Law firm Slater and Gordon found that the main areas where people exaggerated or outright lied about problems with their partners were adultery, length of separation and unreasonable behaviour. The survey showed that:
- 30% of people exaggerated faults or problems in their marriage in order to get a quicker divorce
- 14% of people exaggerated about their partner having adulterous affairs
- 13% admitted to lying about how long they’d been separated from their partners
- 60% of the divorce petitioners who admitted that they’d exaggerated did so in relation to unreasonable behaviour
- Of these, 25% accused their partners of picking arguments, controlling behaviour, drinking too much or having a lack of respect.
A significant 42% of the couples included in the study said that having to assign some form of blame to their partners during the divorce process caused distress or upset to their children. Over 25% said that accusing their partner of adultery, unreasonable behaviour or desertion in a divorce petition left them with ‘sour feelings’ about their ex-partner.
Could proposals for divorce law overhaul help?
The UK government has recently announced that it will be launching a consultation on the divorce system in England and Wales, with a particular focus on whether ‘no fault’ divorces could improve the process.
Under the current system, a person petitioning for divorce must prove that their partner cheated, deserted them or behaved so unreasonably that it became intolerable to live with them. Unless you’ve been separated for two years (if both parties agree) or five years (if only one party wants a divorce), you must essentially blame the other person for the divorce.
Critics of this system say that this creates unnecessarily acrimonious, unpleasant situations where couples argue their cases through the courts. It forces those who are separating amicably to assign blame and slows down the process of getting divorced.
The calls for modernisation of divorce laws have strengthened following the case of Tini Owens, a 68-year-old who was forced by the supreme court to remain married to her husband until they’d been separated for five years. This was despite the fact that she described the marriage as loveless and herself as unhappy.
According to a recent YouGov poll, nearly 70% of the British public support a change to UK divorce law, believing that people should be able to get divorced without having to prove that their former partner was at fault. Of the people who were surveyed, just over 40% said that they were seeking a divorce after falling out of love with their spouse – rather than adultery, desertion or unreasonable behaviour.
If you need help with divorce or have a question you’d like answered, please get in touch with the team at Tracey Miller Family Law – leading Wirral divorce solicitors. Call 0151 515 3036 or contact us online.