Research should eliminate doubt that law needs to change
Divorce law in England and Wales encourages dishonesty and conflict, and is out of step with the law in Scotland and most countries in Europe and North America.
That’s the conclusion of a major report commissioned by the Nuffield Foundation and led by Professor Liz Trinder, University of Essex, Finding Fault? Divorce Law and Practice in England and Wales. The reason is the ‘fault’ aspect of divorce, where a person wishing to divorce within two years (or five years if their spouse doesn’t consent) must claim unreasonable behaviour on the part of their partner. In practice, these claims cannot be investigated by the court or easily rebutted by the responding party—the court did not raise questions about the truth of a petition in any of the 592 case files analysed, despite evidence that respondents disagreed with the claims.
In England and Wales in 2015, 60% of divorces were granted on the basis of adultery or behaviour, compared to only 6% in Scotland, where couples can obtain
