Choosing (or agreeing) to get a divorce can be a painful, life-changing decision, which is often followed by practical uncertainties about childcare, distribution of assets, and the cost of legal fees.
Under previous legislation, which had been in place for nearly 50 years, couples who applied for divorce –that is, a legal dissolution of their marriage – had to cite at least one of the following factors as the cause of their marital breakdown: unreasonable behaviour; adultery; five years of separation without consent; two years of separation with consent or desertion.
In other words, the couple had to either wait at least two years before they could get divorced or they had to attribute blame (adultery, unreasonable behaviour), where, in many cases, there was none.
A year ago today (6 April 2022), no-fault divorces were introduced, meaning divorces can be granted in a quicker time period – without either spouse having to cite blame.
In the weeks following the introduction of no-fault laws, 3,000 divorce requests were made, amounting to an average of 600 applications per day – substantially higher than the year before's average of just over 2,000 weekly applications.
Here's what you need to know.
Following the changes to divorce law, Amanda Phillips-Wylds, Managing Partner at Stowe Family Law, noticed an “influx of people [starting] the divorce process,” noting they were primarily people who were already waiting for the law to change before starting the proceedings, as it “allowed a more amicable approach.”
She further explained that "enquiries for divorce have been rising exponentially, and recent statistics revealed that divorce applications have risen to the highest level in a decade.
“However, this is likely to be due to a variety of different reasons, including the Covid-19 pandemic and cost-of-living crisis, not just no-fault divorce.”
GLAMOUR also spoke to Adele Pledger, a family lawyer at Withers LLP, to find out everything you need to know about no-fault divorces.
What was the previous law around divorces?
Adele explains that, under the previous law, “unless couples want to wait two or five years to divorce after separating, which most don’t – they want to crack on with it, one of them has to petition on the basis of either the other person's adultery or unreasonable behaviour and they have to set out examples of that behaviour (even if the divorce is a mutual and amicable decision!).”
The next thing couples wishing to divorce had to contend with was the long waiting period. “If both parties consent to the divorce,” explains Adele, "the petitioner [the spouse who filed for divorce] goes ahead and applies for decree nisi (which is usually processed by the court in a couple of months), and then has to wait six weeks from decree nisi before they can apply for decree absolute.
“The whole process usually takes around four-to-six months, although typically people hold off applying for decree absolute until there is a financial order.”
Why did the divorce laws change?
Adele notes that divorce can be a traumatic experience, arguing that couples “need and deserve a system that works for them, not one that exacerbates an already highly emotional and difficult situation by forcing one (the 'petitioner') to list the reasons why for them, the behaviour of their soon to be ex-spouse (the 'respondent') was so unreasonable it caused the marriage to break down.”
She adds, “The respondent may feel aggrieved by what the petitioner has written and want to defend the divorce as a matter of principle, or in cases of domestic violence, to exercise further coercive control, or the petitioner may have alleged a criminal offence (such as rape or violence) meaning that the respondent felt compelled to defend to protect his/her position in respect of any criminal proceedings.”
Finally, the previous system usually ended up being incredibly draining for all involved. Adele explains, "getting divorced is expensive (the court fee alone is over £500) and can be a highly-charged administrative process.
"Energies need to be spent shoring themselves up emotionally and getting the support they need to deal with this enormous change in their lives, and on focus on the finances and children – the practical and emotional consequences of divorce (not the historic reasons why the marriage has failed).
Today is known as 'divorce day’ due to the number of couples breaking up post-Christmas.
What is a no-fault divorce?
The new law (The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020) comes into effect today, 6 April 2022. Here, Adele explains the key changes:
- It removes the requirement to provide any explanation as to why/how one party thinks the marriage has broken down; instead, one or both parties simply have to state that the marriage has irretrievably broken down in their divorce 'application' (the new name for divorce 'petition').
- They then have to wait at least 20 weeks (to allow for a period of reflection and to try to resolve children and financial matters) before applying for the conditional order (previously 'decree nisi'), and then 6 weeks for the final order (previously 'decree absolute'), so potentially 6 months in total.
- It allows for the first-time joint divorce applications by both parties – this is important for many couples and can set a helpful scene for a collaborative approach to dealing with childcare plans and finances.
Why are no-fault divorces important?
According to Adele, no-fault divorces will simplify the divorce process, making it more collaborative. She explains, “having to prove that one person is at fault in a marriage when that marriage has broken down does nobody any good and can harm an already fragile relationship further (not good for them or children) so removing that element from the process will hopefully make things a little easier.
“This will enable couples to spend more time and energy working out what is best for their children (if they have any) and their finances.”
For more from Glamour UK's Lucy Morgan, follow her on Instagram @lucyalexxandra.
