This document provides general guidance regarding divorce procedure. Your family lawyer will be able to provide specific advice based on your circumstances.

No fault divorce

The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 (DDSA 2020) has been described as a landmark reform of divorce law. It aims to make the divorce process less acrimonious by introducing what is commonly known as ‘no fault divorce’. This legislation, for the first time, completely removes the need to assign blame when commencing divorce proceedings. The new divorce procedure is in force for applications that are issued from 6 April 2022.

Historically, in order to obtain a divorce in England and Wales it was necessary for the party applying for a divorce to establish that the marriage had broken down irretrievably and to do that they had to prove one of the ‘five facts’. Three facts were based on fault, ie Adultery with a person of the opposite sex, Unreasonable behaviour and Desertion, and two facts were based on a period of separation (two years’ separation with consent or