Delaware

All states

Luck of the Draw score: 70 out of 100

Delaware lets the judge decide how to split marital property, how much alimony to pay and who pays legal fees, but keeps inherited, gifted and premarital property out of the division and bars any consideration of marital misconduct. Alimony is available only to a dependent spouse and, for marriages under 20 years, can last no more than half the length of the marriage. On the book’s scale, 0 is a contract you can read and 100 is one that mostly says “ask the judge.” Delaware ranks 19 of 51, counting from the state that leaves the least to the judge. How the index works, and every state’s score.

Part	Score	The rule, and where it comes from
Property	15 / 20	The Family Court divides only marital property, in proportions it deems just after weighing listed factors and without a presumption of equal division, and gifts, inheritances, premarital property and its growth in value are excluded. 13 Del. C. § 1513(a)-(c)
Alimony	15 / 20	Only a dependent party may receive alimony, and the court sets its amount by weighing listed factors, but a spouse married less than 20 years may receive it for no more than half the length of the marriage. 13 Del. C. § 1512(b), (c), (d)
Fault	0 / 20	The statute directs the court to divide property and set alimony without regard to marital misconduct. 13 Del. C. §§ 1512(c), 1513(a)
Lawyers’ fees	20 / 20	After considering the financial resources of both parties, the court may order one party to pay some or all of the other’s costs and attorneys’ fees, and no presumption applies. 13 Del. C. § 1515
Second opinion	20 / 20	By statute a judge or commissioner sitting without a jury hears all divorce hearings and trials, and no statute or rule was found that lets a party remove the assigned judge without cause. 13 Del. C. § 1516(b)

Getting in

A one-day wait. A couple must get the license at least 24 hours before the ceremony, and it is good for 30 days. For good cause, a county clerk of the peace may shorten the wait or extend the license up to 180 days. No one under 18 can get a license.
13 Del. C. §§ 107, 108, 123

Who can marry you. Registered clergy of any religion, current or former Delaware judges, federal judges with jurisdiction over Delaware, county clerks of the peace in their county, and mayors in their town may officiate. Two adult witnesses must sign. A clerk may authorize some out-of-state judges for good cause. The statute does not address online ordination, but clergy must register.
13 Del. C. § 106

Common-law marriage: Not available here. A couple cannot form a common-law marriage in Delaware; courts require a ceremony. Section 126 says lacking a license does not itself void an otherwise lawful marriage. The decisions read do not squarely settle whether Delaware honors one formed elsewhere, though one court weighed a claimed Florida marriage on its proof.
Owens v. Bentley, 40 Del. 512 (Super. Ct. 1940); Berdikas v. Berdikas, 54 Del. 297 (Super. Ct. 1962); Williamson v. Williamson, 48 Del. 379 (Super. Ct. 1954); 13 Del. C. § 126

Chapter 5 of the book covers getting in, and whether you are in at all.

The property system

Delaware is one of forty-one equitable distribution jurisdictions. Equitable distribution. Each of you owns what’s in your own name during the marriage. At a divorce a judge divides the marital property as the judge finds equitable, which is not a promise of half. Chapter 11 of the book covers what that means, and Chapter 22 covers what happens to it when you move.

What counts as marital. Property acquired after the wedding and before divorce is presumed marital, however titled; separation does not stop it. Gifts and inheritances stay out if listed conditions apply, such as sole-name title, a trust, a gift tax return or a notarized document. Premarital property and its passive growth stay out. Real estate jointly titled before the wedding is marital.
13 Del. C. § 1513(b), (c); King v. Howard, 158 A.3d 878 (Del. 2017); Ramon v. Ramon, 963 A.2d 128 (Del. 2008)

An inheritance that touches a joint account

It depends on what the owner meant. Separate money placed in joint names can become marital. The state Supreme Court upheld that result for a husband’s premarital savings moved into joint accounts, saying the question depends on the owner’s intent when transferring title. By statute, a gift stays out if kept in sole name or another listed condition applies.
Husband T.N.S. v. Wife A.M.S., 407 A.2d 1045 (Del. 1979); Thomas v. Thomas, 102 A.3d 1138 (Del. 2014); 13 Del. C. § 1513(a)(9), (b)(1)a., (c)

Chapter 12 explains how mine becomes ours.

