Last year, Theresa May’s government introduced the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill to reform the process for obtaining a divorce in England & Wales. The main purpose of the bill was to remove the need for divorcing spouses to provide evidence of “fault”.
The Government reintroduced the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill in the Queen’s Speech of 19 December 2019. According the Government, the purpose of the Bill is to “remove issues that create conflict within the divorce process to strengthen family support [by] ensuring that the decision to divorce is a considered one, and reducing family conflict where reconciliation is not possible and divorce is inevitable.”
You can read more about the Government proposals in our blog from last year.
The second reading – the general debate on all aspects of the Bill – took place on 5 February. Once the second reading is complete the Bill proceeds to committee stage – where each clause (part) and any amendments (proposals for change) to the Bill may be debated. The committee stage is scheduled for 3 March.
You can follow the progress of the Bill by following this link.
You can also read the full text of the Bill here.
