European Embassies verify the papers and the status of the Filipino citizen thru the Philippines administration. And if they smell something strange or unclear, visa is denied
You seem to be implying that obtaining a divorce is illegal. It is not.

Last year my wife successfully obtained her fiancé visa at the British Embassy in Manila. We were totally honest and open about all our circumstances.
The fact that my Filipino wife had divorced her Filipino husband while she was overseas was not an issue as in British law we were free to marry.

I would not presume that Halfluke’s case would be successful as every case is individual. However statements that it is not possible to obtain a fiancé visa with a legal divorce are simply not true.

Jimbo