When it comes to a divorce, there are plenty of things you want to do— and plenty of things you want to avoid. There are quite a few terms surrounding divorce that are important to know when you get into the process, and one of those is collusion. You may have heard this before and not thought too much about it. However, if you’ve engaged in collusion, it can be particularly problematic for your divorce proceedings. So, we’re going to explain to you exactly what this is, and how it became problematic, as it is today.
Collusion in South Carolina Divorce
Five grounds for divorce:
You may, or may not, know that South Carolina has five grounds for divorce. Four of these grounds include: adultery, desertion for over one-year, physical cruelty, and habitual drunkenness or drug use. These are the grounds for an at-fault divorce. An at-fault divorce infers the one spouse is causing the end of the marriage for committing one, or multiple, of these acts. If the spouse claiming the grounds successfully proves it, they’re more likely to be awarded the marital property, child custody, etc.
The fifth grounds for divorce is separation for more than one year. This is different than desertion, because both parties are making the decision together that they will separate, and live separately. Most couples in SC claim this ground if they are in an unhappy marriage, but neither spouse has committed an act that is leading to the divorce.
First off, what is collusion?
Collusion is an agreement made between spouses for one of them to fake an at-fault ground for the divorce. The reason some couples might take this route is because it makes the divorce move a bit quicker than a no-fault divorce. But, back in the day, choosing to commit an act of collusion was necessity.
The History of Divorce and Collusion
SC didn’t adopt no-fault divorce grounds until 1979. Thus, before 1979, couples could only divorce if they claimed one, or multiple, of those at-fault grounds. Therefore, couples in an unhappy marriage would have to agree to fake one of the at-fault grounds to be awarded a divorce. Most often, they would use the ‘desertion’ grounds, because it was the easiest to fabricate. Thus, began the pattern of collusion in divorce, and it became such an issue that the state adopted a no-fault grounds for divorce in 1979.
Collusion in Present Day South Carolina
Since the adoption of no-fault divorce grounds, collusion has become far less common. Most couples in unhappy marriages separate for over one year, and then claim no-fault grounds. However, for some, there is still incentive for committing collusion. Because most grounds for a no-fault divorce can take about a year to conclude, they’ll decide to collude instead. Typically, one spouse may agree to admit to a fault such as adultery in order to obtain a divorce more quickly.
What does collusion require?
Collusion requires two elements. One: an agreement between the spouses. Two: the agreement must have to do with the act or acts alleged to be the ground for divorce. This means that the spouses must agree to lie specifically about at-fault divorce grounds. If the court finds that the spouses have committed collusion, they will not grant the divorce. Furthermore, it is likely that the spouses will face a charge of perjury or contempt of court.