Leaving someone you’re married to is a big step, but if you are wanting to do this the best way is through a divorce. A divorce is the legal ending of a marriage. If you’re in a civil partnership it is called a dissolution, but the process is the same.

Throughout this guide we will refer to divorce but are talking about both divorce and dissolution in England and Wales unless specifically stated.

The no fault divorce means you don’t have to give a reason for wanting a divorce. However, you can’t apply for a divorce until you’ve had your first anniversary. Before you can apply for a divorce you will need to separate from your partner – you can learn more about what this means in our blog on what is a separation.

The absolute minimum timeframe for a divorce is 7 months. It will take longer if you can’t agree on how to split your money or property.. However these things will need to be dealt with separately to your divorce or dissolution.

What do you have to do to get a divorce?

• You need to fill out an application, but only one of you needs to make the application
• If you both agree to the divorce and there is no domestic abuse you can make a joint application
• If your former partner doesn’t agree to the divorce or you believe they won’t co-operate or respond, then you can make a sole application
• You will need the original or certified copy of your marriage certificate
• There is currently a £612 court fee to apply for a divorce – if you are splitting this cost it is best to get the other persons half before you pay

What does a divorce entail?

Typically, when you get a divorce you will also have to separate the life you have built together. This is called entering into a financial settlement and is usually done alongside the divorce process.  This usually includes things such as your property, children, pets, debts, savings, business you run together. 

To try streamline things and keep your case from becoming contentious, you and your former partner should try to agree:

• How to divide any assets such as savings and investments
• What will happen to your home – whether one of you stays in it, whether you sell it and split the money etc
• Who will take responsibility for any debts
• If you have any children where they will live and how their time will be allocated between you
• If you run a business together how will this be run going forward
• Are there any pensions to consider
• If there’s a need for paying spousal or child maintenance

Do I need a solicitor to get a divorce?

There are benefits to working with a solicitor before you begin the process of a divorce or financial settlement, some of these include:

• They can advise you about the different ways to agree on splitting property, finances and child care going forward. This can include alternative dispute resolution making court a last resort.
• They can draw up any legal documents you may need to present your financial settlement to a court
• Speak to your partner and their solicitor so you don’t have to.
• Represent you and put your case forward to the judge if you go to court.
• Help get you the best outcome for your situation.
• Advise on the best way to progress your divorce and financial settlement.
• Help agree who will pay the costs of the divorce.
• Make sure you are aware of the things you are legally entitled to.
• They can complete any necessary forms for you and explain how the forms work and what different things mean such as financial, conditional and final orders. 

If I apply for a divorce and don’t tell my partner how will they find out?

If you apply for a divorce with a sole application then the court will ‘serve’ the papers for you. This is usually sent by post and can also be sent by email so they can look at them online. A notification letter will be posted to you and them.

If you’ve applied for the divorce or dissolution by paper form or haven’t given an email address for your partner, the court will post the papers.

If you’ve made a joint application with your partner, you’ll both get an email saying the application has been received by the court and what will happen next.

Would I need to serve the papers myself?

You’ll only need to serve papers to your partner if you’ve made a sole application and either:

• your partner doesn’t live in the UK
• you’ve asked to serve the papers yourself
• the court has tried serving the papers 2 times and failed

If the court can’t serve the papers the first time, you can give them a different email or address for your partner when they try again. You need to make sure you serve the papers within 28 days of the divorce or dissolution application.

What happens after the divorce application is served?

If you’ve made a sole application, your partner has to tell the court they’ve received the divorce application and whether they accept or disagree with it. If they disagree, they’ll need to ‘dispute’ the divorce or dissolution.

Your partner can respond to the divorce application online or by post. They must respond within 14 days.

Your partner can only dispute the divorce or dissolution for one of the following reasons:

• the marriage or civil partnership wasn’t valid in the beginning
• they think the marriage or civil partnership has already been ended through divorce or dissolution
• they don’t think the court is allowed to deal with the divorce or dissolution - this is called ‘not having jurisdiction’

What if my ex doesn’t respond to my divorce application?

If you know where your former partner lives you can ask the court bailiff to serve the application to their address, this does have a cost.

If you can prove your partner has received the divorce application, you can ask the court to proceed with the divorce as if they have acknowledged it. This is called ‘deemed service’ but you will need to make a court application to request this

If you can’t trace your partner you can ask the court to go ahead without a response from your partner if they can’t be traced.  This will involve a court application to request this.

If you’re not sure what to do, get legal advice first.

Applying for a final order

You should apply for a final order within a year after the court said you can. After 12 months, you’ll need to explain to the court why there was a delay in your application. This could be due to sorting out finances or child arrangements .  There may be reasons to delay applying for the final order and if assets remain unresolved you should take legal advice before applying for the final order as this can have significant consequences.

If there was a delay because you got back together for more than two years, you may have to start the process again.

Proving you’re divorced or your civil partnership has ended

If you need to prove you’re divorced or your civil partnership has ended, you will need to show your final order.

If you’re divorced but the application was started before 6 April 2022, the final order is called a ‘decree absolute’.

For more information or advice about divorce or dissolution of a civil partnership, get in touch with our family solicitors by filling out the form below.