You will have seen various newspaper articles in January about ‘Divorce Day’. The suggestion is, repeated as each year comes in, that people fall over themselves to issue divorce applications on the first working day of the year. This story runs in the press with regular monotony as each new year dawns, but what are the facts and figures?
Separating ‘Divorce Day’ fact from fiction
Family Court quarterly statistics actually reveal that, in 2025, 28,890 divorce applications were issued between January and March, 26,412 between April and June and 26,153 between July and September. There were also 23,901 divorce applications issued between October to December 2025.
Whilst these figures do illustrate that divorce applications were at their peak in Q1 (January to March) of 2025, there isn’t a dramatic spike compared to Q2 (April to June) or Q3 (July to September).
Understanding the human reality behind the headlines
The speed at which people move on their divorces varies enormously. Some make an enquiry to a solicitor just as the signs are becoming visible that there are problems in the marriage, and these people wish to find out what life after divorce is likely to hold for them.
For others, a visit to a solicitor is the last resort after long periods of counselling or other professional help. It has been suggested that those couples who have explored every option available and feel they have tried their best to save the marriage, are more likely to have an amicable separation and be more able to deal pragmatically and sensibly with the financial aspects of the case.
Read more about when to hire divorce solicitors for a case.
Conversely, there are times when a divorce is not a mutual decision and one party, high on emotion, might decide (fuelled by the sort of media storm described) to rush into a decision before the other party to the marriage is ready. This is more likely to lead to acrimonious proceedings, or even a hasty decision which could be regretted later.
It is to be hoped that in matters that are so personal, people will make their decisions about ending a marriage, free from the pressure of frenzied media reports.
How we can help
At Breakthrough Family Law Solicitors, we are specialist divorce solicitors with a high level of experience in key aspects such as financial disclosure, spousal and children maintenance.
For further information, please contact the family law team on 01494 776696 or email [email protected].
Breakthrough Solicitors has offices in Harrow, Milton Keynes & London.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. Please note that the law may have changed since this article was published.
