On 6th April 2022 the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2022 came into force changing the process of divorce as we had known it for the previous 50 years. We are now some 15 months after the introduction of the new law and in the main, the new procedure has been an improvement. It is a quicker more streamlined process written in layman’s terms.
Under the new law it is still necessary to have been married at least 12 months before divorce proceedings can be commenced. A divorce application can now be submitted either by one party or by both parties as a joint application. The application is then submitted online with the court fee which is currently £593.00. It is possible to apply for help towards the fee in some limited financial circumstances.
Once the divorce application has been filed at Court the Court will process the application and send out a copy of the application and the Acknowledgment of Service form to the other party. They are given 14 days to complete this and return the form to the Court or follow the online link provided by the Court. This confirms to the Court that they have received the application. If they fail to co-operate or for any reason receipt of the application is not acknowledged, then the quickest way of proving that your husband/wife has received the divorce application is to instruct a process server who will personally serve the papers upon them. It is then necessary to file at Court a statement from the process server confirming that they have served the papers and the divorce process can then proceed. There is a fee for the process server and additional costs are incurred if such action is necessary.
There then follows a 20-week cooling off period, from the time the divorce application is issued by the Court, during which the parties are encouraged to discuss financial matters and/or arrangements for the children although if such discussions are not possible or an agreement is not reached within this time that does not prevent the applicant from applying for the conditional order following the expiry of the 20 weeks.
The application for the conditional order, which is the first stage of the divorce, is made online and the Court then fix a date for the hearing of the Conditional Order. It is not necessary for either party to attend Court on that day and the Judge will grant the conditional order which will be then be available to download from the online court portal. At this stage, the parties remain married. 6 weeks and 1 day after the pronouncement of the conditional order the applicant can apply for the final Divorce Order which again is submitted online. Assuming this is submitted within 12 months of the date of the conditional order then the final divorce order is usually granted within 24 hours of submission of the application. If by this time, there is no agreement regarding finances, it may be appropriate to delay the final stage of the divorce.
All in all the process is much quicker and there is no longer any need to “blame” the party for the breakdown of the marriage. It is merely necessary to confirm to the Court that the marriage has irretrievably broken down.
As a respondent, it is very difficult to stop divorce proceedings from continuing. It is possible to dispute proceedings but the reasons for doing so are limited and generally have to do with the validity of the marriage and whether it was celebrated according to the correct procedure.
As with the previous law it is still necessary to deal with financial matters such as the house, pensions, spousal maintenance separately. Just because a couple are divorced, this does not automatically provide them with a ‘clean break’ financial order. A separate financial order is required. Ideally, such issues are resolved and incorporated into a separate final financial court order approved by the Judge before the application for a Final Divorce Order is made.
We at RJT Solicitors offer a fixed fee for the issue of divorce. If you wish to discuss divorce and/or financial matters and arrangements for the children please do not hesitate to contact us for a free no obligation 30 minute consultation on 01257 228027.
