Question:

I have heard a lot of gossip about changes being made in Israeli law regarding mixed marriage couples and divorce . Have there been changes, and if so, what are they ?

Answer:

Yes, changes have been made and became law on 10th August 2005. The changes deal with the private international aspects of civil divorce , clarifying and streamlining the cumbersome and often time-consuming process in Israel.

Under the previous law, the Jurisdiction in the Matter of Dissolution of Marriage (Special Cases) Act of 1969, the process of civil marriage consisted of two stages. The first stage was at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, where, upon application ,the President there decided which court had jurisdiction to rule on the dissolution of the couple's marriage, where it was a "mixed religious marriage" - a religious court, or the family court, upon receipt of legal opinion from the relevant religious court, if applicable. The second stage was proceedings at the court having actual jurisdiction.

The amendments to the law have changed the title of the appropriate legislation to the Jurisdiction in the Matter of Dissolution of Marriage (Special Cases & International Jurisdiction ) Act of 1969. The amended legislation now defines the international jurisdiction of the family court in Israel, giving seven alternative situations in which it has jurisdiction, and also refines the instructions about the applicable substantive law. Initial application is now made to the family court, and the vice-president there will apply in writing to the appropriate religious court if necessary, in order to ascertain which court has jurisdiction over the divorce, and a reply must be given within three months unless an extension is requested and granted. If jurisdiction lies with the religious court, the application for dissolution of marriage will be dealt with there. Otherwise the family court will deal with it, and also where no reply has been given within three months and no extension sought.

Basically the amendments are designed to define, simplify and streamline the civil divorce , or dissolution of marriage , process between mixed couples, which was often very lengthy.

The new law applies to cases pending when the amendments came into force, and also now prevents the binding of issues like custody to dissolution of marriage where jurisdiction lies with a religious court.

Question

Which courts have jurisdiction to deal with civil divorce in Israel ?

Answer:

Firstly, civil divorce – correctly called "Dissolution of Marriage" can be dealt with either by a family court, or a religious court, according to the Jurisdiction in the Matter of Dissolution of Marriage (Special Cases & International Jurisdiction ) Act of 1969, which was amended in 2005. Secondly, the family court's deputy-president decides whether jurisdiction to dissolve the marriage lies with the family court or a religious court.

Finally, according to an order given by the Minister of Justice in 2005 the family courts in the following places have jurisdiction to deal with the dissolution of marriage: Eilat, Ashdod , Beersheva, Hadera, Haifa, Tiberias, Jerusalem, Kfar Saba, Nazareth, the Haifa Bay, Kiryat Gat, Kiryat Shmona, Rishon Le Zion and Ramat Gan (Tel Aviv & Central District Family Court).

Question:

How long should it take to end a mixed marriage in Israel ?

Answer:

No clear answer can be given – anything from a few months to two years, and occasionally even longer, depending on the circumstances.

Several factors can shorten or lengthen the process considerably. A major factor which speeds it up is mutual consent. Under Israeli civil law this is a recognised ground for divorce. If both parties are willing to divorce and submit a joint application to end their marriage to the family court, which is usually held to have jurisdiction over mixed marriages, this will be advantageous, especially if they attach a written agreement to this effect.

Another major factor which can shorten or lengthen the process concerns legal opinions of the relevant recognised religious faiths that the parties may belong to. If a party belongs to one of the faiths recognised in Israel under vestiges of legislation from the British Mandate period, then the Deputy President of the family court where the process of dissolution of marriage now begins will require a legal opinion from the relevant religious court before it decides which court should have jurisdiction to dissolve the parties’ marriage. If one of the parties belongs to a religion which is not recognised in Israel – such as the Protestant or Anglican faith - then there will be no need to submit a legal opinion for him/her, which will save time. If neither party belongs to a recognised religion, or has no religion at all (such as an atheist) , then no legal opinions will be needed which will save even more time.

