Mutual Divorce: Requisites of Mutual Consent Divorce

Mutual Divorce

As per the contentions of Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, both husband and wife have been given the right of having the marriage dissolved. There could be several grounds of filing divorce. Divorce could be of multiple kind, the most prominent ones of which are

  • Mutual Divorce
  • Contested Divorce

In mutual consent divorce cases, the husband and wife agree to terminate the marriage on mutual grounds and by mutual assent. The very provision regarding mutual consent divorce has been enlisted under section 13 B of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. This contention speaks of conditions that must be satisfied before seeking mutual consent divorce.

Requisites of mutual consent divorce

  • The husband and wife must have been living separately for 1 year at least.
  • The must not be coercion, fraud or undue influence between the spouse
  • There are negligible or no chances of reconciliation

Place of filing a divorce petition

  • The court could be at place where the couple had last lived
  • The court could be at place where the marriage solemnisation has taken place
  • The court could be at a place where the wife is residing currently

Steps to be followed

  • There is need to present the joint petition for dissolution of marriage for decree of divorce to the family court by both the spouses. The grounds must be ascertained with the fact that they have mutually agreed to dissolve the marriage.
  • The parties shall need to appear before the court after the filing of petition
  • The respective counsels shall present the respective contentions
  • The court shall scrutinise the petition and critically analyse the contentions
  • There could be initiation of attempt of reconciliation between parties
  • After detailed analysis and scrutiny, the court may order recording of parties’ statement on oath
  • After the first motion is passed, the court shall give a period of 6 months to the couple, before the second motion
  • The second motion is followed by the final hearing of petition
  • In mutual consent divorce, there should be complete agreement between the spouses for the final decisions on the dissolution of marriage

These are the steps that are followed while contesting a mutual divorce in court. Getting divorce is a very serious matter since it involves the entire fundamentals and related factors. It is important to adhere to common aspects, contentions and thought processes for contesting a mutual consent divorce.

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