This year sees the 40th anniversary of the Divorce Reform Act 1969 which introduced the five facts giving grounds for divorce:-
1. Adultery – you will need legal advice if your spouse does not admit to adultery and if you continue to live with your adulterous spouse for more than six months after finding out about the adultery, this option is no longer available.
2. Unreasonable Behaviour – you cannot rely on single events and will need to be able to list at least four or five instances of unreasonable behaviour and show that these have caused you such distress that you can no longer live with your spouse.
3. Desertion – your husband or wife has left you without agreement and without good reason and you remain apart for two years.
4. Separation for two years if the other spouse consents – sometimes referred to as a no-fault divorce and a useful way forward if children are involved as the period of separation gives both spouses chance to make and trial arrangements for the children that suit both parties.
5. Separation for five years if the other spouse does not consent – a spouse cannot defend a petition on this fact, but can request the decree absolute is not granted because of severe financial hardship.
The current law which adopts these facts on which divorce can be based, is the Matrimonial Causes Act.
Use of either of the first two facts, adultery or unreasonable behaviour, meant divorce petitions could be drawn up quickly and these divorces could be processed relatively quickly, giving rise to the expression “quickie divorce”.
Decisions to divorce are never taken lightly, particularly where children are involved. One of the main benefits of the Divorce Reform Act is that it made divorce easier for couples with children who would otherwise grow up in an unhappy home shared by two parents who were either forever arguing or avoiding each other. By giving divorcing couples the option of a no-fault separation fact, the Divorce Reform Act enables those couples to make arrangements for children and finances so focusing on the future rather than looking back to what went wrong and who was to blame.
If you are thinking about divorce or separation, please call James Haworth on 0116 212 1080 or Alistair Dobson or Janet Hopkins on 01858 445480 or complete one of the on-line forms. James is a member of the Leicestershire Regional Committee for Resolution, an association of legal professionals working to reduce conflict in separation and divorce.
