When marriages come to an end: What are the differences between Divorce and a Judicial Separation?

What is judicial separation?

A judicial separation does not legally end a marriage in the same way as a divorce, but it does formally end the marriage.

A judicial separation petition can be filed within the first year of marriage, unlike a divorce petition. Judicial separation proceedings follow a similar format to divorce proceedings, but the court does not consider whether the marriage has irretrievably broken down as it does for divorce, as legally the marriage continues. Since 6 April 2022, you simply need to state that you are seeking a judicial separation.

There is only one order of judicial separation, whereas in divorce proceedings a Conditional Order must be made before a Final Order is issued by the Court, legally ending the marriage.

When an order of judicial separation is issued by the Court, the couple’s marital obligations come to an end, and there are three principal effects of this:

1. No duty to cohabit

The parties no longer have a duty to cohabit (although this is no longer a legal duty for a married couple anyway).

2. Financial orders

The court can make almost all of the same financial orders as upon divorce, except for pension sharing or clean break orders.

3. Inheritance

If one party dies intestate, their property is distributed as if the surviving spouse had died (in the same way as a divorced couple), so they will not benefit. However, where there is a Will in place, this remains unaffected (unlike the position on divorce), so if a Will leaves property to the surviving spouse, that party will benefit, despite the judicial separation. In this scenario, under inheritance tax legislation, the spousal inheritance tax exemption would still apply as this only ceases upon a Final Order being issued to end a marriage (which only happens through the divorce process). Where there is a Will, but the surviving spouse has been cut out of it, they could still make a claim for financial provision from the estate under the Inheritance (Family and Dependants) Act 1975, despite having a decree of judicial separation. However, a spouse in this scenario could only receive financial provision that was deemed reasonable for their maintenance, and not the higher standard that a spouse can receive when making such a claim (financial provision regardless of whether or not it is needed for their maintenance).

How can we help

We have a team of experienced matrimonial lawyers who can guide you if you think any of the issues raised in this article might apply to you. We can go through all the options available to you and help you decide your best course of action. Contact our experts to see what we can do for you.

This article was originally co-written by Rachel Knight and Simon Burge on 2 June 2021 and updated by Rachel on 9 January 2023.