Irish Matrimonial Property Division in Practice: a Case Study

This article analyses patterns of property division on maritalbreakdown in Ireland. At present, little information is availableon the operation of marital breakdown legislation (the FamilyLaw Act 1995 and the Family Law (Divorce) Act 1996). This isprimarily due to a strict in camera rule, which has preventedproper study of judicial decisions; lack of reporting and ofwritten judgments are also problems. Little information is availableon the nature or frequency of property orders or agreements.Consequently, practical evaluation and informed policy discussionhave been severely curtailed. In an attempt to fill this gap,this study analyses 89 divorce, separation and judicial separationcases, using data collected from 44 private and Legal Aid familylaw practitioners in multiple locations. The principal focusis on the types of orders or agreements made and the reasons(if any) given for those orders. Differences between privatepractice and Legal Aid cases are considered, as are regionalvariations in orders. Consent and contested outcomes are contrasted,as are divorce and judicial separation cases. The impact offactors such as gender, age, employment status, dependent childrenand marriage duration is analysed. The conclusion highlightskey issues and discrepancies which may give rise to concern.