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Legal Information: Iowa

Divorce

Updated: 
November 3, 2023

What are the grounds for divorce in Iowa?

Grounds are legally acceptable reasons for divorce. To file for a divorce in Iowa, you must prove that:

  1. there was a breakdown of your marriage to the extent that the purpose of the marriage was destroyed; and
  2. there is no reasonable likelihood that your marriage will be repaired.1

If the person filing for divorce (petitioner) fails to prove this to the judge at the hearing through his/her evidence, the other spouse (respondent) can present evidence to prove these things to the judge.2

1 Iowa Code § 598.5(1)(g)
2 Iowa Code § 598.17

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