Indiana Family Law & Divorce: filing sequence, record discipline, and when review matters

Indiana's divorce law was significantly modernized in 2019 when the Indiana General Assembly eliminated fault-based divorce grounds entirely — Indiana now has only no-fault divorce (I.C. § 31-15-2-3), with "irretrievable breakdown of the marriage" as the sole ground. This aligns Indiana with the modern trend and removes the complications of fault-based pleading, though Indiana courts can still consider misconduct (particularly dissipation of marital assets) in property and support determinations.

Indiana's property division framework (I.C. § 31-15-7-4) starts with a presumption of equal (50/50) division of the marital estate — a slightly different starting point than Tennessee (which uses equitable distribution without a presumption) or Massachusetts (which uses an equitable but not presumptively equal framework). The Indiana presumption of equal division can be rebutted by evidence justifying deviation, including: the contribution of each spouse to the acquisition of property (including homemaking and child-rearing); the extent to which the property was acquired by each spouse before marriage or through inheritance or gift; the economic circumstances of each spouse at the time of disposition; the conduct of the parties during the marriage as related to disposition of assets; the earnings or earning ability of the parties as related to a final division. The presumption of equality means Indiana courts need a reason to deviate — unlike Tennessee's pure equitable distribution where equal division is just one possibility.

Indiana Child Custody: Parenting Time Guidelines

Indiana courts determine custody under a best interests of the child standard (I.C. § 31-17-2-8), considering factors including the age and sex of the child, the wishes of the child's parents, the wishes of the child (with sufficient age and maturity to express a preference), the child's interaction and interrelationship with parents and siblings, the child's adjustment to home, school, and community, the mental and physical health of all parties, and evidence of a pattern of domestic or family violence. Indiana has statewide Parenting Time Guidelines (PTG) developed by the Indiana Judicial Center that courts use as a starting point for parenting time schedules. The PTG provides standard parenting time amounts for different age groups and different custody arrangements — it is not mandatory (courts can deviate) but it provides a baseline that parties and courts reference. Indiana child support is calculated using the Indiana Child Support Rules and Guidelines (I.C. § 31-16-6-1), an income shares model taking both parents' adjusted weekly gross incomes and dividing the child-rearing obligation proportionately.