Lebanese Marriage Laws : Explained by Salah Mattar – Lebanese Attorney

When announced Friday, Succariyeh’s wedding to Nidal Darwish catapulted the issue of civil marriage in Lebanon back into the public eye. Opinion is divided on the union’s legality and feasibility given the absence of secular law surrounding the institution of marriage.

Interior Minister, Charbel said: “The Interior Ministry referred the marriage request to the Justice Ministry’s advisory panel, which studied the request and did not approve it due to the absence of a law that regulates civil marriage.”

Salah Mattar, an attorney at law with the Mattar Law Firm, which has expertise in family law, believes it is unlikely that Lebanon’s so-called first civil marriage will receive approval, and that even if it did, the simple registration of the marriage would not resolve the legal problems surrounding it.

Admitting that there are multiple legal texts relating to the matter, Mattar said that in this instance the document of significance is the Lebanese Code of Civil Procedure.

Under article 79 of this code, civil marriages executed overseas are recognized and governed by the law of the state in which they were conducted, but no mention is made of civil marriages in Lebanon. Effectively, this means that where civil marriage is concerned “there is an empty space that is not filled by laws,” he said.

“If you want to apply the civil marriage law [of Lebanon], there is no civil marriage law,” Mattar continued. “To make a case, you need to have a law. Suppose the minister accepted it [Succariyeh and Darwish’s marriage], what rules would apply? … There is no law regulating status except that applicable to the religious community.”

“You can remove your religion from your personal status record, but this does not mean you do not belong to the religious family. The system as it is does not allow you to be a person that has no religious attachment,” he added.

Ultimately, while the couple’s move “may be an incentive toward the implementation of civil marriage in Lebanon … from a legal and practical perspective, even if we would wish the contrary, it will be limited to a media propaganda,” Mattar had told The Daily Star even ahead of Charbel’s Monday remarks.

*Source: The Daily Star.

Lebanon Internet Laws

Internet in Lebanon will witness 80 percent decrease in prices and a four to eight time increase in speeds, according to a decree signed by Lebanese Cabinet .

This move which has been awaited for so long by internet users will definitely improve Lebanese infrastructure and give the necessary boost to the economy and business and makes the costs paid for internet on the Lebanese market a fair value.

The parliamentary Public Works, Transportation, Energy and Water Committee requested from the Lebanese government Tuesday to immediately create a body to run the oil sector, so that Lebanon starts benefiting from its offshore oil and gas reserves.

Lebanon’s Parliament endorsed on August 4 a draft law demarcating the county’s maritime borders .
Prime Minister Najib Mikati described the step as a “great achievement”
To be noted that these offshore resources are valued in billions and should have a huge impact on Lebanon’s economy.

Increasing economic prosperity and developing investments in Lebanon will be the priority of the country’s new national unity government headed by Premier Saad Hariri.

Lebanon will develop its investments and prosper environment so all Lebanese will benefit from this prosperity.

The focus will be on ensuring political stability in the country and to prepare the legal frames to offer incentives to investors and banks to finance investments and projects in Lebanon.

Implementing the right frame and environment to develop furthermore the private sectors, preserving the high growth rates and creating jobs for the newly graduates is the main challenge of the new cabinet on the economical level.

According to worldwide economists and press, Lebanon is for the moment one of the best places to invest in the world and is not affected by the worldwide economical crisis.

Lebanese new Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced the formation of Lebanon’s new cabinet on Monday night, bringing an end to the five-month cabinet impasse following the June parliamentary elections.

“Finally, the national-unity cabinet is formed,” Hariri said after the meeting with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman on Monday night to present the cabinet lineup proposal for the second time.

Lebanon: Best Place To Invest in 2009

According to worldwide economists and press, Lebanon is for the moment one of the best places to invest in the world.

Leading economists and press such as the New York Times and others mentioned that Lebanon was number one destination to visit and to invest.
Indeed with a powerful banking system which has not been affected yet by the worldwide crisis and with billions of cash being transferred to Lebanese banks every day, and with a more solid than ever Lebanese currency, and with promising sectors such as banking and real estate it seems that Lebanon is looking very positive on investments.

