The UK Government has said it will implement no fault divorce by April 2022.
The UK Government has recently announced that the Divorce Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 will be implemented by April 2022, so no fault divorces should become available then. Also, for the first time, married couples will be able to petition jointly for a divorce, rather than one of them having to be the petitioner and the other being the respondent, as has always been the case.
The progress of the Divorce Dissolution and Separation Act has been followed in previous posts. It began its journey through Parliament around June 2019. When it eventually became law in June 2020, we thought it was likely to be implemented around November 2021, to give time for the changes to the court systems and court rules to be made.
In the intervening period we have had the Covid 19 pandemic, which has changed the timelines for lots of projects. Overall it has probably accelerated introduction of IT into the family courts generally so that most applications which were previously sent to the court office in paper format now submitted online using the portal on the government website. The changes generally start as an option, and then become compulsory.
So probably, by April 2022 the only way to access a no fault divorce will be online.
John Pratley is an expert divorce lawyer, who has more than 25 years experience advising clients purely about divorce and related family law issues, such as the financial consequences of separating and divorcing. After establishing the first niche family law practice in Bristol, and going on to senior management roles in a national firm, John set up Apple Tree Family Law in 2018. Apple tree family Law solicitors specialise in advice about divorce and financial issues.
We are based in Bristol and Exeter, but we have clients all over the UK and further afield. We offer, simply, clear and accurate advice about divorce and family law issues, and the very best client service, for a clear and reasonable price.