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What happens if my husband refuses to sign Divorce papers UK

Divorce is a life altering and emotional process and a common frustration encountered is that the husband refuses to sign the Divorce papers. This means they will not complete the Acknowledgement of Service online or request and return a paper copy to the Court.

There are several reasons for this. The most common range from the husband ‘burying his head in the sand’, the husband not wanting to accept the marriage is over through to it being an attempt to control you and delay the Divorce.

Whatever the reason, whilst your husband may be delaying the Divorce they cannot stop you obtaining a Divorce.

There is a pathway through their refusal to sign the divorce papers and we specialise in guiding you past this obstacle and enabling you to obtain your divorce.

This comprehensive article looks at using a process server to personally serve your husband, the process of deemed service and the requirements to dispense with service.

Moving your divorce forward

If your husband refuses to sign Divorce papers you firstly need to make arrangements for attempts to be made to personally hand (serve) him the documents. This is undertaken by a process server or a court bailiff. Pricing for service by the court bailiff or a process server is similar but a process server offers more flexibility in respect of attendance times and is quicker. A process server will usually attend to handover (serve) the documents with an initial attempt within 2-3 days whereas it can takes a couple of weeks for a court bailiff to attend.

Our £99 Fixed Fee process serving service includes;

  • Fixed Fee with no hidden extras
  • Up to three attempts at service by a local process server
  • Regular updates
  • Court compliant Statement of Service
  • All completed in 7-10 days
  • Environmentally aware Business
  • Coverage across England and Wales

You then upload this Statement to the portal and should your husband still not sign the documents then the Court will accept he has been served with the documents, is aware of the matter and is choosing not to engage in the process. With personal service effected and the Statement of Service uploaded to the portal you can proceed to the next stage.

£99 Fixed Fee Process Serving.
Moving your Divorce forward

If your husband has refused to sign Divorce papers our professional process server will make up to three attempts at personal service of your Divorce documents. Once served we will provide you with a Statement of Service. 

Who can instruct us

We accept instructions from private individuals, you do not have to be represented by a Solicitor to use our process serving service.

Our Process

Once we have your documents we will schedule an initial attendance within three days and keep you updated

If you are ready to get started you can email your Divorce documents to us at [email protected] 

If you have any questions you can contact us on 07863 125344 or email us on [email protected] or click the link below to complete our enquiry form.

Click here to fill in our enquiry form

Deemed Service

If your husband refuses to sign Divorce papers and attempts to personally serve him with the Divorce papers have been unsuccessful you will move to the Deemed Service stage.

How the Process Works

Deemed Service allows you to move your Divorce forward even if your husband will not engage in the Divorce process. The process of deemed service involves several steps and requirements to ensure it is used appropriately and fairly.

  1. Attempt Personal Service: Before resorting to deemed service, your husband will have refused to sign the Divorce papers and you will have instructed a process server to attempt personal service of the Divorce papers.
  2. Application for Deemed Service: If personal service of the Divorce documents has been unsuccessful you can apply to the Court for an order allowing for deemed service. This application must be supported by evidence demonstrating the efforts made to personally serve the documents and explaining why these efforts were unsuccessful. As part of our £99 fixed fee process serving we provide a comprehensive Statement detailing each of the attempts that meets this requirement.
  3. Court Consideration: The Court will review your Application and the evidence provided. It will consider factors such as the steps taken to serve the Divorce papers, attempts to contact the Respondent and the liklihood that your husband is aware of the proceedings.
  4. Court Order: If the Court is satisfied with the Application, it will issue an Order allowing for deemed service. This Order effectively acknowledges that your husband has been or will be notified of the Divorce papers, even if there is no direct proof of receipt.

Once you have this Order you are able to move your Divorce to the next stage, even though your husband refuses to sign the Divorce Papers.

If you find yourself needing to apply for deemed service we can assist with your application and ensure the supporting Statement comprehensively covers and details all the actions taken in a court compliant format.

Our fee to assist with your application and draft the supporting Statement is £120.

To get started just contact us on 07863 125344 or email us on [email protected] or complete our enquiry form below.

Dispense with Service

There are instances where having your husband sign the Divorce papers or having them served is not possible. In such cases, the UK legal system provides for “dispensing with service” to ensure that the divorce proceedings can continue without undue delay.

Dispensing with service means that the court waives the requirement for the petitioner to serve divorce documents to the respondent. This is an exceptional measure and is only granted under specific circumstances where traditional methods of service have proven impossible.

Reasons for Dispensing with Service

The court may consider dispensing with service in the following scenarios:

  1. Untraceable Respondent: If you have made exhaustive efforts to locate your husband but has been unsuccessful, the court may dispense with service. This includes attempts to contact your husband through known addresses, employers, friends, or family.
  2. Lack of Contact Information: In cases where you have no known address or contact information for your husband, and all reasonable efforts to obtain this information have failed, the court may consider dispensing with service. This will likely also include the need to provide a Statement from a tracing agent to confirm that it has not been possible to trace a current address for your husband.


The process for dispensing with service

  1. Application to the Court: You must apply to the court for an order to dispense with service. This application should be supported by a detailed statement outlining the efforts made to serve the documents and the reasons why these efforts were unsuccessful.
  2. Evidence Submission: You must also provide evidence of the steps taken to locate and serve the respondent. This could include correspondence, affidavits from individuals who have attempted to contact the respondent, and any other relevant documentation.
  3. Court Consideration: The court will carefully consider the application and the evidence provided. It will assess whether the petitioner has made sufficient and reasonable efforts to serve the documents through traditional methods.
  4. Court Order: If the court is satisfied with the application, it will issue an order dispensing with service. This order allows the divorce proceedings to continue without the need for further attempts to serve the respondent.

 

If you find yourself needing to apply to dispense with service we can assist with your application and ensure the supporting Statement comprehensively covers and details all the actions taken in a court compliant format.

Our fee to assist with your application and draft the supporting Statement is £120.

To get started just contact us on 07863 125344 or email us on [email protected] or complete our enquiry form below.

Have a question or need some further information

If you have any questions or need some further information you can complete the form below, you can email us at [email protected] or you can contact us on 07863 125344

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