Form of Divorce Decrees.—An English decree of divorce is in the first instance nisi, or provisional. If after six months it is unaffected by any intervention by the King’s Proctor, or any other person, it can be made absolute upon proper application.
King’s Proctor.—This is the proctor or solicitor representing the Crown in the Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division of the High Court of Justice in matrimonial causes.
In his official capacity he can only intervene in a divorce suit on the ground of collusion.
Sir James Hannen, discussing the powers of this officer, said in a leading case: “If, then, the information given to the King’s Proctor before the decree nisi does not rise to a suspicion of collusion, but only brings to his knowledge matters material to the due decision of the case, he is not entitled to take any step, and the direction of the Attorney-General would probably be that he should watch the case to see if these material facts are brought to the notice of the court. If at the trial they should be, there will be no need for the King’s Proctor to do anything more, for he would not be entitled to have the same charges tried over again unless material facts were not brought to the notice of the court.
“If, however, those material facts are not so brought to the notice of the court by the parties, he will then be entitled as one of the public, but still acting under the direction of the Attorney-General, to show cause against the decree being made absolute.”
In special cases the court has power to make the decree absolute before the expiration of six months after the decree nisi.
Until the decree is made absolute neither party can lawfully contract another marriage; and in the event of the suit being contested the parties must further wait until the time for an appeal has passed.
Alimony, Temporary and Permanent.—During the pendency of the suit the husband is liable to provide his wife with alimony or maintenance. The amount granted is within the court’s discretion, but generally it is about twenty-five per centum of the husband’s income. Upon the granting of a decree in the wife’s favour the court has power to grant the wife permanent alimony, the amount of which depends on all the facts, such as the husband’s income, the wife’s means and the social status of the parties. If a wife secures an order for alimony against her husband, he being a man of property, the court may require him to give security for its payment or direct him to make a transfer of money to a trustee or trustees for the convenient payment to the wife. Permanent alimony is usually smaller than temporary alimony, or alimony pendente lite, but no rule as to the amount can be safely stated, it resting in the discretion of the Court.
If a husband has no considerable property he will be directed to pay the alimony awarded against him in monthly or weekly instalments.
Insanity.—Insanity is neither a cause nor a bar to divorce. If an insane wife commits adultery, or if an insane husband commits adultery coupled with the other offences which make out a cause of action against him, the innocent party is entitled to a decree of divorce. So an insane party may be a petitioner for divorce, but can only appear by his or her committee in lunacy.