Legal separation in Rhode Island is handled through a court action the statutes call a “divorce from bed, board, and future cohabitation.” It lets the Family Court divide property, set custody, and order support while leaving the marriage itself intact, so neither spouse is free to remarry but both have an enforceable order governing how they live apart.1Rhode Island General Laws § 15-5-9
What a Bed and Board Decree Does
Rhode Island doesn’t use the phrase “legal separation” in its statutes. The equivalent is a decree under § 15-5-9 that ends the obligation to live together and gives the court authority over finances and children, without dissolving the marriage. You stay legally married. You cannot remarry.
The order lasts “until the parties are reconciled.” If reconciliation never happens, it stays in place indefinitely, or one spouse can later file for a full divorce.
Why Choose Separation Over Divorce
People pick this route for specific, practical reasons. Religious beliefs are one. The others usually come down to benefits that depend on being married.
Health insurance is the most common. Because the marriage survives, many employer-sponsored plans continue covering both spouses. Rhode Island law under § 27-20.4-1 also addresses continuation of coverage after a “final judgment of divorce, whether absolute or otherwise,” allowing a former spouse to remain on the plan without additional premium when the judgment orders it, with coverage ending if either party remarries or the covered spouse gains comparable insurance through their own job. Plan terms vary, and self-funded plans may follow different rules, so read yours before relying on the result.
Social Security is the other big one. Spousal benefits require a marriage of at least ten years. A bed and board decree keeps the marriage legally alive, so the clock keeps running. If you’re close to the ten-year mark, separating rather than divorcing can preserve your eligibility to claim on your spouse’s record.
Taxes cut the other way. The IRS treats a decree of separate maintenance like a divorce for filing purposes, so once your bed and board decree is finalized you’re generally considered unmarried for federal taxes and can no longer file a joint return. You’d file single, or head of household if you qualify. Even without a decree, head of household may be available if you lived apart from your spouse for the last six months of the tax year, paid more than half the cost of keeping up your home, and had a qualifying child living with you more than half the year.
Grounds You Can File On
Section 15-5-9 lets the court grant a bed and board decree “for any of the causes for which by law a divorce from the bond of marriage may be decreed, and for other causes which may seem to require a divorce from bed and board.” Every ground that works for a full divorce works here, and the judge has discretion to accept additional reasons that would fall short of ending a marriage outright.
The no-fault ground is irreconcilable differences that have caused the marriage to break down beyond repair. Under this ground, specific acts of misconduct are generally inadmissible at the hearing.
Fault-based grounds under § 15-5-2 include adultery, extreme cruelty, willful desertion for five years (shorter at the court’s discretion), ongoing drunkenness, habitual use of opium, morphine, or chloral, and other serious misconduct that violates the marriage covenant.
A separate ground under § 15-5-3 lets either spouse seek a divorce if the couple has lived separate and apart for at least three years, regardless of fault.
Residency: The Key Difference From Divorce
This is where separation diverges sharply from full divorce. A divorce from the bond of marriage requires the filing spouse (or the other spouse) to have lived in Rhode Island for at least one full year before filing under § 15-5-12. That rule is strict.
A bed and board separation is more flexible. Section 15-5-9 requires only that the filer be a “domiciled inhabitant” of Rhode Island who has lived in the state for “a length of time that, to the court in its discretion, seems to warrant” exercising its authority. No fixed one-year minimum. The judge decides whether you’ve been here long enough. For someone who recently moved and needs immediate court intervention on support or custody, this lower bar matters.
How to File
The case starts with a Complaint for Divorce/Separation filed at the Family Court Clerk’s office. The complaint identifies both spouses, states the grounds, and lists any minor children with their ages and current living arrangements.
You also file a DR-6, the Statement of Assets, Liabilities, Income, and Expenses. Rhode Island requires this financial disclosure in every bed and board case. It covers income from every source, monthly expenses by category, a full list of assets, and all debts. The court uses it to decide support and property, so accuracy matters; understating income or omitting assets can lead to sanctions and damage your credibility with the judge.
The base filing fee for any petition or complaint in Family Court is $120 under § 9-29-19, with a technology surcharge added on top under § 8-15-11. Call the clerk for the current combined amount.
After filing, you serve your spouse. Rhode Island’s Family Court rules require that the summons and a certified copy of the complaint be hand-delivered by “any disinterested person,” meaning someone who isn’t a party but not necessarily a sheriff or constable. If personal delivery fails, the court can authorize alternate methods, including certified mail, newspaper publication, or posting at the spouse’s home. Your spouse then files an answer, any counterclaim, their own DR-6, and an entry of appearance.
What the Court Can Order
Temporary Relief While the Case Is Pending
Either spouse can file a Motion for Temporary Allowances asking the court to set interim arrangements covering mortgage or rent, utilities, child support, health insurance premiums, and other urgent household expenses. Under § 15-5-19 the court can also issue restraining orders when one spouse’s behavior threatens the other’s safety. Section 15-5-16 explicitly authorizes temporary alimony and counsel fees in bed and board cases, so a judge can require one spouse to help pay the other’s legal costs while the case is still open.
Alimony
At the final decree the court can award alimony to either spouse. Section 15-5-16 directs judges to weigh the length of the marriage, each spouse’s conduct, the health, age, and occupation of both parties, income and earning capacity (including whether one spouse left the workforce for homemaking), the time and cost needed to get the supported spouse trained for employment, the marital standard of living, and each spouse’s debts, assets, and needs. Alimony is meant to help the receiving spouse become financially independent within a reasonable period, though the court can award indefinite support when circumstances justify it. Either spouse can later petition to modify the amount if finances change significantly.
Custody and Child Support
Custody follows the “best interests of the child” standard. Judges consider each parent’s wishes, the child’s preference depending on age and maturity, the child’s adjustment to home and school, the physical and mental health of everyone involved, and each parent’s willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other parent. No single factor controls.
Child support follows a guideline worksheet from the Office of Child Support Services based on both parents’ incomes and the number of children. Rhode Island reviews the guidelines every four years. A judge can deviate from the guideline amount when circumstances make it unfair, but must explain the reasoning.
Going From Separation to Full Divorce Later
Rhode Island does not provide a one-motion conversion from a bed and board decree to a final divorce. If you later want to end the marriage, you file a new complaint for divorce from the bond of marriage. The arrangements in your separation decree (support, custody, property division) carry forward and can be incorporated into the final divorce judgment, so you aren’t starting from scratch, but a new filing is required.
One practical shortcut: if you’ve been living apart under a bed and board decree for three years or more, § 15-5-3 lets either spouse seek a full divorce based on that period of separation alone, with no need to prove fault. After the court announces its decision, final judgment cannot enter for at least twenty days, and Rhode Island imposes a ninety-day waiting period before the divorce becomes final.