In German law, divorce is based on the principle of marital breakdown. This means that the court does not find fault in the breakdown of marital life. It is estimated that such a breakdown should last at least a year. Periods of amicable reconciliation between the spouses do not interrupt the running of this period. This allowed for significant simplification and shortening of divorce proceedings, as the divorce can be granted in one court hearing.
Difficulties during court proceedings may concern the division of joint property and alimony. As the professor emphasizes, in the last 10 years there have been changes in the legislation and spousal maintenance has been significantly limited to strictly defined grounds. However, arguments in favor of the child will be adjudicated according to clearly defined rules. The ministries of justice of individual states present the methods of calculating alimony on their websites. Importantly, however, an obligatory element in divorce proceedings is the so-called division of pension benefits. This means that at the time of retirement, part of the pension of one of the spouses will be paid directly by the German pension insurance system to the other divorced spouse who has acquired lower pension rights.
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