DIVORCE NOW EASY.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 2245, 1 March 1921, Page 3

DIVORCE NOW EASY.

A JUDGE IS SCEPTICAL. Auckland, Feb. 27. The fact that a divorce petitioner need only prove that by mutual consent a husband and wile have parted and have been apart for three years is sufficient grounds in the discretion of the Court for a divorce was the subject of comment by Mr Justice Stringer at fhc Supreme Court to-day. Mr Dickson drew his Honour’s attention to two cases about to he heard in which separation by mutual consent was the ground of petition, and said that as the proceedings were under thci amending Act of 1920, and as there was likely to he a considerable number of cases, members ot the bar would he glad to have a ruling as to what evidence would he considered necessary. His Honour said luf proposed following the course adopted by Mr Justice Sim. who was an authority upon divorce law, namely, to grant decrees nisi hut to provide that a decree absolute must: he moved so that any party who desired to oppose it would have an opportunity of so doing. “This Divorce Act amendment,” said his Honour at a later stage, “certainly seems to have made the obtaining of a divorce an extremely simple matter. Now apparently all that people have to do is to agree to lhc separate for three years, (lien apparently they can get divorced. Mr Singer: There is a discretion it seems to me.His Honour: “Yes, there is a discretion. I suppose moralists would disagree as to whether or not this was legislation which is in the interests of the community, hut judges have only to administer the law as they find it.”