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An Act To Protect Victims of Domestic Violence by Waiving Their Filing Fees in Divorce Actions
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 19-A MRSA §901, sub-§1, as amended by PL 1999, c. 731, Pt. ZZZ, §29 and affected by §42, is further amended to read:
 
1. Filing of complaint; grounds.   A person seeking a divorce may file a complaint for divorce in the District Court if:
 
A. The plaintiff has resided in good faith in this State for 6 months prior to the commencement of the action;
 
B. The plaintiff is a resident of this State and the parties were married in this State;
 
C. The plaintiff is a resident of this State and the parties resided in this State when the cause of divorce accrued; or
 
D. The defendant is a resident of this State.
 
The complaint must state one or more grounds listed in section 902, subsection 1.
 
The fee for filing the complaint must be waived if the plaintiff shows proof satisfactory to the court that the plaintiff has a protection from abuse order issued pursuant to chapter 101 in effect against the defendant when the complaint is filed.
 
SUMMARY
This bill waives the filing fee in a divorce action for a person who has a protection from abuse order in effect against the defendant when the complaint is filed.