No fault divorce. Do not hold your breath.

One of the things that we are asked on a regular basis by people thinking of getting divorced is whether or not they have to ‘blame’ their spouse or civil partner for the reason for the relationship breakdown. I will not detail the facts that must be proven in order to divorce under the current law but suffice to say for all couples wanting to get divorced at the time of separation, one must blame the other.

You can imagine the delight of family lawyers up and down the country, (following the case of Owens v Owens which went to the Supreme Court), when the Government announced the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill which was meant to bring in no fault divorces. Further, it was meant to remove the ability of one party to object to a divorce.  Legislation was laid before Parliament and the Bill passed its second reading………….

I have written previous blogs about domestic violence and abuse. The Domestic Abuse Bill was laid before Parliament this year.  Its aim was to help and assist victims of domestic abuse and violence and to clarify the law. The Bill was meant to protect vulnerable parties from being abused by their partners. It was proceeding well through Parliament with cross party support…………..

Then came the prorogation of Parliament. Both Bills were stopped dead in their tracks and did not pass into the Statute Books. On the face of it, there was no timetable for these Bills to be re-introduced and we would have needed to wait until the Queen’s Speech to see whether or not the Government had the appetite to bring items such as no fault divorce back onto the agenda.

That was the position until Tuesday 24th September 2019. As now widely reported, the Supreme Court has overturned the prorogation of Parliament.  Because the prorogation has been declared null and void, presumably, the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill as well as the Domestic Abuse Bill will be reinstated to be considered in due course.  Maybe no fault divorce is back on the agenda! 

However, if there is to be a Queen’s Speech next month it is likely that Parliament will be prorogued again, nearer the time, to bring the current Parliamentary Session to an end. If that were to happen, the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill, together with the Domestic Abuse Bill will once again ‘die a death’. 

It is clear that there is a desire to have a no fault divorce system. However, in order to bring such a system in, there must be a wholesale change in the law.  One day, as family lawyers, when asked if there is such a thing as an immediate no fault divorce, we will be able to say yes. Until then, to divorce immediately upon separation, one must blame the other and it is for this reason that you should seek specialist legal advice from one of our Family Team here at Harrowells.