According to Lebanon central’s bank governor, Riad Salameh a considerable raise in the assets of Lebanese central Bank and local banks have taken place in the last period even after the world economical crisis.

Beirut- The Lebanese cabinet met yesterday and approved the proposed wage increase . Lebanon’s Finance Minister Mohammed Shatah said the government will raise salaries of private and public sector employees by 200,000 Lebanese pounds or US$133 a month.Shatah also said the minimum wage has been raised from 300, 000 Lebanese pounds or US$200 to 500, 000 Lebanese pounds or US$333 a month
Retirement salaries will be raised by 150, 000 Lebanese pounds or US$100 a month.
Shatah said the new wage increase is effective November 1, 2008 but is retroactive to May 1, 2008.

Labor unions have been demanding a higher raise saying that US$133 raise is not enough at a time when consumer prices have risen sharply since the beginning of the year.
Mr Ghosn, the Labor Union president told As Safir newspaper that the Union will call a meeting of its Executive Board to determine its position regarding the minimum wage increase.
Fady Abboud, the president of the Lebanese Industrialists Association told “Voice of Lebanon”: “The general trend in the public sector is not to implement the cabinet resolution regarding the wage increase because it contradicts with international trade agreements signed by Lebanon”
Shatah told the press last night that the new wage increase is bound to increase the Lebanese government debt. Lebanon is one of the most heavily indebted nation based on GNP . Shatah also stated that there will not be a VAT increase in 2009

Released yesterday, in the Official Gazette, No. 42, Decree No. 500 on the appointment of the official minimum wage for users and workers in the private sector and give increased cost of living, which raises the minimum to 500 thousand pounds, to be increased to pay 200 thousand pounds Cgla living withretroactive effect, as of 1/5/2008 to pay the amounts accumulated by this effect at once. Also issued Decree No. 501 on amending the daily transportation allowance for users and workers subject to the labor law, six thousand pounds each working day to eight thousand pounds.

After a meeting that lasted more than eight hours at the presidential palace in Baabda, the Minister of Finance Mohammed Chatah announced that the Lebanese government on Tuesday approved the increase in the minimum wage 200.000LL
The Minister of Finance stated that this change will affect the public and private sectors.
And the minimum wage was 300.000LL becomes 500.000LL and transportation costs amounted а 6000L.L. day become 8000L.L. per day.

Shatah explained that this increase will impact the budget of the Lebanese state 730 billion Lebanese pound, which he described as “huge”, adding that it is time to give importance to the living conditions Lebanese.

La Commission d’enquкte sur l’assassinat de l’ex-Premier ministre libanais Rafik Hariri et les meurtres politiques connexes commis depuis a confirmé aujourd’hui devant le Conseil de sécurité l’existence d’un réseau terroriste organisé impliqué dans plusieurs attentats.

« Sur la base de preuves, la Commission est en mesure d’affirmer […] qu’un réseau d’individus a agi de concert pour commettre l’assassinat de Rafik Hariri et que ce réseau ou une partie de ce réseau est lié а certains des autres affaires dans le cadre du mandat de la Commission », a déclaré son chef, Daniel Bellemare, devant le Conseil de sécurité.

Ce « réseau Hariri » existait avant l’assassinat, « il a mené une opération de surveillance, il a opéré le jour de l’assassinat et il a continué au moins en partie, а opérer après cet attentat » qui a causé la mort de 22 autres personnes.

Daniel Bellemare a rappelé que la création de la Commission d’enquête en 2005 n’avait malheureusement pas eu d’effet dissuasif immédiat et que la série d’attaques politiques au Liban avait tué 55 personnes et fait plus de 420 blessés.

Par ailleurs, s’il a estimé qu’il était généralement préférable qu’un délai réduit sépare la création d’un Tribunal des premières incriminations, Daniel Bellemare a demandé plus de temps au Conseil de sécurité pour poursuivre l’enquкte, requérant l’extension du mandat de la Commission au-delа de la date du 15 juin 2008.