By Rebecca Kittridge
In efforts to harken back to an America that boasts “traditional family values,” the next attack on a fundamental protection takes the form of conservative bids to eliminate no-fault divorce. Historically, fault-based divorce required that the party seeking a divorce provide one of the given state’s enumerated “reasons” that justifies the divorce, such as adultery, cruelty, or imprisonment. Given that these behaviors are difficult to prove and establishing blame in the legal process is burdensome and expensive, women who could not prove abuse or get their spouses to agree to a divorce were trapped in their marriages and could not sever economic ties. Unhappy couples often colluded to artificially establish blame or participated in “divorce-tourism,” meaning they relocated to another state to obtain a divorce. In 1969, California was the first state to introduce no-fault divorce, meaning a party could unilaterally initiate a divorce. The rest of the country followed suit, with New York being the last state to do so in 2010.
Men’s rights groups and religious organizations argue that no-fault divorce is unfair to men, violates due process, and harms families. Lawmakers in Louisiana, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Texas have discussed eliminating or restricting no-fault divorce laws. Although it is not a policy outlined in the Project 2025 manifesto, a coalition of conservative organizations and advisory board members backing Project 2025 made comments targeting, restricting, or eliminating no-fault divorce. President Trump has attempted to distance his campaign from Project 2025 during election season, but his running-mate, JD Vance, has close ties with the initiative and has been a vocal opponent of no-fault divorce. Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has also spoken against no-fault divorce and in favor of covenant marriages, which allows couples to severely restrict their own ability to divorce by contract. Covenant marriages only exist in Arizona, Arkansas, and Louisiana.
Photo: Chris Knight via Unsplash
However, when states introduced no-fault divorce, domestic violence rates against both men and women fell by 30%, the number of women murdered by an intimate partner declined by 10%, and the suicide rate of women fell from 16% to 8%. Divorce rates did spike, but contrary to popular conservative rhetoric, they stabilized afterwards and have been on a steady decline since the turn of the century. No-fault divorce is not only more efficient and sensible, but also granted women newfound independence and saved many lives. Today, nearly 70% of heterosexual divorces are initiated by women.
Legal efforts to end no-fault divorce constitute yet another violent attack on the autonomy of women in this country, making them the literal casualties of radical cultural movements. These efforts are not only insidious, but would ultimately have disastrous consequences on the family court system, including judges and attorneys. It is imperative that lawmakers and citizens recognize these challenges as we anticipate President-elect Trump’s second term.
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