No-fault divorce commencement date to be pushed back

The Ministry of Justice have confirmed that The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020, which was due to come into force this year, has now been delayed until 6 April 2022. The delay is due to “full and rigorous” testing of the new system and is described to be “the biggest reform of divorce law in 50 years”. 

The key aspects of the new legislation are as follows:

  1. It allows spouses to sign a statement confirming that the marriage has broken down irretrievably and this will be conclusive to the court. The requirement for the parties to have lived separately for at least 2 years or for one party to place blame on the other will no longer be necessary. 

  2. It allows couples to jointly petition for divorce. 

  3. It removes the ability for a spouse to contest a divorce application, save for very limited circumstances.

  4. There will be period of 6 months after the divorce application is made to allow a period of reflection before the final order, which will prevent unnecessary delays. 

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