Divorce during pregnancy through the registry office and through the court.

Divorce during pregnancy is a rather complicated legal procedure.

According to the Family Code (FC RF), divorce is possible through the civil registry office and the court. Through the registry office, the procedure is faster and simpler in the case of mutual consent of both spouses in the absence of children and a dispute about the division of jointly acquired property.

In other cases, the dissolution of the marriage union occurs through the judicial authorities in accordance with the requirements provided for by the Civil Procedure Legislation

Going through a divorce during pregnancy can be difficult for the expectant mother, and her worries will also affect the baby. The legislator has provided for this. Therefore, he limited the husband’s right to divorce his wife who is carrying a child, as well as in the first year after his birth.

If the husband tried to hide the fact of his wife’s pregnancy.

Such a development of events is likely only in court. The very attempt to hide this fact suggests that the woman is against the destruction of the family union. If she learns about the process, all she needs to do is come to the court hearing and provide documents confirming her pregnancy. The claim will be rejected on the same day. If the husband managed to carry out the process unnoticed by his wife (the summonses were intercepted and destroyed), restoration of justice is possible when the case is reviewed based on newly discovered circumstances. Not to mention the possible criminal prosecution for attempting to mislead the judiciary and submitting knowingly false information.

Islam - laws of divorce - woman's initiative

Increasingly, Russian women are marrying Muslim foreigners. The important marriage procedure takes place according to Islamic laws. Sometimes, hoping for a happy life, a woman does not think about what will happen if the marriage breaks down, although this happens extremely rarely, since the whole procedure is aimed at preserving the family. Marriage in Islam is a solemn covenant whose purpose is to enjoy each other and create a healthy society. According to Islamic spiritual teaching, marriage organizes life and provides spiritual, physical, emotional and psychological communication. Marriage is also a religious duty.

If the husband is sure that the child is not his.

The Family Code does not give the right to initiate divorce proceedings at the initiative of the spouse. It doesn't depend on anything. Even if he is sure that his wife is not faithful to him. In this case, there is only one option left, which is acceptable under the Russian regulatory framework. Divorce before childbirth is unacceptable, but after the birth of the baby and receipt of a birth certificate, the new father can initiate legal proceedings to challenge paternity. However, in order to obtain a basis for drawing up a statement of claim, an extrajudicial primary genetic examination is required. If she shows that her husband is the father, then during the first year of the baby’s life, divorce is still impossible.

Alimony

Simultaneously with the divorce or after the dissolution of the marriage, a pregnant woman has the right to demand from her husband...

• payments for own maintenance during the entire pregnancy;
• payments for own maintenance for 3 years after childbirth - when caring for a child;
• payments for child support until adulthood.

Thus, the family legislation of the Russian Federation (Article 24 of the Family Code) takes care of a pregnant woman if she finds herself in a difficult social and financial situation.

Receiving maintenance from your husband is possible in two ways:

1. voluntary method (by concluding an alimony agreement);
2. judicial method (by filing a claim or counterclaim for the collection of alimony).

Voluntary method of collecting alimony

Spouses have the right to enter into a written agreement, which will provide for the procedure for paying monetary support to the pregnant wife and the wife who is caring for a child from birth to 3 years, as well as to the child.

The alimony agreement may contain the following provisions:

• Amount and method of payments (share or fixed);
• Regularity of payments (monthly, quarterly, one-time);
• Duration (for example, for a mother - during the entire period of pregnancy and until the child reaches 3 years of age, for a child - until adulthood);
• Payment procedure (cash against receipt, postal or bank transfer, in kind);
• Grounds for termination of payments (for example, remarriage);
• Liability for breach of obligations;
• Other conditions.

It is important that the alimony agreement does not violate the rights of the mother or child provided for by law, and also does not put the parties in a deliberately disadvantageous position, otherwise it may be declared invalid. For example, if parents agree on a child support amount that is lower than what the law provides, this will be a violation of the child’s rights and grounds for canceling the agreement.

The alimony agreement must be drawn up in writing and signed by the parties in the presence of a notary - then it will acquire legal force, and if one of the parties stops fulfilling the agreements reached, payments will be collected forcibly - through bailiffs.

Judicial method of collecting alimony

To collect alimony through the court, a pregnant woman can:

1. in a claim for divorce - indicate an additional claim for the collection of alimony for one’s own maintenance during pregnancy;
2. file a counterclaim for alimony - in response to a divorce lawsuit filed by the husband;
3. file a separate claim for the recovery of alimony for your own maintenance during pregnancy...
   married,
4. simultaneously with the divorce (for example, if the marriage is dissolved administratively through the registry office),
5. after divorce.

Expert opinion

Dmitry Nosikov

Lawyer. Specialization: family and housing law.

Payments for the maintenance of a pregnant wife (and a wife caring for a baby for 3 years after childbirth) can only be recovered in a monthly (in some cases, one-time) fixed amount (in accordance with Article 91 of the Family Code).

The law does not set limits for this amount - in each specific case it is determined by the court depending on factors such as the income and needs of the pregnant woman, as well as the financial capabilities of the man.

Therefore, when preparing for a trial to collect alimony for the maintenance of a pregnant woman or a woman who is caring for a child under 3 years of age, it is important to prepare an evidence base - collect documents and other evidence confirming the woman’s low income and need for financial support, as well as the man’s high income and the opportunity to provide her with such support. Such evidence can be certificates of income (salaries, social payments, benefits), as well as receipts and checks for the purchase of food, medicine, vitamins, clothing and shoes.

