With the 29th March 2019 fast approaching, it is looking increasingly likely that the UK will be leaving the EU with ‘no deal’. So what will happen to divorce law in England and Wales after ‘exit day’?
Perhaps the biggest, and arguably best, change following a ‘no deal’ Brexit will be in relation to divorces which can be started in more than one jurisdiction. For instance, if you are a citizen of England and your husband or wife is a citizen of Italy (or any other EU country), then you may be able to start divorce proceedings in both England and Italy. If there is more than one country available to start divorce proceedings, then deciding which country to start the divorce in is a major decision and one that you should not take lightly. The financial provisions available on divorce can vary massively between countries, so it is important that you obtain proper advice if this is an issue in your divorce.
Under rules implemented by the EU, if divorce proceedings are started in two countries, i.e. you send a divorce petition into Court in England and your spouse sends a divorce petition into Court in Italy, whichever divorce is started first in time takes priority and the divorce in the other country has to be halted. This can lead to a race between the spouses to issue their petition in the country that would be most advantageous to them.
However, following a ‘no deal’, the same rules that England and Wales apply to the rest of the world are likely to also apply to the countries in the EU as well. These rules mean that, if the divorce is started in two countries, the country which has the closest connection to the couple will take priority and the divorce will continue there. The factors considered when deciding which country has the closest connection include where the parties usually live or where the majority of their assets are.
This will be welcome news for some who start their divorce after 29th March as there will no longer be a race to issue the petition first which often meant the spouse who had access to better, or any, legal advice would be able to choose which of the relevant countries dealt with the divorce. It also means that the same rules will apply whether the other country is in the EU or in the rest of the world.
If you are about to get divorced and think that there may be an issue in relation to which country the divorce will be started in then it is best to get advice as soon as possible as this is a complex issue and requires specialist advice at the outset.