How to Respond to Divorce Papers in Missouri

The 30-Day Deadline You Cannot Miss

When you're served with a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage in Missouri, a 30-day response period starts. You generally have 30 days after service to file a verified Answer with the circuit court. Missouri's time-computation rule does not count the day of service, and a deadline falling on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday moves to the next day that is not one of those days.

If you were served in person by a sheriff or process server, the date on the return of service helps establish the starting point. If you signed an Entry of Appearance and Waiver, you have acknowledged service; follow the filing's or court's instructions about whether a separate Answer is required.

How to File Your Answer

Your Answer (Form CAFC010-R) is a formal legal response to each claim in the petition. For every paragraph in your spouse's petition, you'll state whether you agree, disagree, or don't have enough information to respond.

Along with your Answer, Missouri requires you to file:

• Form CAFC040-R — your own Statement of Property and Debt
• Form CAFC050-R — your own Statement of Income and Expenses

These financial disclosure forms must be verified under oath. If you have minor children, you'll also need to file your proposed Parenting Plan (Form CAFC501) within 30 days of service.

All forms are available for free at selfrepresent.mo.gov. Check the county's current fee schedule before filing your response to see whether any local filing fee applies.

If you're representing yourself, Supreme Court Rule 88.09 requires you to complete the online Litigant Awareness Program before the court will docket your case. The program is free and takes about two hours.

What Happens If You Don't Respond

Ignoring divorce papers doesn't make them go away. If you fail to file an Answer within 30 days, your spouse can file a Motion for Default. Here's what follows:

1. The court issues an order to appear for a default hearing
2. Your spouse testifies about the marriage, jurisdictional facts, and their proposed terms
3. The judge enters a decree — potentially granting everything your spouse requested

Default doesn't mean the judge rubber-stamps the petition. The court is still legally required to ensure that property division is equitable and child-related arrangements serve the children's best interests. But you lose your voice in those decisions. The judge hears only one side.

Can You Undo a Default?

Yes, but the bar is high. Under Missouri civil procedure, you can file a motion to set aside a default judgment. To succeed, you'll need to demonstrate both:

• Good cause for missing the deadline — a genuine emergency, military deployment, hospitalization, or complete lack of actual notice (not just procrastination)
• A meritorious defense — you have legitimate disagreements about property, custody, or support that the court should hear

The longer you wait, the harder this becomes. Courts are far more receptive to setting aside a default filed within weeks than one filed months later.

Agreeing vs. Contesting

Your Answer sets the direction of the entire case:

If you agree to everything in the petition, your case is uncontested. You file your Answer confirming agreement, submit matching financial statements, and the case typically reaches a final hearing within 60 to 90 days of the original filing date.

If you disagree on any issue — property division, custody, child support, maintenance — your case is contested. The court will order formal discovery, may require mediation under RSMo § 452.350, and the timeline extends to 6 months to 2 years or longer depending on the complexity.

You can also agree on some issues and contest others. Narrowing the disputes saves time and money, even if you can't resolve everything.

Practical Steps After Being Served

Beyond the legal filing, there are immediate things to protect yourself:

• Gather financial documents now. Tax returns, pay stubs, bank statements, retirement account statements, mortgage paperwork, credit card balances. You'll need these for your financial disclosure forms, and starting early prevents scrambling.
• Check for automatic orders. Some counties — St. Louis County in particular, under Local Rule 68.3 — trigger an automatic family court order upon filing that restricts both parties from transferring assets, canceling insurance, or relocating children. These orders bind you even before you file your Answer.
• Don't communicate through the children. If you have minor children, keep all settlement discussions between adults. Missouri courts weigh parental cooperation heavily in custody determinations.

The Missouri Divorce Filing Process Guide covers both sides of the process — filing and responding — with checklists for each deadline window and worksheets to organize your financial disclosure before you fill out the court's official forms.

See more Missouri guides →