When you want to end your marriage, you must go through the court. The reason is that marriage is a legally binding contract, and you need a judge to issue an order ending the contract.
When the court finalized your divorce, it ends all benefits and obligations you had due to the marriage. Because divorce is a legal process, you must show evidence of why you want to take this action. You do this by providing grounds. One of the options is incurable insanity.
Elements required for grounds
To claim incurable insanity, your spouse must have a mental condition that resulted in institutionalization or a finding by a court of insanity. You must have lived apart for at least three years prior to filing your petition.
Declaration of insanity
You need to show that there is a finding of insanity for your spouse. To do this, you must have two specialty doctors testify about the incurable nature of the insanity.
Living apart
The living apart element requires that you do not live together at all. If an institution released your spouse into your care, even if you do not physically live together, the law considers that as being together. The clock for the three-year requirement restarts.
There are some exceptions and other conditions within the law to prove and show incurable insanity as grounds for your divorce. In addition, if you make this the grounds for your divorce and your spouse is unable to provide for him or herself financially, the court will require you to do so. Making this claim can be complicated in some instances, so it is advisable to ensure you understand the full law.