Rule 4.0.Divorce and Other Family Proceedings
Last amended May 12, 2021 · Last verified September 12, 2026
Full Text of Rule 4.0
Notes
REPORTER'S NOTES--2021 AMENDMENT: Rule 4.0(b)(3)(B) is amended for consistency with the recent amendment of V.R.C.P. 3.1 eliminating all reference to “in forma pauperis” and replacing it with “waiver of filing fee and service costs.”
REPORTER'S NOTES--2018 AMENDMENTS: Rule 4.0 is amended to change its 20-and 5-day time periods to 21 and 7 days, consistent with the simultaneous “day is a day” amendments to V.R.C.P. 6, which adopts the day-is-a-day counting system from the Federal Rules. See Reporter's Notes to simultaneous amendments of V.R.F.P. 1.
REPORTER'S NOTES: Rules 4.0-4.3 are adopted to replace former Rule 4 as originally promulgated and subsequently amended. The new rules are not intended to make any “substantive” change in former Rule 4, except as noted in the next paragraph. Their purpose is to make the provisions of the former rule more accessible by reorganizing them in a functional order that will make their purpose and interaction clearer and by “restyling” them in clearer and more consistent language and format similar to that of the restyled Vermont Rules of Appellate Procedure, adopted in 2013, and most sets of federal procedural rules. A small group of “substantive” amendments developed during the process of reorganization and restyling was proposed and reviewed simultaneously in a separate promulgation order. Those amendments and their Reporter's Notes are now incorporated in new Rules 4.0-4.3. Reorganization has been accomplished by dividing the provisions of former Rule 4 among the four new rules. New Rule 4.0 contains provisions that are generally applicable to all civil family proceedings--divorce, legal separation, dissolution of a civil union, the affirmation or annulment of a marriage, parentage, desertion, and nonsupport. Rule 4.1 contains additional special provisions for cases involving minor children and parentage. Rule 4.2 contains provisions pertaining to motions after judgment. Rule 4.3 contains provisions considered to be “special procedures” within the context of civil family proceedings. The following table shows the disposition of the provisions of former Rule 4 among the provisions of new Rules 4.0-4.3: Disposition Table--Former Rule 4 Sections to New Rules 4.0-4.3 Sections Former Location New Location (a) 4.0(a) (b)(1)(A) 4.0(b)(1), 4.1(a)(1)(A) (b)(1)(B) 4.3(a)(1), (2) (b)(1)(C) 4.1(a)(1)(B) (b)(2)(B) repeated in both (b)(2)(A) 4.0(b)(2)(A) places (b)(2)(B) 4.0(b)(2)(B), 4.1(a)(2) (g)(2)(D)(iii) repeated in (b)(2)(C)(i) 4.0(b)(2)(C) all three places (b)(2)(C)(ii) 4.0(b)(2)(A) (b)(2)(C)(iii) 4.0(b)(3)(B) (b)(2)(C)(iv) 4.0(b)(3)(A) (b)(2)(D) 4.1(a)(3) (c) 4.0(c) (d) 4.0(d)(1)-(3) (e) 4.0(e) (e)(1)(C) 4.1(e) (f) 4.0(f) (g)(1) [Previously abrogated] (g)(2) 4.0(g), 4.1(b)(1) (g)(2)(A) 4.0(g)(2) (g)(2)(B) 4.0(g)(3) (g)(2)(C) 4.1(b)(3) (g)(2)(D)(i) 4.1(b)(4)(A) (g)(2)(D)(ii) 4.0(g)(6)(A) (g)(2)(D)(iii) 4.0(g)(6)(B), 4.1(b)(4)(B), 4.2(c)(3) (g)(2)(E) 4.0(g)(1) (g)(2)(F) 4.0(g)(4) (g)(3) 4.0(g)(5) (g)(4) 4.0(d)(4) (g)(5) 4.1(b)(2) (h) 4.1(c) (i) [Not carried forward] See Rule 4.0(a) Reporter's Note (j)(1) 4.2(a) (j)(2) 4.2(b) (j)(3) 4.2(c) (j)(4) 4.2(d) (j)(5) 4.2(e) (j)(6) 4.2(f) (k) 4.0(a)(1) (l) 4.1(f) (m) 4.3(a)(1) (n) 4.3(a)(2)-(6) (o) 4.3(b) (p) 4.3(c) (q) 4.1(d) (r) 4.3(d) (s) 4.3(e) Restyling follows general drafting guidelines and principles used in restyling the Federal Rules of Appellate, Criminal, and Civil Procedure. See Bryan Garner, Guidelines for Drafting and Editing Court Rules (Administrative Office of the United States Courts, 1996), http://www.lawprose.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/Guidelines-for-Drafting-and-Editing- Court-Rules [https://perma.cc/NJ6S-RW5S]. See generally Introductory Reporter's Note to 2013 promulgation of restyled Vermont Rules of Appellate Procedure. The restyling changes in the Family Rules fall into two general categories: • Format. For clearer presentation, the restyled rules are broken down into constituent parts, substituting progressively indented numbered or bulleted subparagraphs or clauses for lengthy horizontal chains of clauses. Cross-references are made uniform. “Rule” refers to a provision of the Family Rules. Provisions of other sets of rules are referred to by their abbreviations--for example, “V.R.C.P.” A cross-reference within a rule or section of a rule to another section of that rule or section is shortened to, for example, “paragraph (3),” “subparagraph (B).” Statutes are cited in abbreviated form--for example, “15 V.S.A. § 