The proposed legislation and how it affects divorces
Proposed legislation could be close to receiving royal assent as it makes it way through the next stage of Parliamentary procedure today. The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill was brought in to the House of Commons on 14 June last year but progression has halted amidst Brexit and other strains on Parliament. The Effect of the bill will remove the current requirement to evidence ‘conduct’ or ‘separation’ making the divorce process much easier. Family lawyers who have in the past campaigned for such a change have welcomed this change, but the delay has been substantial. Simon Davis, Law Society president said:
“The bill should be amended so that a final divorce order cannot be granted until the pension sharing order has taken effect. Pensions are often overlooked during the divorce process as couples can be focused on dividing other assets – such as the family home and shared bank accounts.”
The current position for divorce has been widely criticised and requires an accusation relating to the other’s conduct when filing to end the marriage. Those filing for divorce can do so on certain grounds i.e. adultery, unreasonable behaviour or desertion – but fundamentally the system is a fault-based setup which requires evidence of guilt from one party. The new law will remove the ‘blame game’ that has been prevalent in English divorce law for a long time now. This legislation should make it much easier for those suffering domestic abuse to leave abusive marriages through less adversarial means.
However, as MPs prepare to debate this bill, the Law Society has once again called for the legislation to be amended to ensure ex-spouses are not left financially vulnerable as a result of pension orders. Simon Davis, president commented: ‘The bill should be amended so that a final divorce order cannot be granted until the pension sharing order has taken effect. Pensions are often overlooked during the divorce process as couples can be focused on dividing other assets – such as the family home and shared bank accounts.
