In most
common law jurisdictions, a decree nisi must be obtained in possession proceedings before the court will order
foreclosure under a
mortgage enforcement. This form of ruling has become a rarity in recent times, with few exceptions: in some jurisdictions, it is still a standard stage of
divorce proceedings. In
Hong Kong, and in
England and
Wales, section 1(5) of the
Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 provides that "Every decree of divorce shall in the first instance be a decree nisi and shall not be made absolute before the expiration of six months from its grant", and section 9(1) allows any person (including the
King's Proctor), before the decree is made absolute, to "show cause why the decree should not be made absolute by reason of material facts not having been brought before the court". In
England and Wales, the minimum interval between the granting of decree nisi and that of decree absolute was amended by the
Family Law Act 1996 and is now six weeks. In practice, courts use an interval of six weeks and one day. Another exception regarding orders nisi is where a creditor seeks to place a charge on land for money owed. A court, on the production of certain evidence, will make a charging order nisi and a hearing date is set. If the court is satisfied at the hearing that the creditor is entitled to have a charge on the debtor's property, it will grant a charging order absolute. == References ==