How Can We Help You?

Divorce on Cruelty Grounds

In Virginia, cruelty is a fault ground for divorce.

Generally speaking, cruelty involves actions that harm or endanger the mental or physical health of a spouse or child of the marriage. In more specific terms, the kind of cruelty that will suffice for divorce in Virginia must tend to bodily harm, render cohabitation unsafe, or involve danger to life, limb, or health. Angry, course, or abusive language may be sufficient to amount to an endangerment of life or limb, depending on the severity of the statements. Furthermore, successive acts of ill treatment are usually required, but a single act of cruelty may be sufficient grounds for divorce if it endangers life, it was done with intent to inflict harm, and there is fear and likelihood of repetition.

The act of cruelty must have occurred before institution of the divorce action; the allegation of cruelty cannot arise from actions taken during pendency of the divorce action. While somewhat in the discretion of the court to determine whether the course of conduct by one spouse amounts to cruelty, some actions have been held clearly insufficient. For example, mere coolness and denial of sexual intercourse, where other marital duties were performed, will not constitute cruelty as a matter of law.