Divorce Procedures in England and Wales

In England and Wales the divorce law procedure follows a number of sequential steps. At each point relevant documentation must be completed and filed at the Court. These steps are as follows –

Filing the Divorce Petition - Proceedings begin with a divorce petition being filed to the Court. The divorce petition contains the details of both parties along with the reason for the divorce being applied for. The reason given must be one of the official grounds for divorce which are; unreasonable behaviour, adultery, separation and desertion. In divorce proceedings the person applying for it is referred to as the Petitioner while the other spouse is referred to as the Respondent.

Service, Acknowledgement and Confirmation of the Petition - The next step is for the Court to check that the petition complies with the all the necessary requirements. If the petition is correct it is officially issued and is sent to the Respondent along with an Acknowledgement of Service form. The Respondent has seven days to return this form and indicate whether or not they wish to dispute the divorce.

Once the Acknowledgement of Service form is returned by the Respondent it is then sent to the Petitioner. The Petitioner must then swear an Affidavit confirming the facts of the divorce petition. This Affidavit is sent to the Court along with the signed Acknowledgement of Service.

Decree Nisi and Decree Absolute - If the Court is satisfied that all the documentation is correct they will set a date for the pronouncement of the Decree Nisi. It is not usually necessary for the parties to attend Court for this. Six weeks after the Decree Nisi is pronounced the Petitioner can apply for the Decree Absolute. Once the Decree Absolute has been granted the parties officially divorced.