While you will always need the court to deal with your divorce, which includes obtaining the decree nisi and the decree absolute, you do not need to attend court for your divorce. The same applies to a divorce settlement. If you agree the terms, you can submit your consent order to the court but you do not need to attend court in person. An 'out of court' divorce is simply one in which you and your spouse negotiate the terms between you, usually with expert legal guidance to make sure that you are both being treated fairly. Obviously, this is easier when your circumstances make a fair division of assets easier. For example, if you have only been married for a few years, earn similar amounts of money and have no children together, it is usually possible to simply split the value of any assets when you go your separate ways. Naturally, this becomes more difficult if one spouse feels that their financial contribution has been greater, or provision needs to be made for financial support or child arrangements. However, as contested financial proceedings can be lengthy and expensive - for both parties – it is often better for divorcing couples to negotiate with the help of experienced divorce lawyers rather than arguing in court and leaving it to a judge to decide matters for them.