Pennsylvania, as a matter of legislative intent, has attempted to make the law for the legal dissolution of marriage effective for dealing with the realities of the matrimonial experience.

Pennsylvania has "fault" and "no-fault" divorces. The fault grounds are the familiar charges of adultery, desertion, indignities, and other marital wrongs that would be legal "grounds" for divorce in Pennsylvania. There are two kinds of no-fault divorces in Pennsylvania. Both types require an irretrievable breakdown in the marriage with no hope of reconciliation. The first type of no-fault divorce is granted where there is mutual consent by the parties. The second is based on a two-year separation and can be obtained unilaterally by one party. There is a legislative movement to reduce the required separation time to one year.

Only a Pennsylvania resident can sue for divorce in Pennsylvania. Most states require a residency period of six months or year before a resident can sue for divorce. Pennsylvania requires a party to maintain a residency in Pennsylvania for six months before having the right to sue in divorce. Interestingly, because of these rules, there are parties who have no legal residence in any state and cannot initiate a divorce in any state.

The process for a "mutual consent no-fault divorce" takes about four to five months after the filing of the complaint for divorce. The complaint must be filed and then there is a 90 day "cooling off period" after the service of the complaint on the defendant. The parties are then permitted to sign affidavits of consent which are filed with the court, along with other papers, and the court will thereafter enter a decree of divorce. A "separation no-fault divorce" may take a shorter period of time. Contested divorces on fault grounds take considerably longer. Most contested divorce cases arise out of the parties' property division disputes, i.e., money.

Defenses to fault-ground divorces vary widely from case to case. There are the straightforward factual denials of the facts which would constitute the grounds for divorce. For example, the accused party may deny the adulterous acts. There are also technical defenses such as "recrimination" (the party seeking legal relief of divorce is guilty of acts which would constitute grounds for divorce) and "condonation" (the defendant says that the plaintiff has forgiven the acts which constitute grounds by resuming cohabitation or sexual relations). Pennsylvania's desertion ground can include "constructive desertion". This reflects the situation where the wrongful actions of one party drive the other party from the marital abode.

Separation means not living together as husband and wife. It is possible to have a separation even while living in the same house but proving the separation is difficult. Separate beds, no sexual relations, separate entrances, separate food supplies, and separate social lives are all evidence of a separation. The separation date is important for the calculation of the separation time period for a no-fault divorce, valuation of assets, and length of the marriage (a particularly important factor in equitable distribution of the property, awards of alimony, counsel fees and other matters).

Annulment of "void" or "voidable" marriages is controlled by statute. Void or voidable marriages may be declared void in an annulment action. Marriages are void ab initio if one of the parties was already married, the parties are too closely related, there was mental incapacity or no intention to consent to the marriage or where either party was under the age of 18 years at the time of marriage. If the parties cohabit, as husband and wife, after the removal of an impediment (such as another spouse or mental incapacity) than the grounds for annulment are removed.

Marriages are generally voidable if: 1) either party was under 16 years of age at the time of marriage unless expressly approved by the court, 2) where either party was under 16 or 17 years of age and lacked the consent of a guardian or the court, had not ratified the marriage (by cohabitation or possibly sexual relations) upon reaching 18 years of age and commenced an annulment action within 60 days after the marriage ceremony, 3) either party was intoxicated and an action for annulment is commenced within 60 days after the marriage ceremony, 4) there was impotency, still existing, unknown to the other party prior to marriage, or 5) one party was induced to enter into the marriage due to fraud, duress, coercion or force attributable to the other party and there was no subsequent voluntary cohabitation after knowledge of the fraud or release from the effects of fraud, duress, coercion or force.