Anonymous wrote:I actually needed to be the plaintiff because one of my work clearance questions is whether I've ever been a defendant to a civil or criminal case. It's not a brightline fireable thing but I would have to disclose it

You didn't need to be the plaintiff. All you had to do was check yes to being the defendant and write divorce in the explanation line. You think you're the first divorce case the background checker has ever seen? Trust me, they don't care.

I wanted to be (and was) the defendant because I wanted the record to reflect that my ex walked out, but it was meaningless to anyone but me.

I sure hope it doesn’t matter. Currently the defendant. Had hoped to wait to divorce because of many serious logistical issues that still have to be worked out, but my ex didn’t care (evidently).