Whilst adultery may be the reason for instigating divorce proceedings, the law changed in England and Wales on 6 April 2022 removing the ability to “blame” your spouse for the breakdown of the marriage.
Prior to 6th April 2022 the ground for divorce was that your marriage had irretrievably broken down based on one of five facts namely; behaviour, adultery, 2 years separation, 5 years separation or desertion.
Now you no longer rely on a “fact” in the divorce application and instead, you have to confirm in a statement that your marriage has irretrievably broken down. This is all that is required (along with other general information about you, your spouse and the marriage) in the divorce application to start the proceedings. The Court simply must be satisfied your marriage has broken down irretrievably.
The change in the law removes the ability to state within a divorce application that adultery has been committed by your spouse. This can be distressing when your spouse has had an affair that led to the breakdown of the marriage but, in the court’s eyes, more often than not the reason for the divorce has no bearing on any other issues arising such as arrangements for the children or financial matters.
