My wife and I married in a civil ceremony abroad. When the marriage didn’t work out I suggested to my wife that we got divorced. She agreed. We both signed an agreement saying that we wished to divorce and would co-operate in every way needed to obtain the divorce. We began the process of dissolution of our marriage by making a joint application . It was held that the family court had jurisdiction over our case ( I am Jewish and she is not) . Now my wife has ‘changed her mind’ about agreeing to divorce – basically she is trying to extort money from me in return for her consent. Can I still divorce her without giving in to her blackmail ?
By: דיאנה שאלתיאל•Published on: 23 June, 2022Yes, providing a relevant ground for divorce can be proved according to the laws of the country where the marriage ceremony took place . If a joint plea for the dissolution of marriage is made and then one of the spouses no longer wishes to divorce , the other party can still proceed with the divorce process, by making an independent plea for divorce. The plea should be based on one of the grounds recognised according to the laws of marriage and divorce in the country where they married. The Attorney General will be a respondent , in addition to the spouse defending the action. The spouse wishing to divorce will need to submit a legal opinion of an expert on matrimonial law in that country regarding the recognised grounds for divorce – and will have to prove that grounds actually exist. The party contesting or defending the divorce plea can also submit a legal opinion supporting his/her case and countering the other side’s, as part of his/her defence. Supporting evidence will also be required .