Mississippi handles divorces differently than most states in that it requires a showing of fault if the spouses don’t agree to end their marriage. One of the grounds for divorce is adultery. Knowing that your spouse has cheated on you can be emotionally crushing, but if you can prove that a voluntary sexual relationship occurred outside of the marriage, then it can have a tremendous impact on your marriage dissolution.
How adultery can affect spousal support
You’re not entitled to alimony simply because your spouse cheated on you. However, you’ll have a stronger argument to recover alimony if you can demonstrate that your spouse used marital assets to support their affair. If spousal support is going to be at issue in your divorce, though, you’ll still want to address the other relevant statutory factors, such as childcare obligations, each spouse’s financial resources, and the length of your marriage.
How adultery can affect property division
Similar to how spousal support is handled, alimony can come into play during the property division process. Since Mississippi utilizes equitable division of marital assets, meaning that assets should be divided fairly, the court may find that it’s better to give you more of the marital estate if your spouse used marital funds to support adultery.
Will adultery affect child custody?
Not by itself. The court will still default to the best interest of the child standard, which may not implicate adultery. While you may be able to show that your spouse’s affair demonstrates poor judgment, you’re probably going to need additional evidence if you want to secure sole physical custody of your kid.
Know how to handle adultery in your Mississippi divorce
It can be hard to motivate yourself to advocate for your interests after being cheated on. But now is the time to turn the tables and fight for what’s fair. So, if you’re ready to develop an effective divorce strategy based on your circumstances, then now is the time to build the best legal arguments possible based on the facts at hand.