What Are Grounds For Divorce In England & Wales
Before the new no-fault divorce law become available in England & Wales you had to prove your marriage had irretrievably broken down by establishing one of five available ‘facts’.
Before a divorce would be allowed you had to demonstrate that your relationship has reached a point where it can no longer be salvaged. These five facts or reasons for divorce are commonly known as the grounds for divorce.
Please note; this article applies to the divorce process in England & Wales only – To find out about the divorce process in Scotland please visit: Facts About Scottish Divorce Law
The Grounds for Divorce Explained for 2022
To get a divorce in England or Wales, you must have been married for at least 12 months and your marriage has irretrievably broken down.
To apply for a divorce under the new divorce law you must complete a statement on the divorce petition stating that the marriage has broken down irretrievably.
The court must take the statement of irretrievable breakdown to be conclusive evidence that the marriage has broken down irretrievably, and in turn, make a divorce order.
Under the previous divorce law, couples were asked to essentially explain to the court why the marriage has broken down and/or ‘who was to blame for it’ – causing thousands of couples additional stress.
The removal of adultery, unreasonable behaviour and separation length based grounds for divorce are a welcome change to modernise the divorce law.
No-Fault Divorce Is Now Divorce Law – The divorce law in England and Wales has changed to give way for a no-fault divorce. This means, from 6 April 2022, you no longer need to wait for a period of 2 years of separation or blame one party for the breakdown of your marriage. It is not possible for the other party to contest the divorce, allowing the divorce to proceed without friction or additional costs.
Speak to our friendly team on Live Chat for quick and reliable answers to your questions or call us on 01793 384 029 for no obligation information and advice on how no-fault divorce works.
1) Adultery
Firstly it can be complicated when using Adultery as a ground for divorce to prove the breakdown of your marriage.
This ground is used in around 20% of divorce applications in England and Wales.
There are four main points to be aware of when considering using Adultery;
- Adultery is when your husband or wife has had sexual intercourse with someone of the opposite sex
- Adultery cannot be used in same-sex relationships
- You cannot file for divorce on the basis of your own Adultery
- You must file for divorce within six months of finding out about the Adultery taking place
You must prove either through actual admission or through sufficient circumstantial evidence that your spouse has had sexual intercourse with another person of the opposite sex and that you find it intolerable to live with them.
It doesn’t matter if you are still living together or have separated providing it’s within the six-month time period.
If a sexual liaison short of sexual intercourse has taken place, it’s suggested that the unreasonable behaviour ground is used as you cannot proceed on the grounds of your own adultery.
2) Unreasonable Behaviour
Unreasonable behaviour is the most commonly used grounds for divorce in England and Wales, due to the lack of a no-fault divorce system.
It accounts for around 45% of all divorce applications as it covers a lot of aspects.
To use unreasonable behaviour you must show that your spouse has behaved in such a way that you cannot reasonably be expected to live with him or her.
- You must provide 4-5 examples of behaviour that has caused your marriage to breakdown.
- You cannot use your own behaviour, it must be the behaviour of your husband or wife.
- You do not need the permission of your spouse, however, agreeing on the reasons before can help keep relations amicable.
In an unreasonable behaviour petition, the Petitioner sets out a number of allegations against the Respondent.
These allegations might include references to excessive drinking or financial extravagance, for example; but it’s worth bearing in mind that the court doesn’t insist on really severe allegations of unreasonable behaviour in order to grant a divorce.
Relatively mild allegations such as devoting too much time to a career or hobby, having no common interests or pursuing a separate social life may well suffice.
If you can agree on the reasons with your spouse before submitting the divorce petition, it can help to reduce the acrimony and ensure a swift resolution to your divorce.
3) Desertion
Desertion is defined as when your spouse deserted you without your consent for a continuous period of at least two years; this ground for divorce is almost never used as it requires the mental intent to divorce throughout the two-year period, which can be very difficult to prove.
4) Separation of 2 years with consent
You can divorce after two years of separation if you have been living apart and both parties are in agreement. This grounds for divorce is the only ‘no-fault divorce‘ option available to applicants at the moment.
If you are separated but living together for financial reasons or because of children, you must show the court that you’ve been living separate lives, which can be difficult.
If you can’t prove that you’ve been living separate lives then it might be worth exploring another option, such as unreasonable behaviour.
Information on how to divorce using 2 years separation as your reason for divorce.
5) Separation of 5 years – no consent required
You and your spouse have been living apart for at least five years immediately preceding the presentation of the divorce petition.
In this instance, you do not require the agreement or consent to divorce from your ex-partner.
However, the Respondent can hold up the final decree if they believe they would be financially worse off, but this is very uncommon.
It’s also important to note that you need to know the address of your spouse, otherwise the proceedings can become more complex, costly and longer.
There are caveats to using the 5-year separation rule so if you are unsure how it works and what’s involved it’s best to to find out more by calling us on 01793 384 029 for advice.
If your case is complicated you can still get a divorce, but you may need to explore using another ground for divorce such as unreasonable behaviour.
How do you start divorce proceedings?
The grounds for divorce you choose to prove the breakdown of your marriage will not affect the procedure you need to follow in order to obtain a divorce.
So, whether you hire divorce solicitors to handle your case, try to do it yourself or you work with an online divorce company like Divorce-Online, the process to divorce will stay the same.
In an uncontested divorce case, each ground will require the same procedure to be followed for a decree absolute to be granted.
You can start divorce proceedings by completing an application for divorce (D8 divorce petition) and sending it to the Family Court that serves as your regional divorce centre.
Send Divorce Petition Form D8 to your Regional Divorce Centre along with:
- Your original marriage certificate or an official copy (not a photocopy)
- The correct court fee payment or an application for fee remission (court fee reduction)
The 4 stages to the divorce proceedings in England & Wales and are then as follows:
Divorce Should be Granted Within 5 to 6 Months
If both parties are in agreement to the divorce and file for an uncontested divorce it should be granted within 5-6 months.
This will also enable you to file for divorce yourself without needing to hire a solicitor to act on your behalf and also, filing for an uncontested divorce will help drastically reduce the cost.
There is a lot to know about the grounds for divorce so don’t rush making the decision as it can affect how long a divorce takes.
More information on the grounds for divorce
Other articles that you may find useful:
Depending on your individual situation, choosing the right grounds for divorce can be complex and will require some thought.
For example, if your spouse isn’t prepared to name the person he/she committed adultery with or indeed admits that it happened, you would need to consider using other grounds for divorce to prove the breakdown of your marriage, e.g. Unreasonable behaviour.
2 years separation with consent is the most amicable and quick way to obtain a divorce, but this requires a level of agreement that isn’t possible for every couple.
If you cannot agree to the grounds of 2 years separation you would need to consider filing for divorce using unreasonable behaviour or waiting until you’ve been separated for 5 years, which may be too long for you to wait.
How can Divorce-Online help you with your divorce?
We’d advise calling us on 01793 384 029 or email us today about the process involved with filing for divorce using each ground.
Divorce-Online can assist you with formulating your grounds for divorce and with the whole divorce process from start to finish. We can also assist you with preparing more complicated divorce petitions involving unreasonable behaviour and 5 year separation without an address.
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