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Legal Aspects of Divorce

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Abstract

This chapter contains an analysis of Dutch, Moroccan and Egyptian divorce law and private international law. It outlines and compares the legal provisions for transnational couples with regard to divorce, maintenance, division of property and child custody and contact in the three countries with specific attention to the effects for transnational families. It is argued that Dutch, Moroccan and Egyptian family law marriage and divorce are based on the same ideas and assumptions about the family in gender-based roles of homemaker and breadwinner. However, the three legal systems provide different solutions in arranging the financial consequences of this gender-based division of labour.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    This law is officially called law no. 1 of 2000 or The law on Reorganization of Certain Terms and Procedures of Litigation in Personal Status Matters. Besides the famous article on khul` (20), it contained other controversial clauses such as the recognition of informal (`urfi) and the later-removed article which would allow women to travel without the consent of their husband (Sonneveld 2009: p. 1).

  2. 2.

    This reformed law is often called Jihan’s law, after Jihan Sadat, the wife of the president.

  3. 3.

    Although not for this reason but because of procedural aspects (Sonneveld 2009: p. 1).

  4. 4.

    Divorced Fathers fight to see offspring, The Egyptian Gazette, 12 May 2011. Single fathers call for amending custody law, Safaa Abdoun, Daily News Egypt on 24 May 2011. Pamphlet of the Saving the Egyptian Family Movement retrieved from the tahrir documents website http://www.tahrirdocuments.org/2011/06/save-egyptian-families/, accessed 8 May 2013.

  5. 5.

    Also spelled Mudawannah.

  6. 6.

    Talaq is often translated as repudiation.

  7. 7.

    This ground is duurzame ontwrichting or permanent breakdown of a marriage.

  8. 8.

    Officially called Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. Examples can be found in the work of Forder (2003, 2002).

  9. 9.

    In this chapter, I focus on those aspects of marriage that are relevant for divorce, such as stipulations in the marriage contract. For more information on how to arrange a Dutch-Egyptian or Dutch-Moroccan marriage and the paperwork required for issues such as the recognition of children see: (Kulk 2013).

  10. 10.

    These last stipulations are controversial among many women’s groups and activists because they believe women already have these rights (Singerman 2005: p. 173, Welchman 2004: p. 71). For discussions over the Egyptian marriage contract see also Hatem (2004), Shaham (1999), and Sonbol (2005).

  11. 11.

    This means, for example, that the wife cannot stipulate that her husband will not divorce her, and that the husband cannot demand that his wife will not have children.

  12. 12.

    For a further discussion on the meaning of gold and gifts at marriage in Algeria see: (Jansen 1997).

  13. 13.

    Not all sections of Egyptian family law have actually been codified. When not codified, judges should resort to the teachings of the Hanafi school of law. See for a more elaborate discussion, Kulk

    (2013).

  14. 14.

    Or at least, those goods which have been written down in the ayma, which may include some possessions which have been brought into the marriage by the husband (Sonneveld 2012a).

  15. 15.

    Law nr. 100 of 1985, amending law nr. 25 of 1929. However, not all men do so, leaving their wives in an insecure situation. See also Human Rights Watch (2004).

  16. 16.

    Often called the Shahr Iqari, or land registry, after its other function.

  17. 17.

    This period is 60 days for women who menstruate or 90 for those who count the `idda by month (Sonneveld 2009: p. 33). In pregnancy, this `idda lasts until the birth of the child.

  18. 18.

    For a further discussion of stipulations in the marriage contract see, Chapter 7 and Sportel (2013).

  19. 19.

    E-mail contact with the Egyptian Embassy in the Netherlands, July 2011.

  20. 20.

    This age used to be 10 for boys and 12 for girls, with a possible extension in the interest of the child to 15 for boys and marriage for girls. However, the custodian is not entitled to payment for custody during this extension (art. 20 law nr. 100 of 1985).

  21. 21.

    According to Abdel Hameed Galal, this was arranged in the ‘decree of the Minister of Justice No.1087 for the year 2000 on places for seeing young Child’ (Galal 2011: p. 4), see also Sonneveld and Lindbekk (2015).

  22. 22.

    Results from unpublished research project by Jessica Carlisle, 2007–2008.

  23. 23.

    The `idda is meant to clarify the paternity of children. During this period, women cannot remarry. In principle, it will last three menstrual cycles or, if the woman is pregnant, until the child has been born, with a maximum of one year after the divorce.

  24. 24.

    However, since the new Mudawwana of 2004, women can easily choose another divorce form in which they do not need to renounce maintenance.

  25. 25.

    Interview, November 2011. English in original.

  26. 26.

    Based on a basic comparison of notaries’ websites, I estimate that the costs range from around 400–500 euro for the cheapest option up to 1000–1500 euro in more complicated cases. It is also possible to make such a contract later, during the marriage, but that requires a more complicated and costly court procedure.

