AD and ED

North Carolina Divorce Law Divorce and Separation Answers
1

I spoke with the clerk’s office earlier and they confirmed that I have an open Equitable Distribution claim that is pending in the system. I previously had an attorney who filed this claim, however I am currently pro se. I have recently filed a complaint for Absolute Divorce and have a hearing date of April 2, 2015. On the Civil Action Cover Sheet accompanying the AD complaint I did not check the ED box. I was trying to confirm 2 things:

  1. Does the ED case that is open reserve my right to pursue ED after the AD is ordered, or do I need to file a separate claim in order to reserve this right? I am trying to figure out if what has already been done is sufficient in this sense.

  2. Can I amend the AD complaint that I previously filed to include the ED component for the judge to evaluate? Or file a Motion with the court to have this included in the complaint.

2

  1. So long as your ED claim is pending (and it sounds like this was confirmed by the clerk), your AD can be granted without losing that claim. You have to have a pending ED claim before the judgement is entered or the claim is lose.

  2. AD and ED are two completely separate processes. The judge who signs your AD Judgement will not at the same time hear your ED case. If you want to move forward with your ED claim you need to notice a hearing for that separately.