Uncontested Divorce in Arizona: Summary Consent, Consent Decree and Default

Arizona has three ways to finish a divorce without a trial. Which one you use depends on when you reach agreement and whether your spouse takes part.

Summary consent decree

The Legislature created this route in 2022 for couples who have settled every issue before the case starts. Section 25-314.01 says the parties

shall file a combined petition and response for dissolution of marriage or legal separation pursuant to section 25-314. The petition shall state that formal service of process is waived and that all issues are resolved by agreement.

What that means in practice:

• One document, signed by both. The Summary Consent Petition and Response (form DRDSC11F) lists both spouses, the marriage, any children, the grounds for jurisdiction, and the relief you jointly ask for (Rule 45.1(b)).
• A lower fee. The statute sets the filing fee at half of the combined petition and response fees, plus county fees. Maricopa charges $331.50 and Pima $566.50. See cost.
• Preliminary injunctions. You present two copies of the preliminary injunction when you file, and the clerk issues them.
• Settlement papers within 60 days. You file your written agreements and the proposed decree with the petition, or within 60 days after filing.
• The wait. The court can't enter the decree earlier than 60 days after the filing date. After that, it can sign it without a hearing, and it must set a hearing or rule no later than 81 days after filing.
• Backing out. Either spouse can ask to withdraw before the decree is entered. If the court allows it, the case continues as an ordinary divorce once the additional fees are paid. If you both withdraw, the case is dismissed.

From January 1, 2027, an amended Rule 45.1 spells out how the filing fee is split when one spouse withdraws, and a new Rule 45.2 gives unmarried parents a similar summary process.

Consent decree

If one spouse has already filed, you can still finish by agreement. Rule 45 lets you obtain a consent decree without a court hearing. The 60-day wait applies; Rule 45 counts it from service of the summons or the filing of an acceptance of service, whichever is earlier.

The decree (form DR71F, or a decree substantially similar to Rule 97 Form 8) must:

• state all the terms of your agreement, and whether the marriage was a covenant marriage, whether you have children in common, and whether either of you is pregnant;
• if it awards spousal maintenance, include your acknowledgment that you reviewed the Spousal Maintenance Guidelines and that the award is appropriate and just;
• state that you agree to proceed by consent, that neither of you signed under force, threats, duress or coercion, that you each believe the property division is fair and equitable, that you understand you may hire a lawyer and are waiving a trial, and whether any protective orders exist;
• be signed by both spouses before a notary, or in the clerk's presence after the clerk checks identity.

With children, add the parenting provisions (in the decree or a separate parenting plan), a child support order backed by a child support worksheet, and, when the court finds it in the children's interest, an education order.

You file a joint notice of lodging and lodge the decree. If you lodge it 60 days or more after service, the judge must rule or set a hearing within 21 days. If you lodge it earlier, the deadline is 81 days after service.

The terms of a separation agreement on property and maintenance bind the court unless it finds them unfair; terms on the children's support, legal decision-making and parenting time don't bind it, and the court checks they are reasonable (§ 25-317).

Default decree

If your spouse is served and doesn't respond in time (20 days after service in Arizona, 30 days outside it, under Rule 24.1), you can ask for a default:

1. Application for default. File it with proof of service and the last known address, and mail a copy to your spouse (and to any lawyer you know represents your spouse) the same day (Rule 44(a)).
2. Ten days. The default takes effect 10 days after you file the application. If your spouse responds within those 10 days, it doesn't take effect. Because the period is less than 11 days, weekends and legal holidays are left out of the count (Rule 4(a)(2)).
3. Decree by motion, or a hearing. The court can enter the decree on your motion and affidavit, without a hearing, if the affidavit shows the jurisdictional facts and supports what you ask for (Rule 44.1).

A decree without a hearing can't give you something different from, or more than, what the petition asked for, unless you and your spouse signed a written separation agreement. And it isn't available if your spouse was served by publication, is a minor or is incompetent: then there must be a hearing. If you ask for spousal maintenance and want to proceed without a hearing, you attach the Default Information for Spousal Maintenance form.

Once you file a motion for a default decree, the court must rule or set a hearing within 21 days if the motion was filed 60 days or more after service, or by day 81 after service if it was filed sooner.

When the decree is final

There's no extra waiting period after the decree. Section 25-325 says:

A decree of dissolution of marriage or of legal separation is final when entered, subject to the right of appeal.

Where these sections live

• A.R.S. § 25-314.01 — Summary consent petition and decree
• A.R.S. § 25-317 — Separation agreements
• A.R.S. § 25-329 — Waiting period
• ARFLP 44 — Default
• ARFLP 44.1 — Default decree without a hearing
• ARFLP 45 — Consent decree
• ARFLP 45.1 — Summary consent decree
• Arizona Supreme Court: summary consent decree forms