Divorce

A divorce from bed and board is similar to a legal separation and it may be a way to protect your rights or to get child or spousal support until you can get an absolute divorce in court, but it doesn’t actually end (dissolve) the marriage. This is a fault-based action, usually brought by an injured spouse to get the court to order the other spouse out of the home.

For a divorce from bed and board, you must establish at least one of the following fault grounds:

• abandonment;
• maliciously being thrown out of the house;
• cruel treatment that endangers your life, such as physical abuse;
• s/he makes your life miserable, such as emotional abuse;
• abuse of alcohol or drugs to the point where you cannot tolerate living with your spouse; or
• adultery.¹

For more information on “divorce from bed and board,” please talk to a lawyer who specializes in divorce. You can find lawyers in your area in NC Finding a Lawyer.

¹ N.C.G.S.§ 50-7