Glitch let couples apply for divorce early, minister reveals

Judges are considering how to resolve the issue after a ‘technical fault’ let 67 couples get divorced after applying prematurely.

The Ministry of Justice disclosed that 67 couples had been granted a divorce after applying prematurely thanks to a computer glitch (Kirsty O’Connor/PA) (PA Archive)

A computer glitch allowed 67 couples to get divorced before they were legally allowed to, the Ministry of Justice has admitted.

Justice minister Lord Bellamy said a “technical fault” in a new system had allowed couples to apply for divorce after a year of marriage, rather than the legal minimum of a year and a day.

In a written statement to Parliament, Lord Bellamy said the error had been “rectified as soon as it came to light” – seven months after the system was introduced in April 2022 – but 67 couples had received a final divorce order after being allowed to apply prematurely.

He said: “The independent judiciary are looking at how best to deal with the cases. Until they reach a decision, all final divorce orders of the court will remain final orders.”

There has been an online system for divorce proceedings since 2019, which included a function to stop applications being made before couples had been married for a year and a day.

But a new system was introduced in April 2022 following changes in divorce law that brought in “no-fault” divorce, and it was this system that had the fault.

The error was corrected in November 2022, with more than 90,000 applications having been made in the intervening months.