Grimm v. Grimm
Appellate Court of Connecticut
844 A.2d 855 (Conn. App. Ct. 2004)
Mrs. Grimm (plaintiff) filed for no-fault divorce from Mr. Grimm (defendant), alleging the marriage had irretrievably broken down. She had filed and withdrawn five earlier divorce actions, which she said was because Mr. Grimm dragged out the litigation to drain her finances, not because she wanted to reconcile. She testified Mr. Grimm had been distant, abusive, and dishonest. Mr. Grimm argued her repeated filings showed she still wanted to reconcile, and separately argued the divorce statute violated his religious freedom. The trial court granted the divorce, and Mr. Grimm appealed.
Whether a defendant's stated hope for reconciliation in a divorce proceeding is sufficient to defeat a finding that the marriage has irretrievably broken down.