Where Jewish clients, having been married in accordance with Orthodox religious practices, wish to divorce, it will be necessary for them to obtain a Get. This is a Jewish religious divorce from the Jewish Court of the Beth Din. If they do not do so then there will be restrictions on remarriage and problems which will involve their status and possibly their children in certain circumstances.
Since the introduction of The Divorce (Religious Marriages) Act 2002, a Jewish client may find it easier to obtain a Get. This is because if one spouse in a divorce will not co-operate to giving or accepting the Get the other spouse, seeking the Get, can apply to the Court for an order. This would seek that the decree nisi should not be made absolute (to finalise the divorce under what is now called the Matrimonial Order) until such time as the Get has been obtained. Clients should be applying to the Beth Din well before the making of decree nisi in the civil proceedings to assess the reaction of the other spouse to obtaining the Get. It is advisable to start the process for obtaining the Get from the Beth Din before even the civil proceedings have started. Either spouse can make the initial contact with the Beth Din or this can be pursued with the solicitor’s help. If the Get cannot be obtained before or early on in the civil proceedings, the Get should be built into the negotiations regarding the house, finances, contact with the children and other matters. It is vital that the Get issue is addressed at each stage of the negotiating process.
It is not easy to negotiate the potential minefield of obtaining a Get at the same time as the civil proceedings but while the 2002 Act referred to above has made the process less daunting, there are many pitfalls if sufficient and early advice is not obtained from a solicitor.
For further information on all family proceedings, please contact Keith Maynard.
Direct: 020 7644 7278
Email: kmaynard@jpclaw.co.uk
