Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in this Honourable House this morning to inform Honourable Members that the “Matrimonial Causes (Faultless Divorce) Amendment Act 2022” comes into operation today.
Mr. Speaker, as I previously stated in this Honourable House in February 2022, the Matrimonial Causes (Faultless Divorce) Amendment Act 2022 amends the Matrimonial Causes Act 1974, to reform the legal process for obtaining a divorce, nullity of marriage or judicial separation. The stated policy aim is to reduce family conflict during matrimonial proceedings “by removing the unhelpful blaming and shaming associated with having to prove, in court, that the conduct of one of the parties is the cause of the breakdown in the marriage” and to correspondingly lower the cost of obtaining a divorce.
In technical terms Mr. Speaker, the new faultless divorce legislative framework replaces the requirement for persons seeking a divorce to satisfy the court of ‘irretrievable breakdown’ of the marriage by proving ‘evidence of conduct’, such as adultery or unreasonable behaviour, during the divorce proceedings. Rather, under the new regime, partner(s) in a marriage may apply for a divorce based on a ‘statement of irretrievable breakdown’ as conclusive evidence that the marriage has broken down irretrievably.
Mr. Speaker, during the legislative process, I notified this Honourable House that bringing the Amendment Act into operation would require changes to the Matrimonial Causes Rules 1974, to update the procedural rules of court with respect to matrimonial proceedings. In preparation for implementation, the Ministry HQ policy team, assisted by Parliamentary Counsel from the Attorney-General’s Chambers, completed extensive consultation with the Honourable Chief Justice, the Honourable Justice Stoneham, the Registrar of the Supreme Court and the Bermuda Bar Council on the development of the Matrimonial Causes Rules 2023, which repeal and replace the 1974 Rules. Additionally, support and resources were offered to assist the Honourable Chief Justice and the Judicial Department with the exercise of composing these new Rules, which are lawfully ‘made by the Chief Justice’.
Mr. Speaker, great effort was taken to revise and streamline the statutorily prescribed forms required to institute, and proceed with, a faultless divorce and other matrimonial proceedings generally, under the updated Rules. Prescribed forms for these purposes are contained in the Schedule to the Rules.
Additionally, Mr. Speaker, officers of the Information and Digital Technologies Department are consulting the Supreme Court Registry as they create an electronic application process, which, when ready for public launch, will facilitate electronic filings in a more user-friendly manner. The aim is for parties to divorce and other matrimonial proceedings to be able to successfully navigate the process with or without an attorney.
Mr. Speaker, as the work continues at the Supreme Court Registry to prepare the digital forms for public rollout, prospective applicants and attorneys are directed to the prescribed forms in the Schedule to the new Matrimonial Causes Rules 2023, which are available for download on the Bermuda Laws website: www.bermudalaws.bm. Alternatively, a PDF copy of each of the forms contained in the new Matrimonial Causes Rules 2023 can be found on the government portal (www.gov.bm) using the hyperlink: www.gov.bm/matrimonial-causes-2023.
The first tranche of digital forms are planned for public launch in April, with details of how to access the digital forms to be provided at that time. Thereafter, additional digital forms will become available as the Supreme Court Registry incorporates practical feedback from the Matrimonial Bar and as their operational processes demand.
The continuation of that exercise notwithstanding, Mr. Speaker, today signifies the official notice to this Honourable House and members of the public of the commencement of both the Matrimonial Causes (Faultless Divorce) Amendment Act 2022 and the Matrimonial Causes Rules 2023, as recorded in the Official Gazette.
Starting today, applicants and their legal representatives can commence matrimonial proceedings in the Supreme Court for divorce, nullity of marriage or judicial separation under the faultless divorce procedure. As a point of clarity, the commencement of the Matrimonial Causes (Faultless Divorce) Amendment Act 2022 and the Matrimonial Causes Rules 2023 will not affect matrimonial proceedings commenced before the amendments came into operation.
Mr. Speaker, the successful execution of this Government initiative demonstrates the earnestness of public officers (and external partners) to work collaboratively, across functional lines, to achieve a collective goal. I am extremely grateful to everyone involved for this monumental achievement. In particular, I take this opportunity to commend Permanent Secretary, Gina Hurst-Maybury; Acting Deputy Chief Parliament Counsel, Amani Lawrence; Assistant Parliamentary Counsel, Alsha Wilson and Law Reform Policy and Strategy Counsel, Jason Outerbridge for their commitment to the implementation of this very important legislative initiative. I am even more pleased that this initiative is now available to the public for its intended purposes of decreasing contention amongst parties in matrimonial proceedings, and is accessible at reduced costs to these individuals.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.