The Institution of Spousal Reconciliation in Divorce Proceedings: From the Soviet Model to Contemporary Reforms

The study identifies procedural problems associated with spousal reconciliation in divorce cases in contemporary Russia, taking into account the historical experience of the USSR. The authors analyze current legislative initiatives proposing that courts be entrusted with duties aimed at reconciling spouses who have common minor children through the provision of social and psychological services. The scientific novelty of the paper lies in its interdisciplinary analysis, carried out through the prism of historical and legal experience, of the impact of a more complex judicial divorce procedure on divorce statistics and family preservation. Relying on Soviet statistical data, the authors demonstrate that a more detailed legislative regulation of divorce proceedings, initially oriented toward preserving the family, does not ensure any significant reduction in the number of divorces and, in practice, tends to encourage a formalistic judicial approach to the task of promoting reconciliation between the parties. The paper highlights the insufficient practical implementation of conciliatory procedures, including mediation, which is capable of effectively resolving family conflicts. Historical and legal analysis shows that, during the Soviet period as well, the mandatory publication of information on divorce, increased state fees, and two-stage judicial consideration of divorce cases failed to produce meaningful results, instead generating a formalized character of reconciliation and increasing the judicial workload. The authors reject the thesis that a radical complication of divorce proceedings is necessary, emphasizing instead the priority of the principle of voluntariness of the marital union and the practical importance of the «soft mandatory» use of mediation. The study concludes that excessive state intervention is inadvisable and that the availability of social and psychological services at the pre-trial stage is of particular importance. The practical value of the research lies in its proposal of specific measures to improve the application of reconciliation procedures in judicial divorce proceedings.

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