Family Law - relating to divorce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Family Law - relating to divorce - Essay Example A division of the High Court, the Family division, also has the jurisdiction of hearing and determining family law cases, including divorce (Strong, DeVault & Cohen, 2011). Divorce should not be confused with marriage annulment, which refers to a legal declaration that a marriage is null and void. A legal process for divorce involves a wide range of issues including child custody, alimony or spousal support, division of debt and distribution of property (Manning & Cohen, 2012). This essay aims at studying the current law governing divorce in England and Wales as well as outlining the various reforms that have taken place to improve the law over the years. Types of divorce in England and Wales There are seven types of divorce cases recognized by the law in England and Wales. These are contested divorce, uncontested divorce, collaborative divorce, summary divorce, mediated divorce, at fault divorce and no fault divorce (Rapoport, 2005). Contested divorce refers to a case where the coup les fail to agree on one or more issues, which are the subject of the divorce such as child custody and division of family assets and liabilities. Contested divorce often takes a longer time and is very costly, as the couple has to hire lawyers to help in the process and the outcome if determined by the hearing judge. Uncontested divorce on the other hand occurs where both parties are able to agree on the issues around the divorce involving children, support and sharing of property. The couple will then present their agreement to the courts for approval, upon which the courts will grant a divorce. Uncontested divorce cases account for about 70% of all divorce cases in the UK and the litigation process often takes a much shorter time (Rapoport, 2005). At fault divorce is one that involves a partner proving to the courts that one of them committed an act that is incompatible with their marital union and warrants a divorce. The faults are often referred to as the grounds for divorce. C ommon grounds for divorce in the UK include adultery, desertion, unreasonable behavior, or two years separation with consent among others. No fault divorce on the other hand is one that does not require any proof or allegation of fault from either party. This type of divorce is very popular in the UK, The US and most Western jurisdictions (Cretney, 2005). Collaborative divorce involves couples coming to an agreement on the main issues of divorce. The agreement is usually conducted with the help of lawyers who have been trained in collaborative divorce processes. The lawyers will then be disqualified from representing the couples in contested legal proceedings in court when the collaborative divorce process begins. Mediated divorce involves third party facilitating the discussion between the two parties involved in the divorce. At the closing stages of the mediation, the parties will present their agreement to a court in order to be granted a divorce. Summary divorce is often used in cases where the parties meet specified eligibility requirements or if they agree on the main issues beforehand. Some of the eligibility requirements include a short marriage of less than five years, minimal or no property and no children among others. Family law on divorce in England and Wales The legal provisions of divorce are stipulated in the Marital Causes