1103.” • Language. The restyled rules reduce inconsistencies in language by using the same words to express the same meaning and eliminating redundant and archaic words and phrases. For example, “minor” is used throughout, rather than “infant.” “Deemed” becomes “considered.” “The court in its discretion may” becomes “the court may.” To avoid ambiguity, “shall,” which can have many meanings depending on context and interpretation, has been replaced with “must” to reflect required action by a party or the court or court personnel. When the rule simply describes a future procedural step that the court or court personnel is to take, “will” is used. “May” indicates that the court has discretion, and “should” is used in the sense of “ought to.” The project to reorganize and restyle former Rule 4 began as part of a larger undertaking of the Reporter's Advanced Civil Procedure course in the 2010 fall semester at Vermont Law School to restyle the entire body of the Vermont Rules for Family Proceedings. The Family Rules Advisory Committee and the Reporter express their special gratitude for his work on the Rule 4 project to Scott Woodward, J.D., Vermont Law School 2012 and member of the Vermont Bar. While a student in the course, Mr. Woodward devised the plan and prepared the initial draft that divided former Rule 4 into separate rules. Thereafter, as a student, and then as a member of the bar, he worked with the Committee and Reporter on a series of drafts through which the text of what are now Rules 4.0-4.3 was developed and refined. Rule 4.0(a) carries forward former Rule 4(a) in restyled format. Paragraph (1) makes clear that the new rule applies to all civil family matters within the jurisdiction of the Family Division of the Superior Court, except as modified or supplemented by new Rules 4.1-4.3. It includes “affirmation or annulment of marriage” previously covered separately in former Rule 4(k). The final sentence of former Rule 4(a)(1) referring to the provisions of former Rule 4(n) concerning abuse prevention actions has been omitted as unnecessary. See Reporter's Notes to Rule 4.3(a). The race-to-notice venue clause of former Rule 4(i) is not carried forward. The unnecessarily rigid first-in-time standard appears to have originated as a County Court rule of procedure, rather than being compelled by statute. See original Reporter's Notes to V.R.C.P. 80(i) (1971). The trial court has authority inherently and by analogy to other rules to order joint hearings of separate actions and determine the order of trial in the most appropriate unit. Cf. Hallet v. Mullin, 155 Vt. 650, 583 A.2d 101 (1990) (mem.); former V.R.F.P. 4(n); V.R.C.P. 42(a). Rule 4.0(b) carries forward former Rule 4(b)(1)(A) (except for language concerning actions involving children), (2)(A), and (2)(C) in restyled format. Other provisions of former Rule 4(b) have been placed in Rules 4.1 and 4.3. Rule 4.0(b)(2)(B)(v) is derived from former Rule 4(b)(2)(B)(vi), which was optional in cases not involving minor children. It is revised to make clear that the waiver of service procedure may be initiated by any delivery method that the plaintiff elects and to make clear that the defendant is not required to file an answer in the waiver situation. Rule 4.0(c) carries forward former Rule 4(c)(1) in restyled format, making clear that not all provisions of the rule apply to parentage proceedings and that Rule 4.1 modifies or supplements this rule in cases involving parental rights and responsibilities. Subparagraph (E) is added to Rule 4.0(c)(4) to make clear that a temporary order may be issued for spousal maintenance. Rule 4.0(d) carries forward former Rule 4(d) in restyled format, updating the statutory reference in paragraph (3). Paragraph (4) is former Rule 4(g)(4). Rule 4.0(d)(2) and (3) were derived from former Rule 4(d). The language of that rule came from the 1972 form of a Maine rule that was amended in 1977 along with a statutory change affecting property distribution. Vermont did not pick up the change. Property distribution is now added as a critical component in current practice and in the absence of a current rationale for exclusion. Other changes are intended to make clear the difference between child support and spousal maintenance. Rule 4.0(e) carries forward former Rule 4(e) in restyled format, except that subparagraph 4(e)(1)(C) and paragraph (2) have been placed in Rule 4.1 (e). Rule 4.0(f) carries forward former Rule 4(f) with some restyling of language. Rule 4.0(g) carries forward former Rule 4(g) in restyled format, except that subparagraphs (2)(C) and (D)(i) have been placed in Rule 4.1(b).
