Can my wife get money from me after being separated for 2 years?

Q: My wife and I got married in 2009. A year later I left her due to domestic violence, got a 1 year restraining order against her and have not seen her since then. We are still married. I was promising her for the past 2 years that I will file for divorce but never got around to it. She moved out of state and now lives with her boyfriend. I also promised her I will give her some money since she could not get a student loan because she was still married and I have not filed for divorce yet. Now she says that she spoke to a lawyer and can make me pay a lot of money to her because I did not file for a divorce when I promised, and she says that she has facebook messages as evidence. Can she do that or is she just playing with me?

A: To answer your question: I think your wife is doing a little bit of both, she is probably playing you a little but she has some good points and it very well could cost you some money.

Do yourself a favor and file for divorce from her as soon as possible. File in Arizona before she files in a different state and then you are faced with the logistical nightmare of fighting her claims in a different state.

She does have some compelling arguments, the best thing would be to contact an experienced family law attorney in Arizona immediately. Many family law lawyers offer free consultations at which you can get your questions answered and use the advice from the lawyers in order to formulate a plan to get this matter resolved with the least amount of damage to you. She is pretty serious about wanting a divorce from you if she went to see an attorney. Make it happen sooner than later as it will cost you more the longer you wait.

Answered by:

Evan Bornmann
Re-Published from: AVVO Legal Answers and Questions