Financial order - spouse can not be found

Hi all,

I have a question on financial order through the court in case the spouse can not found.

Background:
I married my spouse in 2012. We lived together for 5 years and then separated in 2017 with no kids and no assets together. I could not apply for the divorce at that time as she was not ready to divorce. We lost touch after that and I applied for the divorce under the new 2022 no-fault divorce law in April 2022.
Unfortunatley, no one knows where she is (it is likely that she has moved abroad ) so I had to apply for divorce under the statement to dispense with service of petition or application [form D13 B] with the required evidence.

Query:
I am concerned that although the court will eventually grant me a divorce under this circumstance, I am not sure it will grant me a financial order (based only on my financial details) as my spouse's financial details can not be made available to the court as she can not be located. As a result, I will be divorced but still liable for financial claims from my spouse in the future.

Please could someone advise if there is a process/way under which I can get both the divorce and a financial order from the court under this circumstance. Any advise will be highly appreciated.

Many thanks



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/10/2022 04:30AM by Seeker.

You will not be able to have any financial order unless your spouse can be found. A financial order can be obtained by consent or as a result of a decision by a judge after hearing evidence. The first is impossible if your spouse cannot be found to give her consent. A court will not make an order in the absence of the other spouse without being satisfied that she is at least aware of the proceedings and able to respond if she wishes.

For what it is worth people can usually be found. They do not usually disappear without trace. Even if it is necessary to use a private detective most people can be found one way or another.

Thanks for your prompt reply David.