THE PRINCIPLE OF NO-FAULT DIVORCE IN AUSTRALIA AND ITS ADAPTABILITY TO NIGERIA'S FAMILY LAW

Abstract

This article undertakes a comparative examination of the no-fault divorce principle under
Australia's Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) and its potential adaptability to Nigeria's Matrimonial Causes Act
1970. Australia's reform marked a decisive shift from a fault-based adversarial system to a no-fault model
where irretrievable breakdown, evidenced solely by 12 months of separation, suffices for divorce. This
transformation reduced acrimony, simplified procedure, and separated the dissolution of marriage from
ancillary disputes over property and children. In contrast, Nigeria retains a hybrid fault-based regime
where irretrievable breakdown must be proved through eight enumerated facts, most of which are grounded
in fault. This structure promotes hostility, encourages perjury, and complicates access to justice. While
wholesale transplantation of the Australian model is neither feasible nor desirable, given Nigeria's plural
legal system comprising statutory, customary, and Islamic laws, this article argues that the underlying
principles of no-fault divorce can be incrementally adapted. The article proposes targeted reforms:
redefining irretrievable breakdown by separation alone, shortening the separation period to twelve months,
removing fault from ancillary proceedings, and strengthening alternative dispute resolution mechanisms.
Such reforms would align Nigerian statutory divorce law with contemporary social realities while
respecting constitutional and cultural pluralism.