767.385.Maintenance, legal custody, and support when divorce or separation denied.
Subch. IV: Annulment, Divorce, and Legal Separation · Last amended 2005 · Current through 2025 Wisconsin Act 247 · Last verified September 8, 2026
Full Text of Section 767.385
Amendment History
Wisconsin prints each section’s legislative history as a single “History” line naming every act that created or amended it, and every renumbering. It is reproduced verbatim below.
History: 1971 c. 220; 1979 c. 32 s. 50; Stats. 1979 s. 767.28; 1987 a. 355; 1993 a. 481; 2005 a. 443 s. 125; Stats. 2005 s. 767.385.
Plain-English Summary
A refusal to end the marriage is not a refusal to help the family. Where a judgment in an action for divorce or legal separation denies the divorce or separation, the court may still make such order as the nature of the case renders just and reasonable for the legal custody of and periods of physical placement with any of the minor children, and for maintenance.
The case is not simply dismissed with nothing decided. The parties may remain married and still leave with orders about where the children live and who pays what.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if a Wisconsin court refuses the divorce?
It may still make just and reasonable orders for legal custody of and periods of physical placement with the minor children, and for maintenance.
Does refusing the divorce end the case?
Not necessarily. This section lets the court make the orders the nature of the case requires even though the divorce or separation is denied.