Zzzzzzzzzz
Yes, a foot-dragger can delay the final decree almost indefinitely, with a clever-enough lawyer. And yes, Divorce court is a separate thing from Civil court and Criminal court in the US.
...if you don’t love you’re dead, and if you do, they’ll kill you for it.
The Mod with the Migraine
Divorce courts, and their close relative Child Custody courts, are usually slightly separate from civil courts and criminal courts. Delaying a divorce is possible; dragging it out indefinitely is only really possible when the dragee has a good lawyer, the spouse has a bad one, and the judge is an idiot. However, most states have mandatory spans of time before a divorce can actually be final; IIRC Nevada is something like three months - barring special circumstances* there's a flat minimum of three months between when you file for a divorce, and when it's actually finalized and the two of you are now single. Even if it's mutually-agreed upon, no lawyers are involved, and everything is split up nicely. Some states have it out to a year or more, and it can be really hellish when one person is fighting to get out as quickly as possible and the other is fighting to hold on as long as possible* .
That’s the epitome of privilege right there, not considering armed nazis a threat to your life. - Silasw
Lost in Space
I can state from my parents' experience and that of several of my family friends that it is indeed a real thing and happens frequently.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
It all depends on the judge. There are states that allow one party to declare abandonment and have the process sped up, if there are children involved, especially a pregnancy, there are more options in both legal motions and the judge's decisions that can factor in.
I would say it varies state by state and even by the judge how plausible this situation can be.
"Psssh. Even if you could catch a miracle on a picture any person would probably delete it to make space for more porn." - Aszur
Street Writing Man
My two cents as a divorcee: I think couples ought to take at least a year before going through divorce proceedings, simply to cool off. By then, you just want it over...you aren't really interested in extracting what you feel is your "due" from the other party, you just want to move on with your life. I recognize that this is not feasible for everyone, but I still regard it as one of the smarter things I did regarding my previous marriage.
If I were to write some of the strange things that come under my eyes they would not be believed. ~Cora M. Strayer~
Can the foot-dragger actually hold indefinitely, or are they actually limited to delaying it until the court gives reason to the other half?
Assuming there is a divorce court in the States in the first place.
"And as long as a sack of shit is not a good thing to be, chivalry will never die."