New Divorce Laws – “No-Fault” Divorce

July 7, 2022
|In Family Law, LITIGATION
|By admin

New Divorce Laws – “No-Fault” Divorce

The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 came into force in England and Wales on 6 April 2022 and this signified a major development of England’s divorce laws for the past 50 years.

Key changes made under the new Act:

  • The need for the married couple to prove the irretrievable breakdown of marriage by citing grounds of unreasonable behaviour and separation was replaced by a sole or joint statement.
  • The statement of irretrievable breakdown of marriage serves as a piece of conclusive evidence for the court to make an order and this prevents a spouse from contesting the divorce.
  • A minimum period of 20 weeks between the start of divorce proceedings and the application for conditional order was introduced.
  • New language has been adopted to facilitate a better understanding of the divorce application.

Referring to the first point, the new divorce application introduced a “no-fault” basis which completely replaced the requirements under the previous divorce laws. This is because the previous divorce laws required divorcing couples to prove the irretrievable breakdown of their marriage by citing one of the five existing grounds, these can be referred to as:

  • Adultery
  • Unreasonable behaviour
  • Dissertation by one party
  • Two years separation with the consent of the spouse; or
  • Five years separation without consent

The previous divorce laws made it difficult for married couples who wanted their divorce to be settled in the most peaceful and straightforward manner. This is because the previous rules adopted a “blaming” basis and therefore couples looking to divorce must either put a blame on one another for the breakdown of their marriage or they must carry out a long-term separation to satisfy the requirements. Inevitably, this caused unnecessary stress and animosity which in turn encouraged potential conflicts between the divorcing parties.

Under the new divorce laws, couples can sign a sole or joint statement of irretrievable breakdown of the marriage to begin the application. This completely removes the need to blame each other or to give reasons for the breakdown of the marriage. Except for certain exceptional grounds, the statement also prevents a spouse from contesting /defending the divorce petition as it serves as a piece of conclusive evidence.

The new rules also introduce a new minimum period of 20 weeks between the start of the divorce application (signing the statement) and the application for the conditional order. When the conditional order is granted by the court, there is another period of 6 weeks before we can apply for the final order of divorce. This change effectively provides the divorcing parties a period to reflect and reconsider their decisions. However when a divorce is inevitable, this also allows the parties time to plan and cooperate on the practical arrangements surrounding the divorce such as financial and children matters.

A change in divorce law has been long-awaited as many would think the previous laws to be outdated, simply increasing animosity and stress in already difficult circumstances. However, the law in respect of financial provision for divorce will remain the same.

We at Chan Neill Solicitors relate to the emotions and stress often involved during the divorce proceedings and our experienced Civil Litigation team can assist in guiding you through every step of the divorce process. Please contact us and we can discuss your best way forward.