On 6th April 2022, the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act came into force, effectively creating ‘No-Fault’ divorce. The introduction of this legislation was overwhelmingly supported by lawyers and enables either, or both parties jointly, to cite that their marriage had ‘irretrievably broken down’ without having to allege fault.
Prior to this, parties would need prove that their marriage had broken down shown by one of five possible facts or ‘faults’, such as adultery or unreasonable behaviour. As a result, spouses had to either place blame on the other spouse or have to remain legally married for up to five years, before divorce could be applied for.
As parties would commonly have to attribute blame to progress their divorce swiftly, the process was often hostile from the outset, which made it difficult for parties to amicably resolve their remaining issues, such as child care and finances.
‘No-Fault Divorce’ was introduced with a view to bringing about a more amicable option for couples who wish to separate. One year after the introduction of this ground-breaking law reform, the preliminary indications look positive but the process has not been without teething problems.
The most recent statistics suggest that there has been an increase in the amount of people applying for divorce in the months after the new law was introduced, compared to the previous months. This does not necessarily provide much insight and could be due to a variety of different reasons such as Covid-19, the cost-of-living crisis, and those who delayed their application for the new law to be implemented.
The new law has also been implemented with a significant amount of digital infrastructure to enable spouses and lawyers to deal with divorce applications online. Although there has been an online divorce facility since 2018, there have been significant updates alongside the new divorce law.
The increased number of people using the online service has resulted in applications generally being processed and allocated more quickly and efficiently, compared to applications by post. This is certainly a benefit but there are still significant delays in most courts due to the impact of Covid-19 which means there are still interruptions, even with the online system, in some cases.
It is hard to measure whether the new law has truly had the desired effect in making parties less hostile and therefore able to deal with other issues such as children or finances with reduced animosity. However, the new divorce has generally been well received by lawyers and their clients and it is hoped that this will continue.
It is also important to note that, whilst the divorce process may be much simpler than before, complex legal issues can still arise, particularly relating to matrimonial finances. It is therefore important that individuals considering a divorce receive legal advice at the earliest possible opportunity to avoid problems arising later.
If you would like advice about Divorce or Financial remedies, please contact our Family Team at 01206 700113 or contact us