“Divorce Day” is the name frequently applied to the first Monday of the year when family lawyers see a surge in enquiries from people who have decided to separate and want to start divorce proceedings.

This year, “Divorce Day” is 6 January 2025.

Why is there an increase in divorce filings in January?

There are many reasons why people choose this time of the year to separate and which triggers this surge in enquires to divorce lawyers.

Many couples remain together for the benefit of the children over Christmas, or find that having spent an extended period of time together they realise that they really are no longer compatible. Sometimes the financial stress of Christmas is the final straw or simply people look for a fresh start in the New Year. Whatever the reason, it is, nevertheless, often a difficult and overwhelming time.

Some marriages can be repaired but often attempts to do so have been exhausted.

What is Divorce?

Divorce is the legal process to bring a marriage to an end. The marriage only ends of the granting of the Final Divorce Order. The procedure for ending Civil Partnerships is very similar.

There is one ground to divorce – the irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. Following reforms that came into effect from 6 April 2022, the process is one of “no fault”. There is now no longer the requirement for one party to assert blame or for parties to have been separated for a requisite period of time. It is now enough for one party to state that the marriage has permanently broken down and that they want to divorce.

The couple must have been married for a period of one year or more before an application for divorce can be made.

Applications can either be made jointly or individually and are now made online.

Once the application has been issued, the Court will send a copy to the other party. They then need to file an Acknowledgement of Service, acknowledging receipt of the same.

After 20 weeks (this is known as the “cooling off period”) the party that started the process can apply for the Conditional Order and after a further 6 weeks and 1 day, they can apply for the Final Divorce Order.   It is the Final Divorce Order that ends the marriage.

There are often very good reasons to delay the application for the Final Divorce Order until financial issues are resolved and it is recommended that specialist legal advice is taken before doing so.

The divorce process is straightforward (there is very rarely any need to attend Court) which takes approximately 6 to 8 months (sometimes longer if finances have not been agreed) to complete.

There is a misconception that finalising a divorce prevents financial claims being made. This is incorrect. Only a court approved financial order can prevent future claims, giving parties the financial security to move forwards.  Otherwise there is a risk of a claim many years after the end of the marriage. However note that remarriage will prevent future claims (except in respect of pensions) and again, specialist advise should be sought.

If you require any further information, please contact a member of the Geldards Family Team.