To Have but No Longer to Hold: Divorce in Australia

Helen V. Smith
Free

The first colony to introduce divorce was South Australia in 1858 to the last New South Wales in 1873. The requirements differed by colony. Each colony handled its own divorces until the Federal Matrimonial Causes Act 1959 provided 14 grounds for the grant of divorce, including adultery, desertion, cruelty, habitual drunkenness, imprisonment and insanity. To succeed on one of these grounds, a spouse had to prove marital fault. There was only one no-fault ground: separation for more than five years. It was not until the Family Law Act 1975 was passed by the Federal Parliament that a “no fault divorce” existed in Australia: imprisonment and insanity. To succeed on one of these grounds, a spouse had to prove marital fault. There was only one no-fault ground: separation for more than five years.

Fri, April 14 2023: 8:00 UTC

About the speaker

About the speaker

Helen has been researching her family since 1986 with research in Australia, England, Wales and Ireland. She is the author of Death Certificates and Archaic Medical Terms and Google the Genealogist’s Friend and has written for a
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