A divorce is obtained from a Court when one party to the marriage is able to show that the marriage has 'irretrievably broken down'.  This is the only ground for divorce.  The person seeking the divorce is called 'the Petitioner' and the other party is called 'the Respondent'.

The law says that you can only prove your marriage has broken down 'irretrievably' in one of five ways which are:

A. Adultery

Where the other party, the Respondent, has committed adultery (had sexual intercourse) with a member of the opposite sex and as a result the Petitioner finds it intolerable to live with the Respondent.

B. Unreasonable Behaviour

Where the Petitioner finds that the Respondent's behaviour is so unreasonable that he or she cannot continue living with the Respondent.  Unreasonable behaviour can vary markedly and is a subjective test.  It is not uncommon for many parties to a marriage to be able to give 5 or 10 examples of the other person's behaviour that they find difficult to live with.

C. Desertion

One party to the marriage has deserted the other party for a period of at least 2 years.  Desertion means leaving the other party without their consent.

D. Two Years' Separation With Consent

Where the parties to the marriage have lived apart for a continuous period of at least 2 years prior to the divorce starting.  In this situation the Respondent must actively consent to the divorce proceeding on this basis.  In certain circumstances separation can include where the parties have remained living together under the same roof provided they have lived separate lives.  This usually means that they socialise separately; have separate cooking, laundry, cleaning, shopping and financial arrangements. Brief periods of reconciliation within a longer separation period do not prevent you obtaining a divorce on this basis provided such periods of reconciliation do not exceed 6 months.  However, such periods of reconciliation cannot count towards the two years.

E. Five Years' Separation

The parties to the marriage have lived apart for a continuous period of at least 5 years whether or not the other party consents to the divorce or not.  See D above as to how to calculate the period of separation.

Although the divorce is a Court process there are usually no Court appearances at all provided the case is not defended.  It is in essence an administrative process with a number of procedural stages and is usually dealt with by post.

We can advise you as to the most appropriate way of approaching a divorce depending on your circumstances.  We will prepare the necessary paperwork and assist you through the process.

Provided there are no problems with service of the Court documents and the divorce is uncontested a divorce can be finalised within about 6 months from the date of the Petition.

It is advisable to agree and finalise arrangements for your children, money and property at the same as the divorce process is proceeding but a divorce can be finalised even if there are outstanding issues concerning the children or the finances to be resolved.

Unless you are entitled to legal aid the cost of the divorce is as follows:

• Disbursements of £300 for the issuing fee and £40 for the Decree Absolute fee at the conclusion of the proceedings.  Our charges are likely to be £600 plus VAT provided the case is not defended and there are no problems with service.

Once the proceedings are issued the Court documents which include the divorce Petition and if there are children under the age of 18 a document entitled Statement of Arrangements for the children is served by post upon the Respondent.

The Respondent should return the Acknowledgement of Service form to the Court within 7 days indicating whether or not he or she intends to defend the case.

If the Respondent does intend to defend the case (which is unusual because it barely serves any worthwhile purpose and only suits to increase the costs significantly) the Respondent should file a response called 'an Answer' within 28 days of receiving the Petition.

If the Respondent does not intend to defend the case the Petitioner then proceeds with our assistance to prepare for the case to be placed in the Special Procedure List by swearing an Affidavit ( a sworn Statement) which confirms the truthfulness of the divorce petition and proving effective service on the other party.

Once sworn and submitted to the Court a Judge will consider all the documents and if approved will fix a date for the Decree Nisi to be pronounced by issuing a Certificate of entitlement to divorce.  Neither party need attend Court on the pronouncement of a Decree Nisi.

Six weeks and one day after the date of the Decree Nisi the Petitioner may apply for the Decree Nisi to be made Absolute.  This finalises the divorce.

If the Petitioner does not apply for the Decree Absolute to be made then the Respondent may do so three months after the first available date for the Decree Absolute to have been granted.

You should always take advice about making or revising your will during divorce proceedings and certainly before the divorce is finalised.

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