
A Missouri senator has proposed a bill that would allow judges to finalize a divorce even if one of the spouses is pregnant, which would go against a law that has been in place for a long time.
The plan was first filed by Rep. Ashley Aune, a Democrat from Platte County, during the previous legislative session. It has again resurrected in House Bill 280, but it never made it past the House the first time around.
Currently, Rep. Raychel Proudie, a Democrat from North St. Louis County, is trying to get the bill back on the agenda for discussion.
Since the 1970s, a long-standing legislation in Missouri has prohibited spouses from completing a divorce if the wife is pregnant.
Since the presence of a kid immediately affects child custody and child support matters, the statute was developed to handle the potential legal difficulties that may occur.
The legislation permits couples to start the divorce procedure while the woman is still carrying the child, even if it forbids a divorce from being finalized during pregnancy.
The purpose of the law’s restriction, according to legal experts like Nevada Smith, a St. Charles, Missouri, attorney, is to take into consideration the possible modifications that a child’s birth may make to the conditions of a divorce.
The existence of an unborn child may have a significant impact on choices regarding child custody and child support, necessitating modifications once the kid is born.
According to the law, judges cannot finalize a divorce until the kid is born and custody issues have had time to be properly considered.

This is meant to guarantee that both parents are fairly aware of the child’s requirements and how the divorce agreement will handle them.
Although the law permits couples to start the divorce procedure while the wife is pregnant, the finalization of the divorce is postponed until the kid is no longer unborn in order to account for any adjustments that may be required once the child is born.
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House Bill 280 aims to modify this by stating that “pregnancy status shall not prevent the court from entering a judgment of dissolution of marriage or legal separation.”
This change is intended to provide courts the ability to finalize divorces regardless of whether or not one of the parties is pregnant. This would eliminate a legal barrier that has long affected spouses in these instances.
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Aune initially introduced the measure in 2024, claiming that it was meant to help victims of domestic violence, as well as males who were stuck in marriages where their wives were pregnant by other men.
The law aims to help people in such situations to get on with their lives without the added difficulty of legal delays by eliminating the limitation on divorces during pregnancy.
The reintroduction of the measure by Representative Proudie is part of a continuing attempt to deal with the intricacies of divorce law in Missouri and to reflect the changing standards of society.