‘No Fault’ Divorce – The End of the Blame Game

After many years of lawyers campaigning for reform, no-fault divorce is finally here and has brought about significant changes in the divorce process. Historically, there were five grounds for divorce in England & Wales with many divorcing couples only being entitled to ‘fault’ based grounds to petition a divorce. These ‘fault’ based grounds would often fuel acrimonious and often costly legal battles between divorcing parties.

What does the change mean for you?

Since reform to the law in Spring of this year, there is now only one ground for divorce in the UK, that the marriage has irretrievably broken down. Therefore, you must be certain that the marriage has ended, and that there is no chance of saving it. The only requirement needed to proceed with divorce is to provide a statement of an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. It also removes the option for a spouse to ‘defend’ a divorce.

The person who initiates divorce proceedings is the ‘applicant’ and their spouse is the ‘respondent’. The new legislation gives spouses the opportunity to make a joint application for divorce. In these circumstances the spouses will be known as ‘applicant 1’ and ‘applicant 2’.

Ultimately, the expectation is that divorce will now be quicker, cheaper and more amicable.

At Tyndallwoods we have a dedicated team of solicitors that can assist and guide you on the divorce, including finances, property and children. If you are would like to find out more about your rights please contact Anna Taylor, head of our Family Team on 0121 693 2222.

The information provided in this post has been thoroughly and diligently researched to ensure its accuracy. The information and advice given on behalf of Tyndallwoods is general advice and we remind those reading the blog posts that the information is correct at the time of publication. We cannot take responsibility for an action, or lack thereof, from those who solely reference the content of the blog. We would like to remind readers that each case is unique and different and therefore accurate advice will be moulded by our solicitors to accommodate to your specific case.