Once one spouse has filed for divorce in England or Wales, the courts send a set of divorce papers, also referred to as a ‘divorce petition’, to the other spouse, notifying them of the application. The spouse who files for divorce is called the ‘petitioner’, and the spouse receiving the divorce papers is called the ‘respondent’. Divorce papers include a ‘notice of proceedings’ and an ‘acknowledgement of service’ notification.
The purpose of divorce papers is to inform a spouse of the pending application for divorce and to request a formal response from them within 14 days. Divorce papers are typically served on the respondent by post. If the respondent lives in another country, it becomes the petitioner’s responsibility to serve the divorce papers.
What happens after divorce papers are served in the UK?
After divorce papers are served, the person receiving the papers must respond to the acknowledgement of service notification within 14 days. This can be done online or by post. By responding to the acknowledgement of service of the divorce papers, the respondent is indicating whether they agree with the divorce or plan to dispute the divorce. To respond online, you will need to use the access code provided. If you are not given an access code, or if your solicitor is responding on your behalf, then the response must be sent by post.
If you have received a divorce petition, in your response, you will need to state whether you agree with the divorce application or if you wish to dispute it. It is important to understand that under the no-fault divorce rules, which came into force in April 2022, you can only dispute the application in very limited circumstances. These include if the marriage was never valid, the marriage has already ended through divorce, or you believe that the court does not have the legal jurisdiction to consider the divorce.
If you agree with the divorce application, then the matter will proceed to the next stage automatically without the need for a court hearing. Under the no-fault divorce law, it is not possible to dispute the divorce application simply because you don’t want to divorce. If you dispute the divorce application, you will need to complete an ‘answer form’ explaining why you disagree. Depending on the circumstances, you may be asked to attend the court to explain your reasons for disputing the divorce in more detail, allowing a judge to make a decision on the matter.
Engaging a divorce solicitor at the response stage can be extremely valuable in removing the emotional stress and will lead to a smoother and more beneficial divorce settlement at the next stage of divorce. Please contact one of our kind and knowledgeable family lawyers by using our contact form.
What happens if I don’t respond to divorce papers in the UK?
If you have received divorce papers, you must respond to the court within 14 days. If you fail to respond within the 14-day deadline, this will not stop the divorce process from proceeding. In this situation, the court needs proof that you have actually received the petition. To do this, they may instruct someone to hand deliver the petition to you, and you may need to cover the cost of this service. Alternatively, the court may agree for your ex-spouse to deliver the papers directly to you as long as they can show evidence of you receiving them. Once the court is satisfied that you have received the divorce petition, then it can proceed to the next stage.
Another important consideration is that purposely not responding to divorce papers on time in the UK may cause the court to take an unfavourable view of you when it comes to reaching a divorce settlement. This means that your ex-spouse may receive a larger share of your marital assets or larger spousal maintenance payments than they would have otherwise.
Remember, even if you want to, you can no longer contest a petition for divorce in England or Wales under the no-fault divorce rules, except in rare circumstances as outlined above (i.e. if it was never valid).
How to serve divorce papers
Once you have applied for divorce in the UK, the court will issue your spouse with the divorce papers by post. If your spouse lives overseas, it will fall to you to ensure that they receive the divorce papers. If your spouse is unwilling to cooperate in the process or is simply not responding to the divorce papers, a different method will be needed to ensure that the papers have been properly served. There are 3 main methods of serving divorce papers on a spouse who is not responding:
- Using a process server
- Using a deemed service
- Dispense with service
Using a process server
A process server is a person who will hand deliver your divorce papers directly to your ex-spouse. Using this method of serving divorce papers removes the uncertainty of using the post and provides reassurance to the court that the papers have definitely been received by the correct person.
Using a deemed service
If your ex-spouse has not responded to the divorce papers, you can make a ‘deemed service application’ using Form D11.1 This means that you are asking the courts to deem that your spouse has received the divorce papers. You can apply for a deemed service once the 14-day deadline to respond to the divorce papers has passed.
Dispense with service
If all attempts to serve divorce papers have failed, you can make a ‘dispensed with service’ application. To do this, you will also need to provide a detailed statement of all of the attempts to serve the divorce papers using Form D13B.2 Your ‘dispensed with service application will then be considered by the court. You can check if your application has been approved or refused online. If approved, your divorce will move to the next stage, which will start the 20-week clock ticking before you can apply for a Conditional Order.
Finalising your divorce
If your ex-spouse has not responded to the divorce papers, you will need to wait 20 weeks days until you can apply for a Conditional Order or Decree Nisi from when the court is satisfied that the papers have been served. This may be from when the process server served the papers on your spouse, or the courts approve the deemed or dispensed service application. Once you have your Conditional Order, you will need to wait a further 43 days before you finalise your divorce by applying for a Final Order or Decree Absolute.
References
1 GOV.UK: Form D11
2 GOV.UK: Form D13B
