The timing of a divorce in Spain

Divorce involves the breakdown of the marital union between two people. To do so, it is necessary to undertake a process which, when it is done by mutual agreement, is extremely simple and quick. Likewise, when there is no understanding between the parties, it tends to be much longer and more costly. In any case, what should be clear to you is that, as long as one of the two spouses wants to obtain it, it will take place regardless of any impediments or obstacles put in the way by the other.

In any case, what we would like to talk to you about here is the time required for divorce proceedings in Spain. Bear in mind that there are many aspects that can influence this, so the data we will provide you with are not fully accurate. However, they will give you a rough idea of what to expect.

What are the requirements for obtaining a divorce in Spain?

After the first Divorce Law in Spain, which was published and put into effect in 1981, those who wanted to divorce had to give a reason. However, this was changed some time later. Nowadays, there are only two requirements for a divorce to take place. The first is that at least 3 months have elapsed between the celebration of the marriage and the filing of the lawsuit. The second is the will to break the marital union expressed by one of the parties.

What are the timelines for an uncontested divorce?

Let's start by talking about the quickest and simplest scenario, which is divorce by mutual consent. In recent years, this has been known as an express divorce due to the legislative facilities that have been provided to carry it out.

The chronology of an uncontested divorce

El divorcio de mutuo acuerdo ha de pasar, obligatoriamente, por las siguientes fases:

• The spouses must agree to appoint a common lawyer.
• First hearing with the lawyer: presentation and harmonisation of the points included in the regulatory agreement that will manage the separation between the spouses.
• Second meeting with the lawyer: analysis of the regulatory agreement for its final drafting and signature by both spouses.
• Filing for divorce in the appropriate court.
• Visit of the spouses to the court to ratify their desire to divorce.
• Issuing of the divorce decree by the judge.

None of these procedures usually take too long. However, there are aspects to be taken into account. For example, if the spouses use a private lawyer, the appointment of such a lawyer takes a matter of minutes. However, if they seek the services of a court-appointed lawyer, the appointment can take up to 6 months.

However, trying to think of the ideal process, we can assure you that a divorce by mutual consent is usually completed within 2 to 3 months from the moment both spouses engage their respective lawyers and regardless of whether there are children or property in common. In fact, these aspects must be included in the settlement agreement that, prior to the court hearing, both spouses signed before the jointly appointed lawyer.

What about the time required in a contentious divorce?

Divorces that are not carried out by mutual agreement are known as contentious divorces. These divorces are undoubtedly associated with much more time-consuming and conflict-ridden procedures. Moreover, the possibility of one of the spouses acting in bad faith in order to make it as difficult as possible to break up the marriage should never be disregarded.

Chronology of a contentious divorce

As in the case of divorces by mutual consent or express divorces, contentious divorces follow a chronological and procedural line that must be complied with. It is this:

1. The spouse who wants a divorce must hire a private lawyer. If he/she cannot or does not wish to do so, he/she must apply for an ex officio lawyer. As mentioned above, the average waiting time for appointment is 6 months.
2. The lawyer, once in the service of the spouse who wishes to obtain the divorce, proceeds to draw up the application and submit it to the appropriate court.
3. The court opens a file on the divorce case and sends a copy of the petition to the other spouse.
4. Once the respondent spouse has received the petition, he or she has 20 working days, i.e. not counting weekends, public holidays or the month of August, if August is in the middle of the proceedings, to file a defence. There is another problem here. When the defendant wants to make the process more difficult, he does not attend to the receipt of the notification. Even if this is eventually done in one way or another, it can delay the deadlines by more than a month.
5. Once the claim has been contested, the respondent spouse must hire a lawyer. If he or she applies for a court-appointed lawyer, it can take up to six months to obtain one.
6. As soon as a lawyer is available, the trial hearing will take place within 6 to 8 weeks.
7. At the end of the trial, the judge will take one month to issue the judgment, which will include the final settlement agreement.
8. The judgment issued may be subject to appeal. In case one of the spouses does not agree with it and takes this action, the final judgment will take between 6 and 12 months.

Based on our experience, we can say that an 'idyllic' contentious divorce, i.e. one in which both spouses have recourse to a private lawyer and do not appeal against the judge's ruling at first instance, will last approximately six months from the time of the filing of the lawsuit in the competent court.

On the other hand, in the worst-case scenario, i.e. where both spouses, or at least the respondent, use a court-appointed lawyer and also appeal against the judge's ruling at first instance, the divorce can take between 24 and 30 months to become final. And the worst thing is not only this long period of time, but also the financial and emotional cost, especially for the plaintiff.

Conclusions on the timing of divorce

All in all, what is clear is that, as long as one of the spouses has the will to divorce his or her partner, he or she will succeed. However, it is no less clear that, if the other spouse wants to make the task as difficult as possible, he or she can make the process take as long as possible.

For this reason, we always advise those who seek our services by requesting a divorce lawyer to try to reach an agreement with their partners when it comes to divorce. The reduction in time, financial and emotional costs makes it worth the effort even if both spouses are already far apart.