Article Summary –
No-fault divorce laws contribute to lower rates of intimate partner violence, especially against women. Nonetheless, some conservative leaders are pushing to abolish such laws, arguing they lead to higher divorce rates and unjust treatment of husbands. This proposal is seen as part of broader conservative efforts to limit women’s autonomy, including attempts to limit access to reproductive healthcare.
No-fault divorce laws that lower domestic violence rates against women are facing potential undoing by conservative leaders who want to reintroduce the requirement for “proof” of infidelity or abuse.
No-fault divorce laws, which allow marital dissolution without proof of spousal wrongdoings, could be nullified if certain conservative lawmakers succeed. These laws are active in all 50 U.S. states, granting Americans the legal freedom to terminate their marriages.
The inaugural no-fault divorce law took effect in 1969 under the endorsement of Ronald Reagan, then governor of California. In the subsequent decades, the law gained traction across the country, with New York being the last state to adopt it in 2010.
Proponents argue that no-fault divorce laws have a protective effect, especially for women in abusive relationships. A 2004 study linked the laws to decreased rates of female suicides, 10% reduction in female partners’ homicide, and a substantial 30% drop in domestic violence against both genders.
Legislative pushback against no-fault divorce intensifies
Despite the protective benefits of no-fault divorce laws, some mainly male conservative Christian leaders are advocating for their repeal. They argue these laws lead to unjust treatment towards husbands and contribute to the perceived moral failure of increased divorce rates.
Prominent conservative critics include Steven Crowder, who hit the headlines in 2023 following a leaked video of him verbally assaulting his then-pregnant wife. In addition, Republican Senator Dusty Deevers of Oklahoma proposed a state senate bill earlier this year to terminate no-fault divorce, insisting on “clear and convincing evidence” of spousal wrongdoing for divorce proceedings.
Further support to eliminate the practice came from notable conservative leaders like Ben Carson, former US Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under ex-president Donald Trump. Republican legislators from Texas, Nebraska, and Louisiana have also considered including a censure of no-fault divorce in their party platforms.
Women’s autonomy under threat by no-fault divorce attacks
Amid a turbulent period for women’s reproductive rights due to the Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs decision that repealed Roe v. Wade and abolished federal abortion rights, conservative Christians’ assault against no-fault divorce is intensifying. Far-right groups and Republican leaders have persistently targeted issues such as in-vitro fertilization (IVF), birth control, state-level abortion rights, and other women’s health care protections.
Despite conservative concerns about the influence of no-fault divorce laws on marriage preservation, Bowling Green State University data demonstrates a decreasing national divorce rate trend since 2008, with a minor rise from 2021 to 2022. In 2020 and 2021, the US divorce rate remained at a 40-year low for two consecutive years, with only 14 divorces per 1,000 married women.
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