Your spouse’s medical bills (Article 5)

Delaware’s statute places the duty to support a spouse on the other spouse in gender-neutral terms, but no Delaware decision was found that says whether, or in what order, a hospital or other creditor may collect one spouse’s necessary bills from the other spouse.
13 Del. C. § 502 (not yet checked against the source)

Chapter 8 of the book explains the three ways states handle this.

If one of you dies (Article 9)

The surviving spouse may elect one-third of the elective estate, less all transfers to the survivor from the decedent. The elective estate is the decedent’s federal gross estate less debts and expenses, so it reaches non-probate assets such as joint property, trusts and life insurance.
12 Del. C. §§ 901(a), 902(a)

Chapter 9 covers what a will can and can’t take away from a spouse.

Prenups and postnups (Article 12)

One look, under UPAA (1983), 13 Del. C. §§ 321-328. A premarital agreement is unenforceable only if not signed voluntarily, or if unconscionable when signed and the challenger lacked fair and reasonable disclosure, did not waive it in writing, and did not otherwise know the other’s finances. A written waiver of alimony made before, during or after the marriage bars an alimony claim.
13 Del. C. § 326; 13 Del. C. § 1512(f)

What an agreement needs. The agreement must be in writing and signed by both parties and needs no consideration; the act has no notary, witness, waiting-period or counsel requirement. Disclosure matters through the unconscionability defense, and Delaware’s act omits the UPAA clause that lets a court override a support waiver that would leave a spouse on public assistance.
13 Del. C. §§ 322, 326

Chapter 29 explains one look and two, and what makes agreements stick.

Children (Article 8)

Child support: Melson. Delaware uses its Child Support Formula, known as the Melson Formula, last revised February 1, 2026. The duty ends at 18, or for a high school student likely to graduate, at the diploma or age 19, whichever comes first. The support statute creates no duty to pay for college. A separate provision covers adult children with disabilities.
13 Del. C. §§ 501, 503(b); Del. Fam. Ct. Civ. R. 500-510

Moving away with a child. In custody litigation over moving a child for 60 days or more, out of state or in a way that materially affects the arrangement, the court must weigh eight listed factors, including the child’s best interest. The statute sets no advance-notice period and assigns no burden. Within 2 years, changing an order entered after a full hearing requires showing danger to the child.
13 Del. C. §§ 734, 729(c)

Chapter 17 covers the children.

Getting out (Article 2)

How long you must live here before filing: six months. Either spouse must have lived in Delaware as a domiciliary, or been stationed there in the armed services, continuously for 6 months before filing. The rule does not turn on where the couple married or where the grounds arose, with one exception: a same-gender couple married in Delaware can file there if their home state will not hear the case.
13 Del. C. §§ 1503(1), 1504(a)

How long it takes. One spouse can obtain a divorce over objection by proving the marriage is irretrievably broken through separation caused by incompatibility, without fault. The court cannot rule until the couple has been separated 6 months, which can include time under one roof in separate bedrooms. The petition can be filed earlier. A misconduct claim needs no separation period.
13 Del. C. §§ 1503(5), (8), 1505, 1507(e), 1511(a), 1517(b)

The legal minimum for a spouse who moves here alone and files as soon as allowed, with no minor children and the other spouse objecting, is about 180 days from arrival to a final decree (180 days of residence and 180 days apart run together; no set wait after filing). Courts often take longer.

Chapter 22 covers what changes when you move.

Each entry on this page comes from the statute, rule or case it cites, read in September or November 2026, except where the entry says it has not been checked. A rule can change after that, and a rule on paper can play out differently in a particular courthouse. No lawyer reviews these pages.

If you practice family law in Delaware and would like to correct or contribute to this page, write to me.

Meanwhile

• The default contract, with the options states choose among. Read it with a Delaware lawyer, or paste it into a chatbot along with “I live in Delaware” and treat what comes back as a list of questions, not answers.
• Three contracts you could sign instead.
• A worksheet for reading it together, and every state’s Luck of the Draw score.
• Corrections, including changes in the law since the book went to press.
• About the book.