Divorce is the
legal process of ending a marriage. A couple
can only start divorce proceedings if they
have been married for more than one year.
As the Law presently stands, there is only
one ground for divorce: you must show that
your marriage has irretrievably broken down.
In addition, it is necessary to prove one
of the following five facts:-
| Your spouse
has committed adultery and you find
it intolerable to live with them. |
| Your spouse has behaved
in such a way that you cannot reasonably
be expected to live with them. |
| Your spouse has deserted
you and you have lived apart for more
than two years. |
| You have lived apart for
more than two years and your spouse
consents to the divorce. |
| You have lived apart for
more than five years. |
It follows that, until you have lived apart
for at least two years, it is necessary to
rely on either (a) or (b) above, in addition
to showing that the marriage has irretrievably
broken down when presenting divorce proceedings.
The proceedings will take
approximately six months to conclude. If
you have children, the Court will have to
be satisfied that arrangements for the children,
including housing, maintenance and contact
with the parent with whom the children reside
are acceptable. You are free to re-marry
upon Decree Absolute. Financial matters
can be resolved either before or after the
Decree Absolute. |
