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Can I get a divorce without going to court? It’s another of the questions our advisers receive on an almost daily basis. The answer, if the divorce is uncontested, is yes; you can get a divorce in England or Wales without the need to attend court.

Typically, when we think of legal proceedings we tend to imagine a very formal setting within which arguments are made and a conclusion reached via either a judge or jury. Divorce proceedings are largely dealt with by the court’s administrative staff, however, with a judge required to check that all the relevant boxes have been ticked and grant a Decree Nisi (the order granted before a divorce can be made final) only. 

This process often takes just minutes and, when the news reports on celebrities being granted divorces in no time all, they are referring to this part of the process alone (a divorce always takes several weeks when the entire process is considered, regardless of how rich or famous the parties involved are). The Decree Nisi is granted verbally within a courtroom by a judge, yes, but there is usually no need for either party to attend. It is actually the process of dividing the matrimonial assets that is most likely to result in the parties needing to attend court. 

In the event that no agreement can be reached here, then a court appearance for both parties is inevitable, as are all of the associated additional costs. It is also possible, however, that it will be necessary to attend court when the division has been mutually agreed and a Consent Order (colloquially and popularly known as a clean break order) has been filed.

Whilst the majority of these orders are approved and the division of assets that the couple have agreed are made legally binding, there are a few occasions where judges want to meet both parties to ensure that they both fully understand the terms of the agreement and are aware of any potential ramifications they may have.

Generally, this is done as a precautionary measure and, whilst it will be called a hearing, it’ll actually take the form of an informal meeting and neither party will be subjected to anything as unpleasant as a cross-examination or anything even remotely similar. 

So, to reiterate, it is entirely possible to get a divorce without needing to attend court, in fact, it’s very rarely required at all.