Married life in Great Britain

1 The number of marriages in England and Wales fell by 20 per cent between 1986 and 1997: down from 347, 924 to 278, 975. The largest fall in marriages has been among those in which both partners were marrying for the first time: 220, 372 in 1986 compared with 160, 680 in 1996.

The proportion of adults who are married will fall from 55 per cent to 45 per cent by 2021. The average age of marriage continues to rise. In 1996 it was 29, 3 years forbachelors (27, 2 for spinsters), against 26, 3 years in 1986 (spinsters 24, 1). The average age in 1996 for allbridegrooms was 33.6, brides-31, 1. In 1998 four-fifths of dependent children in Great Britain livedin a family with two parents, compared with nine-tenths in 1972.

The proportion of never-married women whowere cohabiting in Great Britain has increased from 9 per cent in 1981 to 27 per cent in 1996/7.

2 The recent peak in divorces in England and Wales was in 1993, with 165, 018. By 1995 the number had fallen to 155, 499, then rising to 157, 107 in 1996. Seventy per cent of those in 1996 were to couples where the marriage had been the first for both parties. In Scotland the peak was in 1994, with 13, 133 divorces, dropping to 12, 222 in 1997. Almost one in four children born in 1979 is estimated to have been affected by divorce before reaching the age of 16. In the past, families tended to stay together. They felt it was their duty to do this and that marriage was for life. Divorce was not socially acceptable. It was a commonly held view that a bad marriage was better than no marriage at all. In Britain, as in many industrialized societies, there has been a steady rise in the numbers of divorces. The Second World War disrupted a lot of marriages, due to enforced separation and hasty marriages which were later regretted. Immediately after the war there were a record number of divorces and the proportion of marriages involving a divorced partner grew from 2% in 1940 to 32% in 1, 985. Legal changes this century have made it much easier to get a divorce. The most dramatic change resulted from the1971 divorce law. The law stated that there needed to be only one reason for a divorce petition - the " irretrievable breakdown of marriage". This was a much wider category than the previous ones of cruelty, insanity, desertion or adultery.

3 The change in the law had an immediate effect. In 1972 there were over 119, 000 divorces in England and Wales and the rate has continued to rise. The total number in 1990 was over 153, 000, around 2% higher than in 1989. Proposed laws may make divorce even easier.

Couples can now afford the legal side of getting and surviving a divorce more easily than at any time in the past. However, for many families it is still an.economic disaster as well as being emotionally difficult.

Another possible reason behind the rise inthe divorce rate is the changing attitude to marriage itself. The traditional Christian approach to marriage has been against divorce. As the Church becomes less influential in the UK, the view of marriage as a union for life has weakened. The result is thatthe break-up of a marriage is seen as less of a normal crisis and more as a matter of personal happiness.

Perhaps the people most affected by a divorce are the children. According to current forecasts, about 20 % of children in Britain will experience family breakdown by the age of 16. There has been growing concern for such children, who are usually between the ages of five and ten. Recent laws indicated that first consideration should be given to the welfare of the children when making financial arrangements after a divorce.

If marriage is going through a troubled time, the partners may ask for help from the voluntarycounsellors of an organization which is called " Relate" (formerly the Marriage Guidance Council).

4 These are chiefly as follows:

1) the parties should co-habit unless separated by agreementor by a decree of judicial separation from a court;

2) the husband must normally support the wife financially in a style fitted to his income. She loses this right if she deserts her husband or if the marriage is dissolved orannulled. Her adultery is no longer an automatic bar: Domestic Proceedings and Magistrates' Courts Act 1978. Although it remains a factor to be taken into account. At common law a wife was under no obligation to support her husband, but now the wife may in certain circumstances be bound to assist the husband financially: Matrimonial Causes Act 1973.

3) Disputes as to property between spouses may be settled by the High Court or County court: Married Women's Property Act 1882, s. 17 (under the Matrimonial Homes Act 1983, the court may give a spouse a right of occupation of the matrimonial home, even if it belongs legally to the other spouse).

4) One spouse can now be prosecuted for stealing from the other: Theft Act 1968.

5) Spouses can nowsue each other in contract and tort, though the court may stay any such tort action where it appears desirable: Law Reform (Husband and Wife) Act 1962.

5 A marriage is null and void (= i.e. regarded by the courts as never having taken place) where:

a one of the parties is already married;

b the parties are not respectively male and female;

c see'capacity to marry'. These provisions are contained in the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, s. 11, according to which a degree of nullity in the case 6f a voidable marriage must not be granted if:

a the court is satisfied that the petitioner knowing he (or she) could have avoided the marriage, conducted himself/herself in a way suggesting that he or she would not do so, and

b to grant a decree would be unjust.

The Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, s.12, provides the followinggrounds for avoiding a marriage:

a non-consummation (whether due to refusal or incapacity);

b lack of consent;

c unfitness for marriage because of mental disorder: Mental Health Act 1983;

d where one party suffers from a communicable veneral disease, or

e where the respondent was pregnant by some person other than the petitioner.

6 This act reenacted the provisions in the Divorce Reform Act 1969, thus affirming that" irretrievable breakdown of marriage' is the sole ground for divorce. What constitutes breakdown will clearly depend on the circumstances of each case, and for the prevention of rash divorces the Act makes provision for a reconciliation procedure which must be followed before any divorce can be granted. To establish irretrievable breakdown' one party must establish one or more of the following five 'facts':

1) That the respondent has committed adultery and the petitioner finds it intolerable to live with the respondent. Both elements must be established (adultery and intolerability);

2) that the respondent has behaved in such a way that the petitioner cannot reasonably be expected to live with the respondent;

3) that the respondent has deserted the petitioner for continuous period of at least 2 years immediately preceding presentation of the petition;

4) that the parties have lived apart for a continuous period of at least 2 years immediately preceding presentation of the petition, if the parties agree to divorce;

5) that the parties have lived apart for a continuous period of at least 2 years immediately preceding presentationof the petition, andwhether the parties agree to divorce or not.

Note: (1) There was a time when generally no petition could be brought for divorce during the first 3 years of marriage. This period has been reduced to one year: Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984;

(2) There is a waiting period of (usually) 6 weeks between a decree nisi and a decree absolute. During this time the marriage subsists. The divorce is granted unless (nisi) any cause can be established for not making it absolute.

5 Discuss the following questions:

1) Should the law be used to enforce any particular moral code, do you think? Discuss whether the law should make sexual relations between consenting homosexuals or lesbians a crime.

2) Should the wife support her husband financially or is it entirely the duty of a man?

3) Adultery is not the sufficient ground for a divorce nowadays.Do you also think so?

4) What factors should constitute the irretrievable breakdown of marriage?

5) Should the spouses stay together for the sake of their children? Before, a bad marriage was considered to be better than no marriage at all. And now? Has the attitude toward marriage changed? For the better or for the worse?

6 Choose a topic for a short composition (write 180 – 200 words):

1. Legal consequences of a marriage. Would you introduce any changes?

2. The sufficient grounds for nullifying a marriage.

3. The sufficient grounds for obtaining a divorce.

4. Voidable marriages.

5. Capacity to marry.

6. Legal consequences of marriage.

7. Marriage by different means.