Topic: divorce

Caymanian romance is not dead, the chief justice announced, as the number of marriages last year far outstripped the number of divorces.

Four years ago, a new Family Division court service was set up to offer former couples free mediation sessions to help settle the often contentious issue of co-parenting, maintenance payments and other terms of divorce settlements. Now, the programme is handling more than 100 cases a year.

The seemingly ever increasing cost of living in Cayman is impacting everyone, among them divorcing couples who are having difficulty paying for lawyers or making arrangements to set up separate single-parent homes.

More than 40% of marriages in Cayman end in divorce, according to statistics quoted by Chief Justice Margaret Ramsay-Hale last week.

Divorces continued to keep Family Court busy last year, with 297 new proceedings initiated.

Government is seeking public input on proposed reforms that would make divorces and financial relief stemming from divorces easier to obtain.