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06 April 2022
Issue: 7974 / Categories: Legal News , Family , Divorce , Profession
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No more Owens v Owens?

Tini Owens, whose high-profile divorce went all the way to the Supreme Court, has welcomed the new ‘no-fault’ process

She was denied a divorce since her husband, Hugh contested her petition and she was unable to show unreasonable behaviour, in Owens v Owens [2018] UKSC 41 [2018] 4 All ER 721.

Owens said: ‘No one should have to remain in a loveless marriage or endure a long, drawn out and expensive court battle to end it.’

Owens’ solicitor, Simon Beccle, partner at Payne Hicks Beach, welcomed the change but warned the reform did not introduce ‘quick divorce’.

‘The new law introduces a minimum period of 20 weeks between the start of the divorce proceedings and the application for a conditional order to provide spouses with a meaningful period of reflection and the chance to reconsider,’ he said. 

‘There will also be a six-week period between the conditional order and a final order of divorce.’ Therefore, divorce would take at least six months compared to three to four months under the old law.

Issue: 7974 / Categories: Legal News , Family , Divorce , Profession
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MOVERS & SHAKERS

42BR Barristers—4 Brick Court

42BR Barristers—4 Brick Court

42BR Barristers to be joined by leading family law set, 4 Brick Court, this summer

Winckworth Sherwood—Rubianka Winspear

Winckworth Sherwood—Rubianka Winspear

Real estate and construction energy offering boosted by partner hire

Gateley Legal—Daniel Walsh

Gateley Legal—Daniel Walsh

Firm bolsters real estate team with partner hire in Birmingham

NEWS
A wave of housing and procedural reforms is set to test the limits of tribunal capacity. In his latest Civil Way column for NLJ this week, Stephen Gold charts sweeping change as the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 begins biting
Plans to reduce jury trials risk missing the real problem in the criminal justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, David Wolchover of Ridgeway Chambers argues the crown court backlog is fuelled not by juries but weak cases slipping through a flawed ‘50%’ prosecution test
Emerging technologies may soon transform how courts determine truth in deeply personal disputes. In this week's NLJ, Madhavi Kabra of 1 Hare Court and Harry Lambert of Outer Temple Chambers explore how neurotechnology could reshape family law
A controversial protest case has reignited debate over the limits of free expression. In NLJ this week, Nicholas Dobson examines a Quran-burning incident testing public order law
The courts have drawn a firm line under attempts to extend arbitration appeals. Writing in NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed of the University of Leicester highlights that if the High Court refuses permission under s 68 of the Arbitration Act 1996, that is the end
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