Baroness to call for reform of divorce law

Baroness Deech is to use a series of lectures to call for reform of divorce law.  She is reportedly calling for an end to the idea that women deserve half of their husband’s wealth on divorce and is quoted as saying “the notion that a wife should get half of the joint assets of a couple even after a short, childless marriage has crept up on us without any parliamentary legislation to this effect.  Judges are ignoring the statutory direction to try and achieve a “clean break” between divorcing couples”.  Baroness Deech has stated her view that divorce laws are unfair to men and have not kept pace with changes in society.

Additionally it is reported that Baroness Deech believes that judicial discretion on what can be awarded should end and that only assets acquired after marriage would be divided, with no division at all in the case of marriages of three years or less. 

The Baroness is also reported in the media as stating the view that no maintenance should be paid unless the spouse cannot work or has young children to care for and that “the prime aim of maintenance should be rehabilitive; it should be permanent only for older women and the incapacitated who are not cared for by the state”.  Reacting to Baroness Deech’s calls for an overhaul of family law reported in the Times yesterday Resolution, a group of 5,700 strong family lawyers said “discretion is an important part of the family law system – enabling outcomes to be tailor made for families with the emphasis always on the best interests of children, but we agree there is a need for the law commission to review current legislation in an effort to see if greater clarity and certainty can be delivered whilst the benefits of the discretionary approach are maintained.

Resolution also renewed its calls for urgent reform of family law to allow “single, no fault” divorce as well as the introduction of rights for couples who cohabit.  Family lawyer Stephen Anderson of Suffolk Resolution and Birketts LLP comments “the current system increases acrimony and mud slinging and leaves thousands who live together unprotected”.