Domestic violence has turned out to be a major reason why couples divorced in Beijing in the last three years, a Beijing court said.

The Beijing No 1 Intermediate People's Court released a report that said from April 2014 to June this year, women in 85 percent of its 853 divorce cases claimed they suffered domestic violence.

"The figure showed domestic violence has become the main cause of divorces we've handled over the past few years," said Sun Guoming, the court's vice-president.

Sun confirmed women are still in a relatively weak position in relationships, "but their awareness to protect themselves through laws has been enhanced." He added divorce was the main part in domestic disputes it tackled in the past three years.

Disputes related to property allocation and succession also were common, the court added in a statement.

Divorce among younger people was identified as a key feature at the Beijing court. It said those born in the 1980s comprised 40 percent of the divorce cases.

Xin Wen contributed to this story.