Divorce advice

[LittleMissRayofHope]

If you fill out the divorce papers, do you then have to serve the other party somehow formally?
Can you just hand the papers over to them and that's enough?

Handing the papers over personally like that is called personal service. If you're acting for yourself you'll have to get a process server to do it for you. You can't do it yourself. Whoever does the service needs to file in court a statement of service. Because you are too closely connected to the case it wouldn't be accepted as proof.
On the other hand, if your husband will cooperate and file his acknowledgment form in a timely manner, you won't need to prove service at all.

Ok great thanks.
My DB is divorcing SIL and I doubt highly she would accept the papers from him.