Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 · Updated to 15 Dec 2018 · Part VI · Divorce
50. Restriction on petitions within two years of marriage
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A divorce petition cannot be presented to the court within two years of the marriage. A judge may allow an earlier petition for exceptional circumstances or hardship to the petitioner. The judge must consider any child's interests and the chance of reconciliation within the two years. A petition may still rely on events within those two years.
Summary · Drafted with AI, checked against the official text on 30 Sep 2026.
Subject to subsection (2), no petition for divorce shall be presented to the court before the expiration of the period of two years from the date of the marriage (hereafter in this section referred to as
court
“court” means the High Court or a Judge thereof or, where a Sessions Court Judge has jurisdiction by virtue of subsection (2), the Sessions Court or a Sessions Court Judge of that Court;
“the specified period”).
A Judge of the court may, on an application made to him, allow the presentation of a petition for divorce within the specified period on the ground that the case is one of exceptional circumstances or hardship suffered by the petitioner; but in determining the application the Judge shall have regard to the interests of any child of the marriage and to the question whether there is a reasonable probability of a reconciliation between the parties during the specified period.
child of the marriage
“child of the marriage” means a child of both parties to the marriage in question or a child of one party to the marriage accepted as one of the family by the other party; and
Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prohibit the presentation of a petition based upon matters which occurred before the expiration of the specified period.