There has been a huge rise in the number of couples citing “unreasonable behaviour” as grounds for obtaining a quick divorce.

Researchers at Oxford University found that the number of divorces granted to wives because of unreasonable behaviour rose from 17% in 1971 to 51% in 2016. The increase was even sharper for husbands, rising from 2% to 36% over the same period.

Under current law there are five reasons for being granted a divorce by the courts:

Nick Parker, partner and head of dispute resolution at Berry Smith Lawyers and a civil and commercial mediator, considers the continued growth and success of voluntary mediation between parties in resolving civil and commercial disputes.

Disputes are not generally considered to be ‘good news’ by the parties involved and resolving them quickly and effectively is, usually, a priority.

A recent survey shows the continued growth and success of voluntary mediation between parties in resolving civil and commercial disputes.

In the case of X v Y Ltd, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) held that an email from a lawyer was not covered by legal advice privilege because there was a strong case to suggest that it advised how to mask an employee’s dismissal as a redundancy to avoid the employee making further complaints of disability discrimination and requesting reasonable adjustments.

Q - I am trying to get our finances sorted out following a divorce, but my ex-husband won’t produce the requested details of his assets. How much power does the Court have to force him to do this? I feel that fines and “contempt of court” are unlikely to be a deterrent, so this could go on for years.