Amendment History
[Adopted August 25, 2016, effective December 5, 2016. Amended September 20, 2017, effective January 1, 2018; March 8, 2021, effective May 12, 2021.]
Plain-English Summary
Rule 4.0 is the spine of family cases in Vermont's family division. It governs actions for divorce, legal separation, dissolution of a civil union, affirmation or annulment of marriage, parentage, desertion, and nonsupport. Companion rules build on it: Rule 4.1 adjusts the process when minor children are involved, Rule 4.2 governs motions after judgment, and Rule 4.3 supplies special procedures. The Vermont Rules of Civil Procedure apply to these cases as well, with exceptions — the civil rules on alternative dispute resolution and on appearance and withdrawal of attorneys drop out, and a judgment does not have to be set out in a separate document.
A case starts with a sworn complaint. It must state facts establishing the family division's jurisdiction, the particular facts of the claim and the relief sought, and the defendant's residence or an allegation that the plaintiff does not know it and cannot find it with reasonable diligence. The plaintiff signs and swears to it if of sound mind and 16 years old. A statistical report on the form the Commissioner of Health prescribes goes with it, along with a disclosure of any earlier divorce, annulment, abuse prevention, or separate support case between the parties and a copy of any order issued in one, if it is available. Service can be personal, by certified mail with delivery restricted to the addressee, by ordinary first-class mail after certified mail is refused, by publication on court order, or by a request that the defendant waive service.
Filing changes things right away. When a proceeding under this rule and Rule 4.1 begins, the court issues an interim domestic order on a form prepared by the Court Administrator. It can reach removal of personal property from the family residence, interference with the other party's personal liberty, selling or concealing property, the parties' mail, credit accounts, new debt, insurance including health coverage, taking the minor children out of state, use of bank accounts for usual living and business expenses, and derogatory remarks about the other parent in front of the children. An abuse order already in place stays in full effect, and either party can object to a provision of the interim order and get a hearing on it. Either side may also ask for temporary relief at any time, and the court can make the orders pending final hearing that it could make at the end of the case, with one limit outside parentage actions: changing title to property without the parties' consent takes good cause.
A judgment for divorce, legal separation, dissolution of a civil union, or parentage comes only after a hearing, unless the case is dismissed for want of prosecution or the parties use the uncontested route. A defendant who enters a written appearance can be heard on parental rights and responsibilities, spousal maintenance, child support, maintenance supplement, property distribution, and counsel fees even without filing an answer. Without that appearance, the hearing can go ahead with no notice to the defendant. Discovery runs as it does in civil actions, with real limits: depositions and physical or mental examinations need an order for good cause, except that depositions on child support, spousal maintenance, and property division need none; a party cannot serve more than 25 additional interrogatories, counting discrete subparts, without leave of court or a written stipulation; and interrogatories, requests to admit, and requests to produce on infidelity, physical abuse, sexual abuse, child abuse or neglect, or parental unfitness take an order for good cause. Financial disclosure cuts the other way — where no party is, or may later become, obligated to pay child support, the parties must put income, assets, and liabilities on the table, by certificate or, on the court's order, by affidavit backed with pay stubs and income documentation. By the affidavit deadline they also exchange tax returns for the two most recent years in which returns were filed.
Frequently Asked Questions
What kinds of cases does Rule 4.0 cover?
Divorce, legal separation, dissolution of a civil union, affirmation or annulment of marriage, parentage, desertion, and nonsupport. Rule 4.1 modifies the process for cases involving minor children, Rule 4.2 takes over for motions after judgment, and Rule 4.3 supplies special procedures, so check those before you assume Rule 4.0 is the whole picture.