Often, where one of the parties is an immigrant to Israel and belonged to a church of one of the recognised religions abroad, the process can become very slow because of the need to obtain documentation relating to overseas baptism/ marital records . Additionally, the requirement of affidavits concerning a party’s religious affiliation proves time-consuming. The Roman Catholic Church is the most stringent about its documentation requirements. Unlike most of the other recognised faiths, it will not accept affidavits instead of baptism certificates and considerable time can be taken up obtaining the correct documentation from churches abroad.

In more complicated applications, where the divorce is contested and the parties belonged to different recognised religions, it is not uncommon for a party wanting a divorce to have to wait one or two years, and sometimes even longer, for the dissolution of marriage process to be completed.

Amendments to the law made in 2005  have, however, shortened the initial process – concerning which court has jurisdiction to rule on the matter – by a considerable extent.

Question:

Is the practice whereby the rabbinical court can declare a marriage between a Jew and a non-Jew a non-starter and register its cancellation at the Interior Ministry actually valid ?

Answer:

No ! The Supreme Court of Justice finally put an end to this bizarre and invalid practice in September 2006 . The long-awaited ruling was one of the last judgments with Justice Aharon Barak as its President, before his retirement. It stated quite categorically that the rabbinical court has no jurisdiction whatsoever regarding marriage and divorce where one of the parties is not Jewish. It said that the Rabbinical Courts' Jurisdiction (Marriage & Divorce ) Act of 1953 does not empower the rabbinical courts to hear applications for dissolution of marriage where one or both of the parties is non-Jewish.

Previously rabbinical courts in Israel had often dealt with such applications and the Ministry of Interior had registered the cancellation of such marriages as a result. This practice is now categorically declared illegal. The procedure for ending mixed marriages is via a civil process, with the initial application now being made to the vice-president of the family court.

Question:

What legislation covers civil divorce in Israel ?

Answer:

The 1969 Jurisdiction in Dissolution of Marriage (Special Cases & International Jurisdiction ) , which was streamlined in 2005. Under Israeli law, the only ground for civil divorce is mutual consent, but in certain situations the laws of the country where the marriage was performed will apply, and the divorce case can be decided in Israel, based on these.

Question:

Can a court in Israel give a judgment declaring a "mixed marriage" couple divorced – if they both consent – without them having to attend a hearing ?

Answer:

Yes, this is possible, in certain circumstances . In January 2004 Haifa Family Court gave a divorce judgment without either the husband , who was Jewish, or the wife, who was non-Jewish, being present. Both parties , who had married in a civil ceremony in Cyprus, wished to divorce and had given irreversible powers of attorney to a lawyer concerning the matter. The court had already authorized a divorce agreement between the couple , who had one child, in their presence.

Dissolution of Marriage – Spouse Retracts Consent

Question:

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 ?

Answer:

Yes, 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 .

Question:

How strict will a court be about documentation before granting an ‘ex-parte’ divorce ?

Answer:

Very strict. Unless there is an irreversible power of attorney from one party giving a lawyer permission to act on his/her behalf to end the marriage, even without his/her presence at a court hearing, the court will be extremely cautious. In May 2003 Jerusalem District Court rejected an appeal against a family court ruling refusing to grant an ex-parte divorce to the wife who claimed that her husband had given a ‘special power of attorney’ to her in which he consented to ‘do her a favour’ and divorce, but would not attend any hearing. Proof that the husband had been invited to the hearing had been requested by the family court – but this was not provided, despite excuses, and Ministry of Interior records showed that he had actually left the country before the date of the alleged ‘special power of attorney’ and affidavit. The District Court said it was impossible or highly unlikely that the husband had signed these two documents in Israel at the time stated, and demanded that proof of service regarding a hearing be provided.

It said: “Dissolution of marriage is ‘ the most significant event’ in a couple’s life and it is not possible that it can take place without each party being invited to the hearing.”

