Divorce

Divorce Lawyers in Lebanon, Mattar Law Firm Beirut

Divorce Law In Lebanon

1-Can I get a Divorce In Lebanon and Where?

If one of the married persons wants to seek divorce in Lebanon, the phenomena may seem complex due to the multiple communities who are existent in Lebanon.
However divorce in itself is a possible choice to most of the communities in Lebanon.
However some questions arise when talking about divorce in Lebanon:

Which authority pronounces the divorces:

Is it a religious court, The Sheikh or the priest? or is it a civil court?
We will try to answer some of your questions below.

2-Divorce in Lebanon…How to?

The first question to ask would be where to head in order to seek a divorce in Lebanon.
Would the interested person go before a religious court or a civil court?

The answer is simple…only in some cases.
The authority that made the marriage is responsible and competent to look into the marriage’s dissolution or divorce.

For instance if the marriage was made before a religious court, it is the same court that looks into the divorce.

If the marriage was made abroad before a civil institution, then the civil court of first instance in Lebanon is competent to look into the divorce case.

The civil court will rule according to the law of the foreign country where the marriage took place.

As for the religious courts, each one of these has its proper legislation with some originalities for some rites:

For instance, in the maronite church there is no concept named divorce.

It is replaced by the nullity of the marriage that has a different legal nature.
In that case the marriage is considered annulated from its formation due to vices at the moment of the formation of the marriage.

If a marriage held abroad before a civil institution is followed by a religious ceremony, we may see a conflict of competences between civil and religious courts…

3-Conditions for Divorce in Lebanon

The conditions of a divorce in Lebanon will depend on the law governing it.
Once the conditions are fulfilled a divorce can be granted by the competent courts.

4-Consequences of the Divorce

The consequences of a divorce in Lebanon are the same as any divorce.
Of course these consequences will depend on the law which governed the divorce case.
These consequences can be of great importance such as custody, financial, pension, inheritance rights…

It is highly recommended to study the divorce process before getting into it.