Springville Utah Divorce Attorney

Located in Utah Valley, Utah County, Springville is about midway between the north and south borders of the county to the east of Utah Lake at approximately 4,500 feet in elevation, at the foot of the Wasatch Range. One of the most important features of the Springville location is Hobble Creek, a stream draining the modest watershed of Hobble Creek Canyon. Springs from both forks of the canyon feed the creek above what is now the Hobble Creek Golf Course, but irrigation keeps Hobble Creek from flowing perennially. These springs and others north of town give Springville its name, although it was first called Hobble Creek. Native Americans of the Ute tribe occupied land in the well-watered valley. They hunted and fished, but left no written record of their lifeways. The first such record of these people is in journal entries of the Dominguez-Escalante expedition, which left Santa Fe for Monterey in July 1776. The Spanish fathers leading the expedition were delighted to find many Utes living around Lake Timpanogotsis (Utah), and felt the Indians, including those living on Hobble Creek, might be subject to their missionary efforts. Aaron Johnson led settlers to Springville in 1850.

Mormon settlers displaced Native Americans and relegated them to an “Indian Farm,” located on poor ground, unfit for farming, at the mouth of the Spanish Fork River near the Utah Lake. Mormon settlers developed subsistence farming for fewer families than was hoped, due to lack of water. Some Springville farmers turned to hauling freight from California twice a year. Following the Civil War in 1865, other farmers turned to raising cattle and sheep. Completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869 made rail shipment of stock to market possible, so stockmen used more intensive grazing practices. The railroad also helped make mining products profitable, and many mines started to be developed. Beginning in 1878, Springville merchant Milan Packard built a railroad to bring coal from Scofield to Utah Valley. The Rio Grande Railroad bought out the line in 1882. Like the Native Americans before them, Springville stockmen lived in the valley during the winter and grazed their animals in the mountains in summer. Valley precipitation is generally low, six to twelve inches per year. Above 6,000 feet elevation, precipitation in the mountains is 20 inches to 30 inches annually. Most of the water comes in the form of winter snow. Stockmen over-used grazing resources. The stock consumed most of the grass from the hillsides, leaving surfaces unprotected from summer cloudbursts and spring runoff. The resulting floods and mud flows nearly caused abandonment of some rural communities. The results of land abuse prompted community leaders to call for federal help for their problems. In 1902 Albert Potter from the U.S. Department of Agriculture surveyed the mountains. His report, coupled with pleas from community leaders, brought in the recently created U.S. Forest Service to manage area forest resources, including grasslands above Springville. During the stockraisers’ struggle with grassland use, area farmers were looking for ways to find more water for irrigation. They also invited the federal government in by applying the recently passed Newlands Act (1902). The new law loaned federal money to local groups to develop water projects in arid or semi-arid regions of the country. The Strawberry Project was the result of farmers in Utah Valley trying to use the Strawberry River to irrigate their land. Springville’s “Union Bench” was a beneficiary of the project, and led to formation of Mapleton City out of Springville benchland. Springville farmers grew sugar beets as a cash crop. Local companies built a system of factories to process sugar that sold nationwide. Fruit farms expanded at the demand of national canning companies like Del Monte. Following World War I, L.F. Rains established a steel plant north of Springville to take advantage of his coal interests in Carbon County. He formed the Columbia Steel Corporation at Ironton in 1922 to make pig iron. He negotiated with J.W. McWane to use iron to make cast-iron pipe in facilities adjacent to the Ironton plant. He also invited Republic Creosoting Company to establish a plant to use coal tar, a by-product of the coking operation at Ironton. This industrial complex employed Springville men. In 1921 the U.S. government passed a law to assist states with highway construction. Several companies from Springville organized to take advantage of the opportunity. Springville families including the Clydes, Strongs, Sumsions, Reynolds, Whitings, Thorns, and Mendenhalls benefited until the Great Depression eliminated federal money. In 1936 construction of roads and other public works was part of the recovery plan and Springville contractors again were active participants. Springville was said to have had more contractors than any other town of its size in America. Springville is noted around the state for its art museum, and it also has a business district. However, removing traffic from the city also removed it from the Springville business district. The net result has been a reduction of retail business activity in Springville. Nevertheless, Springville’s population has grown steadily since the 1920s, reaching 13,950 in 1990. Springville’s largest employers include Stouffer Foods Corporation, with over 500 employees, and Valtek, which has more than 400 employees. There are five elementary schools and one junior high school, one middle school, and one high school in Springville. Most of the community are LDS and attend twenty-nine wards in four stakes. The Presbyterian Church has been active in the community since its establishment in 1880.

