divorce and family law solicitors
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Solicitors Regulation Authority No. 420179
Divorce
obtaining a divorce
irretrievable breakdown of marriage
If you want a divorce you will have to show the
court that your marriage has irretrievably broken down. To satisfy this you can rely
on one of five facts:
that your spouse has committed adultery and you find it intolerable
to live with your spouse
that your spouse has behaved in such a way that you cannot
reasonably be expected to live with
your spouse
that your spouse has deserted you
for at least two years
that you and your spouse have been separated for two years
and your spouse agrees to a divorce
that you and your spouse have lived apart for
a continuous period of five years
the three main stages in the divorce process
1
You
need to send a divorce petition to the court that sets out the details of your marriage
and the reasons for the divorce. You are able to claim your legal costs of the divorce
from your spouse. If there are children of the family aged under 18 the court will
also require a form called the statement of arrangements for the children. You will
also have to send your marriage certificate and the court fee (unless you are fee
exempt). The court will send the papers to your spouse with an acknowledgement of
service form to complete which should be returned within 7 days. The form asks whether
your spouse will defend your petition. If your spouse returns the form and does not
defend the petition you can move to stage two.
2
You will need to complete a sworn
statement telling the court that the contents of the petition are true and that your
spouse has received the petition. The court, if satisfied with your petition, will
certify that you are entitled to a divorce and set a date to pronounce your decree
nisi. You will not need to attend court when your decree nisi is pronounced unless
costs are in dispute.
3
Six weeks and a day after your decree nisi has been pronounced
you may apply for the decree absolute. The decree absolute will dissolve the marriage.
Again, you do not need to attend court.
When you decide that your marriage is at
an end you ought to consider whether you should make a will if you don’t already
have one or whether you need a new will. If you don’t your spouse may end up benefiting
from your estate when you may not want that or it could mean that you would be partially
intestate. Linked to this, you may need to change the way you own any jointly owned
property if you wish to deal with it in your will.
This guide is for general use only.
It is not intended as a comprehensive account of the law and the content may not
apply to your particular case. Please read the disclaimer page. You may wish to consult
me about your own circumstances -
