Adultery in australia what is the law

We are sometimes asked whether there is any way of seeking compensation from a former partner because that person cheated during the relationship or otherwise acted in a way inconsistent with how an intact relationship should, in their view, operate. Where does infidelity fit within family law? Importantly, a divorce and a property settlement following the breakdown of a relationship are two very different things in Australia and can be dealt with separately and have different requirements and relevant factors, unlike in some countries where the two go hand in hand.

Hearings could be so salacious that episodes of a show called Divorce Court screened on Australian daytime TV in the s, with professional actors re-enacting actual divorce cases. One year of separation became the only ground necessary to establish irretrievable breakdown of a marriage. The Affair: An engraving shows a man snooping on his wife as she meets with her lover Australia was decades ahead of the UK, which has taken until last year to implement no-fault divorce, and then only in England and Wales.

His book, A History of Divorce Law: Reform in England from the Victorian to the Interwar Years , charts the English journey from its introduction of civil divorce in — a fault system based solely on the ground of adultery with a sexist double standard at its heart that was transplanted to the Australian colonies.

After , men could divorce their wives if they proved her adultery, but for the women it was much harder: in addition to adultery, they had to prove an aggravated enormity on the part of the husband such as desertion, cruelty, or committing incest or bigamy.

Meanwhile, in Australia, the six colonies set up their own Matrimonial Causes acts and imported the additional fault grounds required for women to secure a divorce. This means infidelity plays no part in whether there are sufficient grounds to obtain a divorce. It is important to remember that following the breakdown of a marriage, divorce and property settlement matters are dealt with separately in Australia.

Following separation, when pursuing a family law property settlement, people often ask if the fact that their partner has been unfaithful during the relationship, makes a difference as to how the matrimonial property is divided following separation. Similarly, when determining how the matrimonial property should be divided between parties following separation, the cause of the marriage ending, does not affect property settlement matters i.

For more information about property settlement and the relevant considerations. Whilst in most cases infidelity has no bearing on the outcome of a matrimonial property settlement matters, there are some occasions that a cheating spouses financial conduct may be considered. In this context, an example of wastage could be a cheating spouse spending matrimonial funds on gifts or holidays for their new girlfriend or boyfriend.

It is important to obtain legal advice with respect to obtaining a divorce and finalising outstanding property settlement matters. Property settlement is also an important consideration if you have been a party to a de facto relationship that has broken down. Adultery is not treated this way in Australia, even in the case of divorce. In many other countries and jurisdictions, adultery may be seen unfavourably in the eyes of the law.

These laws fall under many categories, such as misdemeanours or even criminal offences as in many but not all states in the United States. The justification behind such laws has a lot to do with social norms and historical traditions.