Alternate relief in divorce proceedings
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Summary
If a spouse petitions for divorce on grounds other than certain specified serious grounds, the court may, if it thinks fair given the circumstances, grant a decree of judicial separation instead of a decree of divorce. That leaves the marriage legally intact but treats the spouses as formally separated; the court can still decide on maintenance, custody and other incidental relief.
Example
Priya files for divorce saying she and her husband have been living apart for years and her petition is not based on the excluded serious grounds. The court finds judicial separation more appropriate and issues a decree of judicial separation instead of dissolving the marriage.
Bare Act
Enacted textIn any proceeding under this Act, on a petition for dissolution of marriage by a decree of divorce, except in so far as the petition is founded on the grounds mentioned in clauses (ii), (vi) and (vii) of sub-section (1) of section 13, the court may, if it considers it just so to do having regard to the circumstances of the case, pass instead a decree for judicial separation.
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