Judge says Brooklyn woman can use Facebook to serve divorce papers

NEW YORK -- A woman in New York could be the first person to get divorced by Facebook.

According to The New York Daily News, the Manhattan Supreme Court just ruled a nurse named Ellanora Baidoo may serve her elusive husband divorce papers through a Facebook message.

"I think it's new law, and it's necessary," said Baidoo's lawyer, Andrew Spinnell.

Attorney Andrew Spinnell says the couple married in 2009 in a civil ceremony. He says the relationship began to unravel when the defendant reneged on his promise to a traditional Ghanaian wedding ceremony as well. As a result, the wedding was never consummated and the husband and wife have never lived together. Still Blood-Dzraku doesn't want a divorce.

The ruling says Blood-Dzraku has only been in touch with his wife via phone and Facebook.

The "last address plaintiff has for defendant is an apartment that he vacated in 2011," Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Martin Cooper wrote. Baidoo "has spoken with defendant by telephone on occasion and he has told her that he has no fixed address and no place of employment. He has also refused to make himself available to be served with divorce papers." The "post office has no forwarding address for him, there is no billing address linked to his prepaid cell phone, and the Department of Motor Vehicles has no record of him," the ruling says.

The New York Daily News says Baidoo's attorney will message Blood-Dzraku through her account once a week for three consecutive weeks. The first message went out last week.

"So far, he hasn't responded," Spinnell said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.