FOI Ref: FOI/2023/4842
You asked
Do you hold statistics about the most common factor that lead to irretrievable breakdown in divorce cases?
We said
Thank you for your Freedom of Information request.
We have recently published the following analysis: Divorces in England and Wales: 2021. This provides annual divorce numbers and rates, by duration of marriage, sex, and to whom granted and reason. This is the latest data available. Section 5 of this release pertains to grounds for divorce.
Unreasonable behaviour was the most common reason for females petitioning for divorce among opposite-sex couples in 2021, accounting for 48.1% of applications. For males, the most common reasons for divorce were unreasonable behaviour or two-year separation, which both accounted for 34.8% of applications.
For same-sex couples in 2021, unreasonable behaviour made up 54.5% of divorces. This comprises of 53.8% for females petitioning and 56.0% for males petitioning under this grounds.
The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 received Royal Assent on 25 June 2020 and came into effect on 6 April 2022. This Act removes the requirement to establish facts (grounds). One or both parties to a marriage may now apply to the court for a divorce order, which dissolves the marriage on the grounds that the marriage has broken down irretrievably.
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