An “amicable divorce” option would allow couples to mutually agree to file for a divorce without needing to state the reason why the marriage has failed
The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) recently published a consultation paper on how to reduce acrimony and better support children and divorcees through the divorce process. A divorce, even if amicable, is a deeply personal, painful and stressful situation. The stress and pain are heightened in acrimonious divorces.
In recognition of this, Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon commented at the Family Justice Practice Forum in 2017 that while in other areas of litigation, conflict is often necessary and helpful to getting to the issues, in family justice, conflict management and reduction are critical, especially when there are children involved in the matter. On this basis, the Government’s proposals to support children and couples undergoing a divorce and to reduce the acrimony in the process via an “amicable divorce” option are to be welcomed. This option would allow couples to mutually agree to file for a divorce without needing to state the reason why the marriage has failed.
A divorce in Singapore is dealt with legally in two stages. In the first stage, the parties deal with the reason for the breakdown of the marriage and in the second they deal with the ancillary matters which includes issues relating to their children and finances. In some cases, parties agree on the cause of the breakdown of the marriage and do not contest the first stage but end up strongly contesting the ancillary matters, which at times, can take years to resolve. This puts a great strain on the parties’ relationships, their financial means and the children involved in the dispute. This then negates any remnant goodwill that the parties enjoyed when they agreed on the cause of the divorce. In such cases, parties often use the court as a platform to vent their frustrations with the opposing party.
