Increasingly, family situations that require legal solutions extend across borders. A family law dispute that has international elements requires careful consideration and treatment and can be more complicated to resolve. Therefore, if you have a dispute that involves more than one country, we suggest you speak with an experienced lawyer who can provide advice on how best to deal with your specific situation.
Jurisdictional disputes
Normally, the relevant jurisdiction for any legal dispute will be the country that has the closest connection to the parties, for example, the country in which you are domiciled. However, it is possible that two or even three countries could deal with your international family law dispute. Therefore, it is essential to act quickly in order to establish the jurisdiction that you want to hear your case, as different jurisdictions will apply different laws, resulting in very different financial outcomes for the parties.
In order that a family law matter can be heard in a court in England or Wales there needs to be a substantial connection to this country. Examples include that England or Wales is your primary country of residence, you are a British national or you have substantial assets here.
Offshore assets
Everybody wants to protect their assets. Offshore assets can describe a variety of different things from a holiday home abroad, to a pension plan with a financial institution located abroad, to a complex shell corporate structure that spans multiple jurisdictions. Offshore assets, such as bank accounts or foreign investments, which are popular with individuals with a high net worth, can be particularly tricky during a divorce. The purpose behind setting up foreign bank accounts or owning offshore assets is usually to conceal wealth. However, before a financial settlement on divorce can be finalised, both spouses are required to make a full disclosure of their financial resources, including any offshore assets. If you suspect there are undisclosed offshore assets, speak to us about how these can be traced, so they do not slip through the net.
Divorcing when spouses are in separate countries
Divorce is often a messy business but when the separating couple is located in different countries things can get even more complicated and difficult than usual. Where you get divorced will depend on whether the court in the country in which you want to get divorced is legally entitled to deal with your case.
The first step in any international divorce is to list the countries where you are entitled to get divorced, based on where you live, work, or your nationality.
Remember that you can only get divorced in a country that recognises your marriage in the first place, for example, certain countries do not recognise same-sex marriages (even though they are legally recognised in England). Provided one or other of you are habitually resident in England or Wales, you will be able to divorce here. If the divorce is going through English courts, all documents will be required to be presented to the court in English, so it may take extra time for translations or to get copies certified and so on. Equally if the divorce is being heard abroad the court in that country may require translations or different documents to be presented.
Aina Khan OBE is a leading expert in international families with an unparalleled knowledge of Islamic and Asian family issues.
For expert family law advice from highly qualified professionals, contact one of our lawyers at [email protected] or call 020 3858 8020.