In 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, several international and national articles, television and radio broadcasts reported an upcoming increase in divorce requests.
In our firm, the demand for amicable divorce have increased, but not more than our normal annual growth rate. But is this the case for all law firms or notary firms?
To learn more, we sent a request for information to the Ministry of Justice to find out the number of divorce applications received by the Quebec Ministry of Justice.
Number of divorce applications down in 2021
Whether for an amicable divorce, a joint divorce or a contested divorce, the analysis of data from the Quebec Ministry of Justice dated June 10, 2022 tells us that over the past 3 years (2018, 2019 and 2020), the number of introductory and joint divorce applications has fallen.
The decline in the number of divorces was very marked during the months of March (-40%), April (-77.5%) and May 2020 (-60%), compared to the same months of 2019.
Divorce applications for the calendar years 2018 to 2021. Source: Quebec Ministry of justice, Deputy Minister of Orientations, Access to Justice and Performance.
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 (preliminary data
to May 31, 2021) |
|
| Number of divorce applications | 13,088 | 12,649 | 11,054 | 4,970 |
Observations on joint petitions for divorce (amicable)
We notice that couples divorce after only a few years of marriage. Divorces of couples who have married less than 3 years seem to us to be on the increase.
We also note that couples who divorce amicably wish to put the amicable divorce procedure in place quickly and divorce as soon as possible.
It may be that for some law firms or notary offices, requests for information to divorce have increased and this translates into a formal divorce request later this year, after confinement, or even in 2022.
Support for your amicable divorce
Me Mona Salehi and her team are available to support you with your amicable divorce.
