A divorce in Ireland can take 10 years or more. That’s an extreme eventuality, but it will certainly take at least 4 years unless you’ve been living apart and both parties want the divorce. If either side objects then the sky is the limit. Why is this?
In order to answer that question we need to first look at how the system works:
- The Applicant (the person making the application) files the application with the court. You can download the documents themselves at courts.ie. What you will need is the Family Law Civil Bill, along with the Affidavit of Welfare and Affidavit of Means. The first document sets out the circumstances of who is involved in the divorce, and the other two set out what children if any are involved and how they are being cared for (not that the court really gives a stuff, but it is important to keep up appearances), and what assets and earnings are involved – this is the juicy stuff which everyone is interested in. The Affidavit of Means is used by the legal teams to decide how much time to devote to the case, and whether it is worth bothering with. It gives an early indication of the level of fees they can expect to earn from the case.
- Once you have compiled the documents – see the post on Affidavit of Means for more info – you need to sign it and have a solicitor witness your signature. (Why a solicitor is seen as a trustworthy individual given the legal profession’s horrific record is another matter, but there you go).
- Then the documents are served on the other party (personally or their lawyer) and a copy is filed with the court. You can toddle down to the court office and file them yourself. The staff are very friendly and helpful – they won’t tell you how to fill them out, but they’ll make sure you’ve signed them properly etc.
- That’s it you are up and running. Now the court ensures everyone complies, submits documents etc. The court will put your case ‘in for mention’ in four weeks’ time. Then once everyone has submitted their paperwork, the judge may grant a divorce hearing. Unlikely but theoretically possible.
Now then, that was easy. But from here on in, nobody except you has any incentive whatsoever to obtain a divorce. Why?
First there are the fees – check out the Legal Fees gag.
Because divorce in Ireland is granted on a no-fault basis, which sounds like a good idea, behaviour doesn’t matter. Unless it is your behaviour of course. The female applicant can pretty much get away with any kind of bad behaviour. We cover this in another post. But the most expedient one is to either not reply to your letters and applications, or simply not show up to any of the court appearances. Now if you do this, the court will come down on you like a ton of bricks. You will likely be threatened with freezing orders – freezing your assets and bank accounts, attachment orders – so that your employer has to pay your salary to her lawyers’ bank account, and possibly even commital – the threat of being sent to jail.
She on the other hand may be threatened with the soft cushions, or at a push, perhaps the comfy chair.
When a divorce is granted it is based on a concept of ‘sufficient provision’ which is a way of saying that the wife should end up with custody of the children and the same quality of life as before the divorce. Your quality of life is largely irrelevant.
So the basis for dividing up all your assets and deciding on how much money you’ve to pay each month will be your situation at the actual divorce hearing.
So apart from missing out on your childrens’ development, spending time with them, going on holidays, reading them bed time stories etc, your life is under the control of a cabal of people who you don’t know and who quite frankly couldn’t give a stuff about you or your kids. They want your cash.
This system explains why suicide among divorcing men is so high.
If you want to experience what positive discrimination looks like in practice, and why two wrongs never make a right, then the Irish family law system is a good place to look. About 70% of the lawyers, barristers and judges are women and you’ll immediately understand how revenge for misogyny in the world is exacted here.
The upshot is that the longer the trial (and that’s what it is) is prolonged, the better it is for everyone except you. You will most likely be freed of the misery of a loveless marriage, and able to focus on work, and hopefully you have a better relationship with your kids and spend more quality time even though you will see them less (note that the chances of you getting custody of the children is almost zero – just forget it and don’t waste your time: even if your ex is a drug addicted abusive psychopath you have practically no chance of getting custody in Ireland).
So you move on with your life, work hard, get a raise, start a business etc. Kaching – €€€. As long as you are not divorced, anything you earn is fair game.
Your lawyers, her lawyers and the system itself doens’t just allow this to happen. Itis specifically desinged this way.
It’s a con job that’s right up there with smoking and nicotime withdrawal treatment.
Let’s say you have submitted your documentation. Your wife refuses to submit hers. You just want a divorce. The case comes up for mention. You or your lawyer explain that your wife hasn’t submitted her documentation. Well the judge says, she was probably too busy struggling with the family on her ow. Let’s give her another four weeks.
Four weeks later, same thing. Same result.
Now in any arena in the world in this situation, the presiding judge / chair / leader is going to say:
‘OK, this woman is being obstructive, slowing down and abusing the system. I’m setting a date of one week hence, and I will grant the divorce at that time unless ALL documentation has been received’.
Now that’s how to resolve the Family Law backlog. But of course there’s no chance this will happen in the current system. Instead the judge says, let’s give her another four weeks, then she weally weally weally must or I shall ask her nicely again.
And that’s essentially why it takes so long to get a divorce in Ireland. All parties are incentivised to prolong the agony for as long as possible.
Oh your new partner can’t believe it takes four years to get a divorce and left you?
Yeah, it happens.
How about your time with your kids, time that you can never recover as they will never be 4, 7, 11 , 17 again?
Gone -stolen by greed masquerading as incompetence.
Yup.