mediation adds unnecessary time. Legal requirements are rigid, and skipping them is rarely allowed.
How to Proactively Speed Up the Divorce Process
While many obstacles slow divorce cases down, several proactive steps can help move things along. Couples who plan ahead and make smart legal choices can save time, money, and stress.
Choose the Right Divorce Process
Opting for mediation, collaborative divorce, or arbitration instead of litigation can save significant time and stress. These alternatives help resolve disputes without involving courtrooms.
Mediation involves a neutral third party helping both sides reach an agreement.
Collaborative Divorce includes lawyers for each side but encourages cooperation rather than conflict.
Arbitration can provide a faster resolution when both sides agree to let an arbitrator make binding decisions.
Avoiding court reduces cost, shortens the timeline, and keeps matters private.
Get Financially Organized Early
Starting with a clear financial inventory helps avoid surprises. Organize tax returns, bank statements, retirement accounts, property titles, and insurance policies. Sharing these documents promptly keeps the case moving forward.
Early financial preparation reduces the need for extensive discovery, limits conflict, and allows both parties to make informed decisions quickly.
Work with the Right Professionals
Choosing professionals who focus on resolution rather than prolonging conflict makes a big difference. Kabir Family Law recommends selecting attorneys committed to timely settlement. Working with neutral financial planners or certified divorce coaches can reduce emotional obstacles and improve communication.
Mediators with strong availability and experience in high-conflict cases can guide the process more effectively than overworked judges or adversarial lawyers.
Use Strategic Legal Tools
Proactive legal strategies can prevent stalling. Filing a motion to set a trial date, requesting deadlines for document exchange, or proposing early mediation can put pressure on both sides to act.
Courts appreciate parties who are organized and show intent to move things forward. Settlement offers made early can set the tone for resolution and may even result in a faster, more favorable outcome.
How to Handle a Spouse Intentionally Delaying Divorce
Not everyone is ready to divorce at the same time. Some will do anything to avoid finalizing the split. Knowing how to spot and counter delay tactics makes a difference.
Recognize Common Delay Tactics
Intentional delays often follow a pattern. These include:
- Repeatedly changing legal representation
- Refusing to accept service of court papers
- Missing deadlines or submitting incomplete information
- Filing baseless motions to tie up court time
- Making false allegations to manipulate custody or finances
Recognizing these tactics helps prevent emotional and financial damage.
Countering Delays Effectively
Responding swiftly and professionally limits the damage caused by delays. Requesting a scheduling order from the court creates official timelines. Asking for a trial date or submitting a motion to compel action can limit a spouse’s ability to stall.
Clear documentation of all interactions is essential. Email trails, certified mail receipts, and court filings help show judges when delay tactics are being used. Courts are more likely to act if they see repeated abuse of the legal process.
Judges notice patterns, and strategic legal moves can cut through months of obstruction.
Summary
Divorce delays stem from many sources—overloaded courts, emotional conflict, financial disputes, and intentional stalling.
Every case is different, but many patterns are avoidable. Being proactive, working with resolution-focused professionals and staying legally informed all play a role in reaching closure faster.
Even the most complicated divorces can be handled efficiently with the right plan, support, and mindset.