Emma Peake (Student)

The law on divorce us due to undergo a radical change. The changes are likely to come in effect in the Autumn of 2021 or early 2022.

Under the current law you must prove that your marriage has broken down irretrievably. You show this you must prove one of the five grounds: 

• Adultery
• Unreasonable behaviour. This can include:
  • Physical violence,
  • Verbal abuse- such as insults and/or threats,
  • Drunkenness and/or drug-taking,  
  • Refusing to pay towards shared living expenses. 
• Desertion- your husband or wife has left you for at least two years since separation 
• You have been separated for at least two years and the opposite spouse agrees to the divorce, or
• You have been separated for five years; the opposite spouse does not need to agree to the divorce.

The  majority of applications rely upon adultery or unreasonable behaviour. The very process of listing allegations can often aggravate the other party and can sometimes mean that negotiations in respect of children and the finances can become very acrimonious.

So what is changing? 

The changes involve the introduction of the concept of “no-fault divorce”. The new procedure will no longer require blame to be put on the other party. The main benefit of this change is to reduce blame and acrimony and allow parties to deal with finances and children in a more constructive manner. 

Lord Chancellor Robert Buckland said, “The bill reform will not come into force upon Royal Ascent because time needs to be followed for careful implementation.” This means that once the bill has been accepted as new law, the law will not be enforced immediately on that date until it is fully satisfied that is has been interpreted correctly.  

What triggered the need for change?  

Practitioners have been suggesting that this would be beneficial for some time. The issue was highlighted in the case of Owens V Owens Their marriage had completely broken down, but none of the grounds for divorce could be fully satisfied, they just simply “fell out of love”.  Mr Owens was able to successfully contest the divorce. The case then went to the Court of Appeal, who agreed with the decision but highlighted the difficulties arising from this case.

What are the changes? 

The new legislation will: 

• Replace the five facts with a new requirement to provide a statement of irretrievable breakdown, 
• Remove the possibility of contesting the divorce,
• Introduce an option for a joint application, and
• Make sure that language is in plain English, for example changing “decree absolute” to final order and “decree nisi” to conditional order. The “petitioner” of the divorce will become the applicant. 

This has been the biggest shake-up for divorce law in fifty years.  The no-blame divorce is more administrative than a court procedure. Baroness Hales said that being able to say that the marriage has simply failed, without holding the other party accountable, could ease some stress. The process will be easier.  

Staffordshire University Legal Advice Clinic (SULAC) provides free legal advice on all family related matters. We are working remotely during the pandemic and interviews are conducted via Microsoft Teams. If you would like to make an appointment, please contact us on01782 294800 or email us onSULAC@staffs.ac.uk