DIVORCES IN ENGLAND.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 19164, 22 November 1927, Page 3

DIVORCES IN ENGLAND.

3500 SUITS IN A YEAR. SOME OF THE CAUSES. (7BOM OTO OWX COBBESTOJrDEirr.) LONDON, October 4. When the year closes more than 2400 divorce suits will have been decided in London alone, and cases heard by Assize Judges will bring the total to 3500. This means that, including corespondents, 10,500 persons will be concerned. The remarkable increase of divorce is shown bv the following table of the average 'vearly number of cases over five-year periods since the beginning of the present century: — 1901-1905 563 1916-1920 1510 1906-1910 624 1921-1925 2734 1911-1915 656 Mr Holford Knight, a prominent barrister, believes that the increase m cases is due first of all to the equahsasation of the grounds for divorce. Vanished Bestraints. "Again, recent changes in the law have given effect to deep social changes which have increased since the war. The Divorce Court no longer holds out the terrors it formerly imposed. Persons are not deterred by the publicity which such proceedings used to entail. The statute limiting the reports of proceedings is bound to have an extending effect. If the figures continue to increase, the attention of Parliament will haive to be given to the subject, not only because interference with newspaper reports of judicial proceedings is contrary to the traditions of our administration of justice, but because under cover of that secrecy abuses are bound to creep in. "There is nowadays less adherence \a conventional standards, especially when they mean individual hardship, and there is greater readiness to seek facilities for ending unhapp3' marriages. I noticed that an American Judge who has lately toured Europe declared that _in the countries where similar limitations of reiports were imposed there were increases in divorce cases. This Judge added that the recent British Act would probably have the same result as had occurred in other countries. Old Time Difficulties. "On the other hand we must remember that the old divorce law in England placed serious handicaps in the way of persons seeking matrimonial Facilities were restricted. People were required to pursue their suits in London, and expenses were not inconsiderable. All these causes operated to disincline persons with just claims from pursuing them in the Courts. "Personally I consider the altered law in this respect a benefit to the State, because it is not in accord with social order that unhappy marriages should continue. Where experience has unfortunately shown that particular mar- | riages have worked harm, such marriages should be dissolved."