How Divorce Works In Springville Utah

Often the first step taken in the process of getting a divorce is for one spouse to move out of the shared residence. This might just be a trial separation while they decide if divorce is imminent or if they might get back together, or this might be a definite step in the initiation of the divorce. If it is the former, then this is not a legally recognized separation, and any assets or debts created during this time are still jointly owned. When people refer to “legal separation” they usually mean that period of time they are required to live apart before they can file for divorce. Most states don’t actually have a “legal separation,” just the separation requirement, which entails living (and sleeping) in different locations at all times. Even getting back together for short periods of time may reset the clock for the separation period. Separate bedrooms in the same house do not constitute a separation. Like for the final divorce, there can be an agreement to divide property and temporarily establish spousal support and child custody. Any assets or debts accumulated during the separation belong to the individual rather than the couple. Sometimes, people choose a legally recognized separation in lieu of a divorce, meaning the couple is still legally married but living apart indefinitely. This arrangement may be preferable for insurance or other reasons.

Filing a Divorce Petition

People can only file for divorce in the state where they live and must have already met the separation requirements. Filing for divorce, also called filing a “Complaint for Dissolution of Marriage,” requires appropriate forms to be completed, a fee paid and the papers filed with the district court in the appropriate county. If you’re using an attorney, the attorney will help complete the forms and file them. If not, you’re usually on your own. The court personnel will not answer legal questions or help with paperwork. Part of the petition for divorce is the “grounds for divorce.” Even when filing for a no-fault divorce, there has to be a stated reason. Many states simply have a single available ground for no-fault divorce, such as “irretrievable breakdown of marriage” or “irreconcilable differences.” Other states have three or four grounds. Fault-based divorces have varied grounds depending on the state. Another part of the petition includes a listing of items that will be at issue such as the residence, cars and other shared possessions.

Notifying the Spouse

Once you file the complaint, your spouse has to be notified, or served. You (or your lawyer) must submit to the court proof that your spouse has been formally notified. Usually, the spouse can simply sign what is sometimes called a Voluntary Appearance document. If your spouse signs a Voluntary Appearance document, then he or she simply agrees to everything in the complaint and does not have to respond. Otherwise, he or she must formally respond, or file an answer, within a specific period of time usually 20 to 30 days. And, once he or she responds, there is another waiting period before a hearing can be set.

If your spouse is served and does not answer, then the judge can grant you everything requested in the complaint. If your spouse cannot be located, then usually a “service by publication” can be filed. In this case, notice about the divorce appears in a newspaper serving the county where your spouse last lived. This method for service usually allows a longer response period.

Temporary Hearing

Because a trial can be a year away, there may be a “temporary hearing” (also called a motion) to establish temporary child or spousal support and other issues. Some common requests for “temporary” relief include:
• Request for temporary custody of minor children and for temporary child support
• Request for exclusive use of the marital home
• Request for exclusive use of motor vehicle
• Request for injunction to make sure health insurance isn’t canceled
• Request for injunction to make sure neither party can access a joint investment/brokerage account until the further order of the court
• Request for award of attorney’s fees, meaning one spouse pays the other’s fees
• Request for spousal support or alimony
After the temporary hearing, there is often a long wait. That time is usually used to get situated in the new, separate living arrangements and begin thinking about the permanent settlement.
The Agreement
Often the most important and/or difficult parts of the divorce is agreeing on how to divide property and debts and establishing child custody and spousal support. Those items have to be detailed in a written agreement. If it can be done fairly without going to court, then that’s better for everyone. The agreement outlines the rules and states what conditions each spouse has agreed to. It is a legally binding contract and can have two primary purposes:

• It can settle issues for the period between the initial separation and the time of divorce. Sometimes separations can last several months or even years, so it is important settle all of the necessary issues in writing so you’re covered during that time period.
• It can be the final agreement and legal document used to settle all marital issues in order to get a final judgment or decree for divorce granted by the judge.
If both spouses are using attorneys, then the attorneys will gather financial and other information from their clients and the opposing spouse (this is the discovery stage) and meet to negotiate the terms of the settlement on their clients’ behalf. If you can’t reach an agreement using this method or a collaborative-law method, then you may choose to try a mediator. With mediation, as mentioned earlier, the couple is in charge of the negotiation. Some states require mediation if you can’t easily reach an agreement. If mediation doesn’t work, then the next step is to take the matter to court and let the judge decide.
Trial
When you take a divorce to court, it can become a true battle. It is the attorney’s job to “win” the case for his or her client — to seek what is in the client’s best interest. That inherently creates a more hostile environment. Of course, if the case has made it to court, it’s probably pretty hostile anyway. Usually, divorce trials are held with only a judge, no jury. Because many of the issues that must be addressed during this process are interrelated, there is sometimes a specific order to how things are addressed. A typical order may be:
• Establishing entitlement to a divorce
• Arranging child custody and visitation rights
• Settling financial aspects and property distribution
• Arranging child support
• Arranging spousal support
Common Reasons for Divorce
• Money
• Lack of intimacy
• Infidelity
• Abuse
• Lack of compatibility
• Physical appearance
• Addictions
• Getting married at an early age
• Getting married for the wrong reasons
• Lack of communication
• Lack of equality and loss of identity

Divorce Lawyer

When you need legal help from a divorce lawyer for a Springville Utah case, please call Ascent Law LLC for your free consultation (801) 676-5506. We want to help you.