I had an affair – can I get divorced now?
It has long been the case that fault or behaviour on the part of either person is not relevant to the granting of a Divorce in Australia. There is one ground for the grant of a divorce which is that a marriage has irretrievably broken down and the only evidence in support of that is that the parties have lived separately for at least 12 months prior to the application for divorce is made. With regards to the basis for a property settlement, the conduct of either spouse is very unlikely to be relevant. (We often get asked if this is the case, and in the majority of situations, conduct is simply not a relevant factor). Whilst the development of Australian law owes much too English law in this respect, there is a difference between the position in Australia and that in England and Wales. At the time of writing this article (July 2018), a case is proceeding to be heard in the High Court in England and Wales in which the wife is attempting to overturn on appeal the decision ma