Getting advice early will help you know what to expect so you can plan for the process. In this blog, we outline the key steps for the legal process of divorce or dissolution of a civil partnership.
To get a divorce or dissolution in England or Wales prior to 2022, you were required to either live apart for two years or blame the other party for the breakdown of the marriage. Since the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020, the requirement for fault or blame in the divorce process has been removed. The only requirement of divorce is to state that there has been an irretrievable breakdown.
Stages of a divorce
Deciding whether to apply individually or as a couple: Couples can apply individually or as a couple. Joint applicants can switch to an individual application if they can no longer work together. However, individual applicants (sole filing) will not be able to change their application to a joint application.
1. Once a divorce application has been issued, the respondent must file an acknowledgment of service with the Court confirming receipt of the application.
2. Wait period: There is a mandatory 20-week reflection period, which starts when the application is made. This is an opportunity for the couple to agree on practical arrangements for their separate futures and decide on changing their mind.
3. Apply for Conditional Order: Once the 20-week cooling off period has passed, the Applicant applies for the Conditional Order.
4. Court review: The court reviews the application for a Conditional Order. If this is approved, the court will issue a Certificate of Entitlement. This step shows the judge is satisfied that the couple are entitled to a divorce.
5. Second wait period: The couple must now wait a minimum of six weeks and one day before applying for a Final Order. You should consider taking legal advice on sorting out your finances on divorce. If the couple wants a financial settlement to be binding, they must prepare a Financial Consent Order and present it to the court for approval. There may be financial consequences if you need but do not apply to the court for a financial remedy before the final order for divorce is made.
6. Apply for the Final Order: After the six weeks is up, the couple can apply for the Final Order. In an individual application, the Applicant will apply. The Respondent can also apply, if the Applicant has not, 3 months later.
7. Final Order granted by the court: It only takes a day or two after applying for the Final Order for the court to issue it. Once the couple have it, the marriage is officially ended.
Alongside that process you and your partner will need to work out arrangements for any children and sort out your family finances and housing arrangements.
Court fees
Whether you use a lawyer or not, you must pay court fees to get a divorce or dissolution. This is currently £612 in England and Wales.
In relation to financial issues, if the couple agree on the financial issues and only require the Court to approve the consent order, the fee is £60. If you cannot agree and issue financial proceedings, the court fee is £313. If you cannot agree on child arrangements and you issue children act proceedings, the court fee is £263.
How long will it take to get a divorce?
Because of the 20-week cooling off period, a no-fault divorce will take a minimum of six months. Sorting out the finances and children through court often takes a lot longer. Sometimes, 12–18 months. Using an alternative method to court can reduce the time it will take, down to a few weeks in some cases.
Financial settlement
The divorce is the legal process to end the marriage. It does not address the financial claims that arise for both spouses as a result of the marriage which will need to be dealt with separately.
The financial settlement covers all financial issues, including how capital (i.e property and any investments, money in bank accounts etc) and any pensions should be divided; how liabilities should be met and whether any maintenance needs to be paid.
It is advisable to have the financial settlement you reach set out in a Court Order so that it is binding and can be enforced in the event of any future dispute. If you are able to reach an agreement then this should be set out in a Consent Order. The Consent Order will need court approval to be binding and can first be submitted when you have reached the Conditional Order stage of the divorce proceedings. When the Consent Order is submitted to the court for approval you will need to provide the court with a summary of your financial position. This is set out in a Form D81 and should be completed by you and your spouse. This financial summary enables a judge to consider whether the Consent Order is fair and reasonable for you both, and therefore whether or not it should be approved.
If you are unsure about how to approach the financial issues, you should take legal advice from a family lawyer, and we have experts at BWL who will be able to advise you accordingly.