Quote: One law firm said it had seen a 30 per cent increase in new cases in the past year, suggesting that unhappy couples who had put off a split because they could not afford it were now reconsidering.
JMW Solicitors said the rise mirrored a sharp drop in new inquiries about divorces it saw in the wake of the financial crisis four years ago.
The figure echoes predictions from other family lawyers but represents some of the first clear evidence that a large rise could be on the way.
Official figures show that a general downward trend in divorces continued for the first two years of the downturn but then rose by five per cent in 2010 to 119,589.
Although final figures for 2011 have not yet been released, case numbers from Ministry of Justice suggest that the rate will be close to that in the previous year. | 
