Divorce is the legal end of a marriage. Before filing for divorce, you must meet a number of requirements
You or your spouse must:
You must also satisfy the court that you have lived separately and apart for a period of 12 months and that there is no reasonable likelihood of resuming married life.
You can choose to file a sole application for divorce or a joint application for divorce.
In Australia, there is a principle of no-fault divorce which means the court does not consider who was at fault in the marriage breakdown. As long as there has been an irretrievable breakdown of the relationship you can apply for a divorce.
You may have lived under the same roof during all or part of the separation period. You are still able to apply for divorce. You will have to provide extra information/documentation to the court and we can assist you with this.
If you are making a sole application, you will have to provide a written statement. You will also need to file a written statement from an independent person for example a friend or neighbour.
If you are making a joint application, you and your partner will have to provide separate written statements to the court.
You will need to attend counselling and obtain a counselling certificate.
Once you have filed the Application for Divorce, you must serve a copy of the application on your spouse. This is to inform your spouse of the divorce application and provide them with an opportunity to respond.
You can serve the divorce papers by mail, through a process server, or by any other method allowed by the court.
If there are no children under the age of 18, there is no need to attend the court hearing.
If there are children under the age of 18 and you have made a sole application, you will have to attend the court hearing.
You must also satisfy the court that you have lived separately and apart for a period of 12 months and that there is no reasonable likelihood of resuming married life.
You can choose to file a sole application for divorce or a joint application for divorce.
In Australia, there is a principle of no-fault divorce which means the court does not consider who was at fault in the marriage breakdown. As long as there has been an irretrievable breakdown of the relationship you can apply for a divorce.
You may have lived under the same roof during all or part of the separation period. You are still able to apply for divorce. You will have to provide extra information/documentation to the court and we can assist you with this.
If you are making a sole application, you will have to provide a written statement. You will also need to file a written statement from an independent person for example a friend or neighbour.
If you are making a joint application, you and your partner will have to provide separate written statements to the court.
You will need to attend counselling and obtain a counselling certificate.
Once you have filed the Application for Divorce, you must serve a copy of the application on your spouse. This is to inform your spouse of the divorce application and provide them with an opportunity to respond.
You can serve the divorce papers by mail, through a process server, or by any other method allowed by the court.
If there are no children under the age of 18, there is no need to attend the court hearing.
If there are children under the age of 18 and you have made a sole application, you will have to attend the court hearing.
