VPRS 19132 Divorce Decree Book, Geelong

Full description

This series comprises a volume recording the granting of a decree nisi in the Supreme Court of Victoria (VA 2549) in the circuit court of Geelong (VA 3008) following a petition for divorce. A decree nisi is a conditional court order that becomes absolute after those conditions are met, usually after a set period of time.

Each page of the volume contains a copy of a decree nisi, which records the name of petitioner and respondent, case number (year and number) and in some cases co-respondent. Decrees are pasted into the book and each page is annotated with the date and signature of of the petitioner as evidence of its receipt.

In Victoria, the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Act 1861 conferred upon the Supreme Court of Victoria the jurisdiction in matrimonial matters, and authority in certain cases to decree the dissolution of a marriage. This continued to be the case for all divorce petitions until the proclamation of the Commonwealth Family Law Act 1975.