No Fault Divorce Laws
On 4th September 1969, the then Governor of the state of California, Ronald Reagan, introduced the no fault divorce law in this state. This law became effective from 1st January 1970. Other states followed the example set by California. Till 1977, 9 other states incorporated these laws. It is a fact that till late 1983, each state except New York and South Dakota had accepted this law. In 1985, South Dakota embraced the no fault divorce law. Presently, New York is the singular state in the country that does not accept no fault divorce. Each state in the United States has its own set of these laws.
Advantages of No Fault Divorce Laws
- The financial settlement is not determined on the basis of fault in marital life. Rather, the input of the divorcing partner towards the family finances, the capacity to pay and the need of money are the points that are contemplated upon.
- The span of time required to procure a divorce is shortened. As a consequence of this fact, the duration spent in a stressful ambience is decreased.
- Family Courts are relieved from their heavy caseloads
- There is less conflict during the divorce procedure. It follows that children of divorcing parents are exposed to less emotional harm.
- If the marriage is an abusive one, it has become simple for either divorcing partner to leave. In this way, the husband or wife is empowered.
- The rates of domestic violence plummeted after the introduction of these laws
Disadvantages of No Fault Divorce Laws
- In the past, the efforts of the Family Courts were directed towards safeguarding the sanctity of marriage. Presently, they are intended to have an easy and quick divorce that would get off the docket. Thus, the allegiance of the Family Court Systems that was previously with marriage is currently with divorce.
- A dependent wife has no reasons to argue in her defense. If the husband decides to leave her, it has been observed that in three-fourth cases, the courts do not grant maintenance. This results in lower living standard for the dependent wife. If such a wife gets the custody of the child(ren), the child(ren) also has to cope up with this decreased standard.
- After the introduction of these laws, the divorce rate in the United States soared. Promises made to each other during marriage lost their significance. The concept that marriage is an institution that is bigger than the couple that is bonded by it has been lost.
- It has been observed that the courts favor the wife and in the no fault divorce law system it is very tough to submit evidence that a divorced mother is not fit to play the role of a parent of the children. So, if a wife intends to leave the marriage, the husband does not have any defense against her and usually loses rights of the child(ren).
- In a No Fault Divorce, the Judges of the Family Court have been given more power to settle matters like spousal support, marital assets, custody etc. As the point of fault does not arise, the decisions of the Judge have the Judge’s feelings as the base. It must be noted that feelings may not be impartial.
- The statistics reveal that more than four-fifth of the no fault divorces are unilateral. This means one partner is reluctant to have a divorce, but the laws deprive such a partner the control to save the marriage.
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