Latest statistics showing divorces taking longer
The Ministry of Justice has recently published its latest statistics for the Family Court, for the period January to March 2025.
As is often the case, the statistics show a mixed picture, with some good news, and some bad.
In the latter category is the fact that divorces are taking longer (the following figures are for divorces under the new, no-fault, divorce system).
In January to March 2025, the mean average time from the divorce application to the conditional divorce order was 38 weeks, which was up 3 weeks from the same quarter of 2024. And the mean average time from the application to the final divorce order was 57 weeks, an increase of 10 weeks from the equivalent quarter in 2024.
But the figures do indicate the benefit of both parties applying for the divorce jointly, something that has only been possible for the first time under the new divorce system. The average time for a divorce (from application to final order) was 59 weeks in cases where there was a sole applicant, but only 50 weeks for cases involving joint applications.
In slightly better news, the statistics showed small improvements in the timeliness of children cases.
The average time for a public law children case (i.e. a case involving social services) to reach first disposal was 40 weeks in January to March 2025, which was down 2 weeks from the same quarter in 2024.
As to private law children cases (i.e. cases involving disputes between parents over arrangements for their children), it took on average 41 weeks for such cases to reach a final order, i.e. case closure, which was also down 2 weeks from the same period in 2024.
Unfortunately, the statistics do not include any figures for the timeliness of financial remedy applications.
The Ministry of Justice also published statistics for family law mediation, both in relation to Mediation Information and Assessment Meetings (‘MIAMs’ – initial meetings between one or both parties and a mediator to see if family mediation could be used to reach agreement without using the courts), and actual mediations.
The volume of MIAMs increased by 7% in the quarter compared to last year, and family mediation starts increased by 30%. The total number of mediation outcomes increased by 3%, of which 58% resulted in the parties reaching a successful agreement.
You can read the full Family Court Statistics here, and the Legal Aid Statistics, from which the figures for mediation derive, here.
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