Divorce Petition

The person who issues the Petition is called the Petitioner, whilst their spouse is called the Respondent. 

There is only one ground for divorce, that is the irretrievable breakdown of your marriage. This has to be proved with one of the five facts:  

• The Respondent has committed adultery and the Petitioner finds it intolerable to live with the Respondent; 
• The Respondent has behaved in such a way that the Petitioner cannot reasonably be expected to live with the Respondent; 
• The Respondent has deserted the Petitioner for a period of two years immediately before the start of the divorce; 
• The parties have lived apart for a continuous period of at least two years immediately before the start of the divorce and the Respondent consents to the divorce being granted; and 
• The parties have lived apart for a continuous period of at least five years immediately before the start of the divorce.   

The procedure is the same whichever fact you rely on in that the Petitioner will issue their petition, which is served on the Respondent by the Court. In due course the Petitioner can apply for the Decree Nisi and Decree Absolute. The process takes some five to six months from beginning to end provided there are no hold ups by either party or the Court. The different facts dictate when the Petition can be issued, with adultery and behaviour the Petition can be issued even if the parties are still living together, subject to certain limitations. With the facts relating to period of desertion and separation the parties have to have been separated for that period of time before the Petition can be issued. 

A Court issue fee is payable in respect of the Divorce Petition.

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