  27. 27.

    These percentages include so-called geregistreerd partnerschap, the registered partnership, which is equal to marriage with regard to property.

  28. 28.

    This seems to be a recent trend. Until 2003, the percentage was going down, with a low point of only 11 %, while in the past, the number of ‘cold exclusion’ arrangements was far larger, around 70 % in 1970. After 2003, the number of ‘cold exclusions’ went up sharply again. The researchers note that part of the difference may be related to a broadening of the definition of ‘cold exclusion’ (Schols and Hoens 2012).

  29. 29.

    As arranged in art. 1:93–113 BW.

  30. 30.

    Since 2009, a series of budget cuts has limited the possibilities for government-sponsored legal aid.

  31. 31.

    The form of the talaq (which takes place by the declaration of the husband, even if a judge is involved) is another, more formal, reason for its non-recognition.

  32. 32.

    Hoge Raad (HR), 9 December 2001, ECLI:NL:PHR:2001:AD4011.

  33. 33.

    For an example in which the husband successfully applied for a divorce on the ground of chiqaq: Rechtbank Alkmaar, 26 January 2006, ECLI:NL:RBALK:2006:AV0789.

  34. 34.

    BW10:57. Before 2012, this was arranged in article 3 Wet conflictenrecht inzake ontbinding huwelijk en scheiding van tafel en bed (3 WCE).

  35. 35.

    This was, for example, the case when the marriage of an Egyptian man, married to a Dutch woman, was annulled after ten years because the husband could not prove sufficiently that his ex-wife, whom he divorced in the late 1980s, had agreed or resigned to the divorce: HR 21 December 2007, ECLI:NL:HR:2007:BB8076.

  36. 36.

    See for more information on recognition of Moroccan divorces in the Netherlands, Kruiniger (2015).

  37. 37.

    This period of 12 years has become the subject of much public debate. Since 2012, a new bill has been pending in parliament, limiting the maintenance period to a maximum of five years, based on ‘important changes in the relationships between men and women’. Kamerstukken II 2011/12, 33 311, nr. 3, p. 1–2.

  38. 38.

    See for an example in which the wife took the children abroad without the consent of the maintenance-paying father, Hof Leeuwarden, 26 May 2011, ECLI:NL:GHARN:2011:BQ7255.

  39. 39.

    Morocco, the Netherlands, and Egypt are all on the list of nationaliteitslanden, article 4, lid 2 sub a, Haags Huwelijksvermogensverdrag 1978. See alsoJordens-Cotran (2007: p.808).

  40. 40.

    See for an example with a Dutch-Egyptian couple: Hof ’s-Gravenhage, 17 December 2008, ECLI:NL:HR:2009:BG4822. See for an Iraqi-Dutch case in which the mahr was awarded as maintenance, but without looking at need or means Rechtbank Utrecht, 30 January 2009, ECLI:NL:RBUTR:2008:BC2923.

  41. 41.

    See for two Dutch-Turkish examples in which the bridal gift consisted of jewellery, Hof ’s-Gravenhage, 15 November 2006, ECLI:NL:GHSGR:2006:AZ2935and Hof ’s-Gravenhage, 19 April 2006, ECLI:NL:GHSGR:2006:AY5780. Remarkably, in both cases, the disputed jewellery was missing and both wives accused the husbands of stealing it during the divorce process.

  42. 42.

    The system has been formalised to such an extent that there are apps available to calculate the amount of maintenance.

  43. 43.

    This happens on the condition that there is a legal relationship between the parents and the child. If there is no marriage between the parents, a Moroccan or Egyptian father generally cannot pass on his nationality. A Dutch unmarried father needs to acknowledge his child, preferably before birth (see for an elaborate discussion, Kulk 2013).

  44. 44.

    They can, however, follow the ‘normal’ naturalisation procedure, not based on the marriage. Requirements include five years of residence, knowledge of Arabic and proof of being able to keep oneself (Kulk 2013: p. 140–141).

  45. 45.

    Requirements for normal naturalisation include ten years of continuous residence in Egypt, knowledge of Arabic, and being able to keep oneself. See for a more detailed discussion of requirements, Kulk (2013: p. 138)

  46. 46.

    This term has been changed to five years in 2012. However, all interviews in this study were conducted before this reform.

  47. 47.

    http://www.moiegypt.gov.eg/English/Departments+Sites/Immegration/ForignersServices/ EkametAlAganeb/residence5/ accessed November 2011.

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  1. Lichtenberg-Kolleg Institute for Advanced Studies, University of Göttingen, Geismar Landstraße, Göttingen, Germany

    Iris Sportel

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Sportel, I. (2016). Legal Aspects of Divorce. In: Divorce in Transnational Families. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-34009-8_3

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