Adopted February 1, 2023 · Last verified July 8, 2026
In one sentenceRule 114A requires every divorce judgment distributing real estate to include a real estate order identifying who must record it, describing the property, and stating the resulting ownership interests, and sets the procedure for certifying and recording an abstract of the divorce decree with the registry of deeds, including a separate order and abstract for each county when the property spans more than one.
(a)Real Estate Order. As part of every divorce judgment involving distribution of real estate, the court shall also enter a real estate order to be attached and incorporated by reference into the divorce judgment containing the following information pursuant to 19-A M.R.S. § 953(7):
(1)The name of the party or parties responsible for recording the abstract of the divorce decree with the appropriate Registry of Deeds and paying the recording fee;
(2)An adequate description of the real estate, such as by reference to the volume and page number of an instrument recorded in the registry of deeds or the probate court record, or an adequate description by metes and bounds or by reference to the volume and page number of the Registry of Deeds’ records of a survey plan of the property;
(3)A street address for the real estate, including the town/municipality, if any;
(4)Any provision of the decree intended by the court to constitute an encumbrance against real estate, including any conditions pertaining to the encumbrance; and
(5)A clear statement of the ownership interest of the parties in the real estate intended by the court to result from the divorce judgment.
(1)After the divorce judgment becomes final, the party responsible for recording the abstract of the divorce decree with the appropriate Registry of Deeds shall file a request for an abstract with the court together with the fee set by Administrative Order JB-05-26. If the party responsible for recording the abstract is represented by an attorney, the attorney shall file, along with the request for an abstract, a proposed abstract of divorce decree that complies with subdivisions (b)(2) and (c) of this rule and uses the court-approved Abstract of Divorce Decree form.
(2)The abstract of the divorce decree shall be certified by the court, and shall attach and incorporate by reference the real estate order issued under subdivision (a) of this rule. The abstract shall also include the following:
(A)The caption of the case, including the names of the parties, and any changes to the parties’ names as a result of the divorce judgment;
(B)The name of the court that issued the divorce judgment; and
(C)The date the divorce judgment became final.
(3)The requesting party, not the court, shall be responsible for recording the abstract with the appropriate Registry of Deeds and paying the recording fee.
(c)Real Estate in Multiple Counties. If the divorce judgment involves the distribution of real estate in more than one county, the court shall enter a separate real estate order for each county, and the party responsible for recording the abstract of the divorce decree with the appropriate Registry of Deeds shall request a separate abstract for each county.
Advisory Committee’s Notes & Reporter’s Notes
Advisory Note – February 2023
Rule 114A is adopted to govern real estate orders and abstracts of divorce decrees.
Plain-English Summary
Every divorce judgment that distributes real estate must include a real estate order, attached to and incorporated into the judgment, stating who is responsible for recording the abstract of the decree with the registry of deeds and paying the recording fee; an adequate description of the property, by reference to a recorded instrument or probate record, by metes and bounds, or by reference to a recorded survey plan; the property's street address, including the town or municipality; any provision the court intends to encumber the real estate, with its conditions; and a clear statement of the parties' resulting ownership interests.
Once the judgment becomes final, the party responsible for recording requests an abstract from the court and pays the fee set by Administrative Order JB-05-26; if that party has a lawyer, the lawyer must submit a proposed abstract on the court-approved form along with the request. The court certifies the abstract, which attaches and incorporates the real estate order and adds the case caption and any resulting name changes, the issuing court's name, and the date the judgment became final. The requesting party, not the court, records the abstract and pays the recording fee. If the judgment distributes real estate across more than one county, the court enters a separate real estate order for each county, and the responsible party requests a separate abstract for each.
Frequently Asked Questions
What must a Rule 114A real estate order include?
Who must record the abstract and pay the fee, an adequate legal description of the property, its street address, any encumbrance the judgment creates, and a clear statement of the resulting ownership interests.
Who records the abstract of a Maine divorce decree with the registry of deeds?
The party the real estate order designates as responsible, not the court, who pays the recording fee after the court certifies the abstract.
What happens if the divorced parties' real estate is in more than one county?
The court enters a separate real estate order for each county, and the responsible party requests and records a separate abstract for each.
Source & verification. The rule text and Advisory Committee’s Notes / Reporter’s
Notes are reproduced verbatim from the official Maine Rules of Civil Procedure (Me. R. Civ. P. 114A), prescribed by the
Supreme Judicial Court of Maine (4 M.R.S. § 8, the Rules Enabling Act). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 8, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as:real estate order Maine divorceabstract of divorce decreerecording divorce judgment registry of deeds