The European Court of Justice has ruled that the European Union’s divorce regulations do not cover Shariah divorces which are deemed “private agreements”.
This now means that a Munich court has to decide whether to recognise a divorce case granted under Syrian Sharia court.
The couple in Germany, Raja Mamisch and Soha Sahyouni, had been granted a divorce in 2013 in Syria in an Islamic Sharia law proceeding. For anyone going through a divorce, it can be a difficult time. But it doesn’t have to be. With the help of specialist divorce lawyers such as Peters And May, you may not have to deal with all this pressure on your own. Knowing that you have someone on your side is all that matters in times like these.
Islamic law allows a man to divorce his wife instantly by saying “talaq” (divorce) three times. Unlike in other countries, they don’t have to contact an LA divorce lawyer, or one similar, to dissolve the marriage.
It is the European Court of Justice’s (ECJ) first ruling on the subject. This is what makes religious marriages and divorces so complicated and why there are people like the myerson solicitors who can help people going through religious divorces.
The couple married in 1999 in the Syrian city of Homs before eventually moving to Germany. They hold both Syrian and German nationality.
In 2013, the husband ended the marriage in a Sharia court in the Syrian city of Latakia by repeating “talaq” (divorce) three times. However, in the United States, those who wish to get divorce might need to get in touch with someone similar to this chicago divorce lawyer to make sure that everything is done correctly and their divorce is final.
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The ECJ calls the measure a “private divorce”, as a state authority is not involved.
The wife acknowledged the divorce in writing, but contested it after the former husband applied for its recognition in a court in the German city of Munich.
The court then referred the case to the ECJ, asking for clarifications over the interpretation of the EU divorce law pact, known as the Rome III Regulation.
The ECJ said the regulation “does not apply, by itself, to the recognition of a divorce decision delivered in a third country”.
It added that a unilateral declaration of divorce before a religious court does not fall under the scope of the regulation, and said the case must be resolved under German law.
The ECJ does not decide the dispute itself, and the court in Munich will take a final decision on the issue.