The Vermont Rules of Civil Procedure apply to these cases too, except where a family rule says otherwise. The civil rules on alternative dispute resolution and on appearance and withdrawal of attorneys do not apply. The civil entry-of-judgment rule does, with the difference that a judgment need not be set forth in a separate document.
How do I serve divorce papers on my spouse?
The rule gives you several routes. Personal service under the civil rules, with the summons, complaint, and the notice of hearing signed by the clerk. Certified mail, return receipt requested and delivery restricted to the addressee, sent to an address supplied by you, by the defendant, or otherwise, at your expense. Ordinary first-class mail from the clerk, with a certification that service was made, if the defendant refuses the certified mail. Publication, by court order. Or delivery of the summons with a request that the defendant waive service, sent along with the complaint, the notice of hearing, and a waiver form. If you publish notice in a divorce where adultery is a ground, the notice cannot name the alleged paramour.
A defendant who waives service must sign, date, and return the form to the court within 21 days of delivery, or within 60 days if the papers went outside a state or territory of the United States. An answer, if the defendant files one, is due within 21 days of the date the waiver was signed, or within 21 days of the date the waiver is filed if it was left undated. A defendant who ignores the request can be made to pay the cost of serving another way, including reasonable attorney's fees.
Can the court grant our divorce without a hearing if we agree on everything?
Yes, in a divorce, legal separation, or dissolution of a civil union, though not in a parentage, desertion, or nonsupport action. You both sign a request that the court proceed without a final hearing, and you file a stipulation resolving every issue in the case. The stipulation has to state the facts that support the decree and bring the matter within the court's jurisdiction, and it has to say that the terms may go into the final order, that you both know you can appear for a final hearing and are knowingly and voluntarily waiving that right, that neither of you is the subject of a final abuse prevention order in a proceeding between you, that each of you is signing freely and voluntarily, and that you have exchanged all financial information, including income, assets, and liabilities. A proposed final order goes with it, approved as to form by the attorneys, if you have them.
File all of it sufficiently before a scheduled final hearing. The court still reads everything and enters the order without a hearing only if it finds the terms fair and equitable. If the terms are not, or for any other reason, the court can order a final hearing after all.
What orders will be in place while my case is pending?
At the start of a divorce or related case under this rule and Rule 4.1, the court issues an interim domestic order on a standard form. Depending on what the court includes, it can cover removing personal property from the family residence, interfering with the other party's personal liberty, selling or concealing property, forwarding the parties' mail, whether credit cards and credit accounts continue, taking on new debt, keeping insurance including health insurance in force, taking the minor children out of state except for brief temporary absences, using bank accounts for usual and customary living and business expenses, and derogatory remarks about the other parent in the presence of the minor children. Any interim or final abuse order already in effect is untouched and stays in full effect.
If a provision does not fit your situation, file a motion with notice and ask for a hearing on it. Separately, either party can apply for temporary relief at any time after the case starts, and the court can make any order pending final hearing that it could make at final hearing. In actions other than parentage actions the rule spells out particular powers: temporary spousal maintenance, orders about the possession, control, and use of property, and injunctions against conveying, concealing, or removing property from the state. The civil rule on injunctions does not apply to orders under this part of Rule 4.0.
What financial information do I have to disclose?
In a case under this rule where no party is, or may later become, obligated to pay child support, both sides file a certificate stating that they have disclosed all financial information to each other, including income, assets, and liabilities. The certificate is due on the earlier of these dates: 30 days after the complaint is served, or the date of the case management conference. If no conference is scheduled, file it at least 7 days before the first-scheduled court appearance. The court can order an affidavit of income and assets instead, due on the date the order sets.
An affidavit comes with pay stubs for the four most recent pay periods in which you received employment income, monthly income and expense statements or equivalent documents covering the period since a self-employed person's last-filed return, and documentation of other income such as social security, workers' compensation, unemployment compensation, disability, and pensions. By the affidavit deadline the parties also exchange tax returns for the two most recent years in which returns were filed, with all schedules and everything else submitted to the Internal Revenue Service. If tax records or other private information should stay out of public view, move for a protective order to seal them. After judgment, the other party can request updated information no more often than once per calendar year, and a motion to modify calls for fresh affidavits no matter what was disclosed earlier that year.