The biggest shake-up of divorce in 50 years: Jo Edwards quoted in The Guardian on no fault divorce

Head of Family, Jo Edwards, has been quoted in The Guardian (4 April 2022) on the advent of no fault divorce, which will become law on 6 April. Under the new legislation, either or both parties to the marriage may apply to the court for an order which dissolves the marriage on the ground that it has broken down irretrievably.

In the article, entitled 'Surge in divorces expected as England and Wales introduce no-fault process this week', Jo explains an increase in divorce cases is to be expected - "the experience of other countries where they've moved to a no-fault system is that there is a spike when the new law comes in – in Scotland, for example, when they changed the law in 2006".

Faced with a question on whether this will add undue pressure on the courts, Jo highlights that "in the medium to longer term the change would probably reduce the burden on the courts because cases would require less judicial oversight, as there would be no ground for a spouse to contest the divorce".

The full article can be read here.

Jo has been at the forefront in campaigning for the no fault divorce law reform. She is an avid pioneer in finding less confrontational routes to resolving issues arising on divorce or separation and has dedicated much of her career to championing the modernisation of family law in England and Wales.

To find out more please do get in touch with one of our Family lawyers or listen to our Breaking Good podcast episode "No Fault Divorce – ending the blame game".