Disclaimer: All facts gleaned from the filings stated hereafter are only as truthful as the petitioner. The tone of this article expresses a style of writing historically employed by America’s greatest writers and, as such, is for opinion purposes only. No intentional harm is due. Do not read if the topic of divorce (even your own) causes you emotional distress. Continue at your own risk.
The case arrives without complication, a petition seeking to close a marriage that began more than four decades ago. Filed February 9, 2026, in the 21st Judicial Circuit Court of Saint Louis County, Missouri, the matter is styled William Hickman Jr. v. Judy Ann Hickman, case number 26SL-DR00580.
William Hickman Jr., through counsel, states he has been a resident of Saint Louis County and the State of Missouri for more than ninety days preceding the filing. Judy Ann Hickman is identified as a resident of the City of Saint Louis and likewise a resident of Missouri and Saint Louis County for the required statutory period. The parties were married on or about April 1, 1984, in the City of Saint Louis, where the marriage was registered. They separated on or about November 1, 1985.
The petition reports that no children were born of the marriage and that, to the petitioner’s knowledge, the respondent is not now pregnant. Neither party is a member of the United States military service. The filing also states that the petitioner is not currently employed and that it is not known whether the respondent is employed.
According to the petition, there is no reasonable likelihood the marriage can be preserved and it is described as irretrievably broken. The parties are said to have no marital or separate property requiring division and no marital or separate debt. The petitioner asks the court to dissolve the marriage, award each party his or her separate property, and order that each bear his or her own attorney’s fees.
In early February, when court calendars continue their steady progression, such filings underscore the administrative function of family courts: to formalize long-separated lives and reconcile the record with present reality. The petition now awaits review under Missouri law, a procedural step toward concluding a marriage that, by the dates provided, has stood apart for many years.
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