Question:

What legal steps must a wife who is Jewish, and who moved to Israel, but who has not yet become a citizen, take to divorce her husband, who is non-Jewish, whom she married abroad in a civil ceremony, and with whom she has no contact at all ?

Answer:

Firstly, the fact that the woman has not become an Israeli citizen is irrelevant. She can still begin the process of civil divorce ("dissolution of marriage") against her non-Jewish husband, as her status in Israel is not the key factor. What is important is for her to ascertain whether her husband is in Israel or not. She can do this at the Ministry of Interior and get details of his entries and exits from Israel. If it transpires that he is in Israel, and his whereabouts within the country are unknown, she can apply to court for "substituted service" of the legal documents via publication in the written press. She can continue the process this way.

Question :

Can an ex-parte decision regarding dissolution of a foreign marriage be granted if a notice, ordered by an Israeli court, has been published in a newspaper  in the country where the couple married , about the opening of divorce proceedings, but the respondent does not react ?

Answer:

Not unless the plaintiff submits an opinion of a legal expert showing that grounds exist for divorce under the law of the country in which the couple were married. In September ‏2003 Haifa Family Court refused to grant an ex-parte decision dissolving a marriage performed abroad without first receiving an expert opinion proving that the plaintiff was entitled to divorce under the laws of the country where she married. Service of the application to dissolve the marriage had been made via notices in the press ("substituted service") . The husband had not filed any defence, and the plaintiff had asked the court to grant an ex-parte decision without submitting a legal opinion. It refused.

In such a situation, the Plaintiff has to submit an opinion of an expert on foreign law to show  that there are grounds for divorce, under the laws of the country where the couple married.

Question:

Can a marriage between two people of different religions who married abroad but live in Israel be ended if one of them suffers irreversible brain damage in a car accident accident ?

Answer:

Yes, the marriage may be ended if certain conditions relating to the process of dissolution of marriage which governs unions between spouses of different religions, are met.

The party wishing to end the marriage must start proceedings at the family court. The Deputy President there will decide which court has jurisdiction to end the marriage, after consulting the relevant religious courts, if necessary. It is likely that jurisdiction to dissolve the marriage will lie with the family court. The other party will be appointed a legal guardian regarding the matter if they lack legal capacity.

Several possibilities exist regarding grounds for ending the marriage if expert opinion is accepted regarding the irreversibility of the injured party’s condition. One is that the guardian-in-law appointed can give consent to end the marriage . Another if there is no such consent is that the injured party’s state is sufficient grounds for ending the marriage under the law of the country where they married. The court will need the written legal opinion of an expert in the relevant foreign law that supports this thesis before it passes judgment ending the marriage.

In April 2001 the Tel Aviv Family Court dissolved the marriage of a Protestant woman from Holland whose husband, an Israeli Jew, had become a permanent 'vegetable’ following a stroke. The guardian-in-law appointed to represent him gave consent to the dissolution of marriage and it was also proved that grounds existed for ending the marriage according to the law in Holland, where the couple had married in a civil ceremony.

Question:

I am Jewish and have Israeli and American citizenship. I married a non –Jewish American guy in Ohio , U.S.A., his home town. We registered the marriage at the Ministry of Interior in Israel. We lived in Israel for a while but our marriage did not work and he returned to Ohio. I think he wants to end everything, too. Where can we get divorced ?

Answer:

In Israel or in Ohio, U.S.A. The wife could start dissolution of marriage proceedings in Israel resulting in an ex-parte judgment if her husband co-operates as mutual consent is grounds for divorce under Israeli civil law. There would be no need for the husband to fly to Israel. Alternatively, divorce proceedings can initiated in Ohio under the Revised Ohio Code by a party who is resident there at least six months prior to filing i.e. the husband . There are no-fault based grounds such as living separately for a year and incompatibility, providing this is not denied by either party.

If the husband obtained the Ohio divorce first, this could be registered at the Ministry of Interior in Israel.