Historically, divorce proceedings were not conducted by the
barristers who practised in the
common law courts but by the "
advocates" and "
proctors" who practised
civil law from
Doctors' Commons, adding to the obscurity of the proceedings. Divorce was
de facto restricted to the very wealthy as it demanded either a complex
annulment process or a
private bill leading to an
Act of Parliament, with great costs for either. The latter entailed sometimes lengthy debates about a couple's intimate marital relationship in public in the
House of Commons. The
Matrimonial Causes Act 1857 moved litigation from the jurisdiction of the
ecclesiastical courts to the civil courts, establishing a model of marriage based on contract rather than sacrament and widening the availability of divorce beyond those who could afford to bring proceedings for annulment or to promote a private Bill. After World War I, there were reforms made to the divorce law that put men and women on a more equal footing. The
Matrimonial Causes Act 1923 made adultery a ground of divorce for either spouse. Previously, only the man had been able to do this; women had to prove additional fault. A further Act in 1937 (the
Matrimonial Causes Act 1937) offered additional grounds for divorce: cruelty, desertion and incurable insanity. The need for the reforms was illustrated in the best-selling satirical novel
Holy Deadlock (1934). Regarding the public's reaction to the end of the relationship between never-married
Princess Margaret and the divorced
Peter Townsend in 1955,
The Independent wrote in 1995, "(this) can now be seen to have constituted a watershed in the nation's attitude towards divorce". The
Divorce Reform Act 1969 marked a significant change in that people could end marriages that had "irretrievably broken down" without having to prove fault. They could end marriages after separation of two years, if both parties desired divorce, or five years if only one party desired divorce. The
Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 provided that a marriage had to have lasted for three years before a divorce could be applied for; the
Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984 reduced this period to one year. The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill 2019-21 was introduced to Parliament in January 2020 by the Conservative government. The bill was a response to the Supreme Court case of
Owens v Owens, which stated in its conclusion that Parliament may wish to consider replacing the current divorce law. The bill sought to remove the requirement to provide evidence of fault, or separation, and replace it with a statement from either applicant that the marriage had irretrievably broken down. The legislation received
royal assent on 25 June 2020 and was passed as the
Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020. ==Laws==