International Divorce and Jurisdiction
There can often be more than one country (jurisdiction) where a divorce can be started. It is quite possible for foreign nationals to divorce in England & Wales and for English ‘ex pats’ to still divorce here.
What do I need international family law advice for?
Specialist jurisdictional divorce advice is needed to consider:
- In what country or countries can a divorce validly start; and
- Which country is the best option, particularly in terms of financial outcome
Can there be a pressure of time?
With the European Union (except Denmark) there is a ‘first past the post’ rule. This means that he or she who first validly claims the divorce jurisdiction in their preferred country ‘wins the race’ namely that the divorce takes place there. The other person can do nothing about it.
That is why time is of the essence to ensure that specialist legal advice is taken in each relevant country to compare the financial outcomes and chose the country which best suits the case.
What are the implications of Brexit?
England & Wales is no longer part of the EU. The jurisdictional rules are therefore different as this ‘first past the post’ rule does not apply. Whoever claims jurisdiction first is still a relevant factor, but a court may consider which country is better placed to consider the divorce case by taking into account, for example, where the parties actually live, where the assets are located and so on.
What do I need to do to start an international divorce?
We can advise you in relation to the best options and so that you can make an informed decision on how to proceed.
We would need to look at family law jurisdictional issues such as habitual residence and domicile.
There can also be tax implications about a person stating their place of residence or domicile so care is needed.
We are family lawyers in England and Wales who concentrate on international divorce and family law issues. We are not lawyers in other jurisdictions and we work with independent lawyers around the world to resolve international family law cases.
Can I challenge divorce jurisdiction?
On occasions a person may claim a country for his or her divorce but there is no real jurisdiction to do so. This might be, for example, that although the person is a national of that country, he or she has not actually lived there for the relevant period. In such a case it may well be possible to challenge the divorce jurisdiction and have the case dismissed.
How does an international divorce affect the children?
The jurisdictional rules for children in an international case are different.
Here we need to see where the children are habitual residence even if the international divorce is taking place in a different county. See more information on international child cases.
Our international family law expertise
We are expert in dealing with international family law cases. James Maguire is a Fellow of the International Academy of Family Lawyers. He is also on the panel for a number of embassies including the US Embassy and British Consulates overseas. We also have contact to several leading lawyers worldwide.