An Overview: Reform Of The Legal Requirements For Divorce To Reduce Family Conflict

With the decision of seeking divorce, starts a rough time for the couples involved. Apart from the couples, the outcome of divorce always has an adverse effect on the children too. The case of Owens v Owens has brought to light that the current legal process of divorce has become redundant in the modern day circumstances. And due to this the Government believes that the fifty year old divorce law in England and Wales is not serving the purpose any more.

The family justice system focuses on resolving family issues in a non-confrontational manner but the legal divorce process aggravates the conflict between the couples seeking divorce. Also, children are exposed to the conflict, putting a damaging impact on them.

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The current law focuses on the past and does not serve the requirements of the modern society. It lets couples with no opportunity to focus on the future. The legal divorce process requirements are such that husband and wife have to find faults in each other in order to seek divorce. This leads to hostile environment and if the couples have children, this works against the children's interest.

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As per the present legal needs, husband and wife seeking divorce must show that there has been irretrievable breakdown in the marriage. And for this, they must provide evidence of one or more of five facts. This includes faults; three of them being - adultery, unreasonable behaviour or desertion. Then the two are based on the time for which they are living separately. The first is, if for two years, the couples are living separately and both consent to the divorce. The second is five years’ separation where the other spouse does not consent.

Putting forth the other spouse fault makes the current law in need to get reformed. Hence the Government proposed to reform the legal requirements for divorce. The aim is to shift the focus from blame and recrimination to support couples to focus on their futures and for their children’s.

Key points of Reducing Family Conflict Reform Of The Legal Requirements For Divorce, proposal from the Ministry of Justice –

• The divorce process to retain the sole ground for divorce- the irretrievable breakdown of a marriage.
• Do away with the need to show evidence of the spouse’s conduct, or a period of living apart.
• A new notification process could be introduced where one, or possibly both parties, can notify the court of the intention to divorce.
• To remove the opportunity for the other spouse to contest the divorce application.

With this, the focus is to make the lives of the couples seeking divorce a little easier whilst allowing them to concentrate on their futures and saving the children from the harmful aspect of divorce.