Q. My wife and I have lived a nomadic life for the last several years.  I travel significantly for work and she joined me most of the time once our kids finished high school.  We were in a different country each month for the two years leading up to COVID.  In the initial lock-down we got stuck in California at my sister-in-law’s house where we were visiting.  Once restrictions were lifted a bit that summer, we came back to Mass. to clean out our house after long term tenants vacated.  We stayed here for a month and that month was not good.  We did resume traveling for my job once things opened up but our marriage has never been the same.  We did return to California for the summer and my wife has stayed there with her sister.

We have tenants in our house again and we do not know where we can file for divorce.  Most of our bank accounts are U.S.-based although we do have some in the UK and Singapore.  What do you suggest?

A. In order to file in Massachusetts, you need to be a resident for a year.  Where your house is here, I am guessing you still have many things here like voter registration, physicians, drivers licenses and probably file taxes here.  Assuming I am right, a court would likely find that you are still domiciled in Massachusetts meaning you need not return, re-establish residence and wait a full year after to file for divorce.

Another thing you have going for you is the month you spent here back in 2020.  If you can honestly state that your marriage became irretrievably broken during that stay in Massachusetts, you can file for divorce here without dealing with the waiting period by claiming that the breakdown happened here.

Location of your assets is not a problem.  Massachusetts can divide assets anywhere in the world.  However, if you need to enforce a judgment or order for division, you will need to go to England or Singapore and register your judgment there.

If you want to proceed here, I suggest you rent a place in Massachusetts while your home remains occupied so you have an address from which to file.  Then, file and serve ASAP to avoid a jurisdiction fight.

Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com