The British Ministry of Justice is so pleased with its online divorce pilot that it has launched the scheme nationwide this month.

The latest initiative in the department’s modernization program enables couples splitting up across England and Wales to complete their applications on a website without going to court.

Language has been simplified for the digital form, allowing payments and evidence to be uploaded from home.

More than 1,000 petitions were issued through the system during its test phase, with 91 percent of users, according to the ministry, reporting that they were satisfied with the service.

The system allows couples to terminate their marriage for US$742 and upload official documents online.

Sir James Munby, the judge in charge of the high court’s family division, recently described online divorce as a “triumphant success” and “final proof positive that whatever people think, government can do IT.”

A refined version of the scheme was rolled out across England and Wales at the beginning of May. The department says there has been a 95 percent drop in the number of applications being returned because of mistakes.

One woman responding to the Ministry of Justice survey said, “It was marvellous, pain-free and less stressful than the paper form which I tried several years ago and got fed up of it being rejected.”

The Courts and Tribunals Service cited the example of divorce applicant, Rebecca, who used the new online service and received legal confirmation of her divorce less than 12 weeks later.

Welcoming the change as a means of reducing the stress of parting, the justice minister Lucy Frazer said, “Allowing divorce applications to be made online will help make sure we are best supporting people going through an often difficult and painful time. More people will have the option of moving from paper-based processes to online systems which will cut waste, speed up services and better fit with modern life.”

The quickening pace of court modernization has, however, raised concerns in parts of the legal profession about funding for the ambitious program which will see 6,500 court and backroom jobs disappearing across England and Wales by 2022.

Words to Learn 相关词汇

【分手】fēnshǒu split up part or separate, as through disagreement, sever relations

【受够了】shòugòu le fed up unable or unwilling to put up with something any longer

英国司法部对试运行的网上离婚系统很满意，并于本月在全国推广使用。

这是该部门推行的现代化项目的最新举措，英格兰和威尔士地区要分手的夫妻可以在网上完成离婚申请，不用去法院。

网上的表格使用了简化语言，人们在家中就可以付费和上传证据。该系统在试运行期处理了1000多起离婚申请，司法部称，其中91%的申请者对处理结果满意。

准备离异的夫妇花费742美元就可以在网上申请离婚并上传正式文件。

英国高等法院家庭法庭大法官詹姆斯•芒比爵士近日形容网上离婚为“让人欢欣鼓舞的成功”，并“最终证明，无论人们想要什么，政府都可以应用信息技术来解决”。经过改进的网上离婚程序已于5月初在英格兰和威尔士推行。英国司法部称，由于错误而导致的申请退回数量已下降了95%。

一位参与司法部调查的女性说：“这太不可思议了，和我几年前提交纸质文件申请离婚相比，更加无痛苦无压力。我当年还被退回了好几次，真是受够了。”

英国法院和法庭服务机构引述了网上离婚申请人丽贝卡的例子，她在申请后12周内就收到了离婚判决。

英国司法部长露西•弗雷泽对这一转变表示欢迎，认为这是减少离婚压力的好办法。她说：“离异是人们走过的一段困难而痛苦的时光。允许人们通过网络提交离婚申请将有助于确保我们尽可能支持他们。更多人选择在网上系统申请而非递交纸质文件也可以减少浪费，得到快捷的服务，更好地适应现代生活。”

法庭现代化的加速也引发了一些法律界人士的不安，他们对这一雄心勃勃的计划有所担忧，因为计划将导致英格兰和威尔士在2022年之前减少6500个庭上和庭下工作岗位。 (Chinadaily.com.cn)