It is, of course, possible to collect alimony for the maintenance of a child only after his birth. But if the spouses already have children together, you can first collect alimony for them, and after the birth of another child, re-file a lawsuit to collect alimony for another newborn son or daughter.

You can collect child support payments...

• in shared form: 1/4 for one child, 1/3 for two children, 1/2 for three, four, five children (if the father’s income is constant);
• in a fixed form (if the father’s income is variable or expressed in kind, currency form).

Divorce during pregnancy through the registry office.

If the husband and pregnant wife do not want to lead a joint life and household in the future, divorce by mutual consent is allowed. It is not necessary to go to court, just come to the registry office.

The legal regulation of this issue refers to Art. 19 SK. You can get a divorce through the registry office if a woman is pregnant for the first time. However, the child has not yet been born.
If a baby is born, the government agency will not accept the application, or will issue a reasoned refusal.

Arbitrage practice

Unfortunately, divorce proceedings during pregnancy are not at all uncommon in the judicial practice of the Russian Federation.

The court always refuses to accept or consider a man's claim for divorce if it turns out that the pregnant wife is against divorce (according to Article 17 of the RF IC). If the wife’s pregnancy was not known, and a court decision was made on the husband’s claim, the case must be reviewed.

The court grants the divorce claim filed by the pregnant wife, since the ban does not apply to her. True, depending on the circumstances, the court may assign spouses a period for reconciliation from 1 to 3 months (according to Article 22 of the RF IC). This is due to the fact that a woman’s physical and mental state during pregnancy is extremely changeable, and the decision to divorce should not be made hastily.

Example The Moscow Magistrate's Court accepted a claim for divorce filed by N. Amosova. At the court hearing, the plaintiff indicated that she wanted to divorce her husband despite being pregnant for 4 months. The reason for the divorce is disagreements regarding housing issues and material wealth in the family. The court, at its own discretion, postponed the consideration of the case for 3 months, giving the spouses a period for reconciliation. After the appointed period, the wife abandoned the claim - agreement was reached in the family, housing and money disputes were resolved.

Of course, this does not apply to cases where divorce is an extreme and forced measure on the part of the wife, caused by a rude, cruel attitude on the part of the husband. Especially if the wife can present evidence to the court - administrative protocols, medical certificates, witness statements. In this case, the court does not set a deadline for reconciliation of the spouses and makes a decision on divorce immediately.

Expert opinion

Semyon Frolov

Lawyer. 7 years of experience. Specialization: family, inheritance, housing law.

In any family disagreements and disputes, and especially if they lead to divorce, you cannot do without competent legal support.

Regardless of who initiated the divorce - the husband or the pregnant wife, our lawyers are ready to advise you, help you prepare and go through the divorce procedure, resolve related disputes and minimize the negative consequences of divorce for each of the spouses and the joint child. Remember that legal illiteracy and inaction can be very costly.

If you have any questions or would like to get free legal advice on any issues related to divorce, write to us via chat or call the hotline.
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Author of the article

Irina Garmash

Family law consultant.

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Articles written

612

Divorce through court.

The judicial authority considers divorce proceedings when the wife is pregnant, if she initiated such a process.

To start a dispute, you must submit a statement of claim drawn up and prepared in accordance with the standards of the Civil Procedure Code (Articles 131 and 132). The application itself must be submitted to the magistrate’s office at the place of residence or to a court of general jurisdiction.

The magistrate court considers a claim for divorce if:

there is no dispute about children;

there is no dispute about the division of jointly acquired property, which exceeds the total amount of claims of 50 thousand rubles.

In other cases, the consideration of the case is within the jurisdiction of the district court.

general jurisdiction.

Procedure for dividing joint property

It is carried out on the basis of a marriage contract or a notarial agreement on division. These documents are drawn up if the marriage partners have reached appropriate agreements. If there is a dispute and in the absence of a marriage contract or agreement, the property is divided by court decision.

According to the law, a marriage contract allows for the subsequent fate of not only property acquired during marriage, but also the personal property of marriage partners. Such a norm does not apply to the agreement, therefore, according to it, only property acquired in a marriage relationship can be divided.

Before going to court regarding the distribution of disputed property between spouses, a pregnant wife must consider:

1. If she and her husband drew up a prenuptial agreement, and the agreement is recognized by the court as legal, valid and not putting one of the parties in an unfavorable position, then the division of assets will take place according to the terms of the contract.
2. If she and her husband drew up an agreement on property, and the court recognizes that it does not infringe on the rights of the pregnant wife or her husband, then the division of assets will take place according to the terms of the agreement.

In other cases, the court will be guided by the Family Code to properly resolve the property dispute between spouses. According to it, all marital property is subject to classification into personal and joint.

Property divided by the court is considered joint property. It includes:

• Securities.
• Funds received from business; funds received from investments; salary and other labor income.
• Shares in LLCs and other legal entities.
• Benefits, financial assistance, pensions.
• Bank deposits.
• Shares in housing cooperatives and mutual funds.
• Bonds and bills.
• Real estate purchased during marriage.
• Jewelry.
• Movable items purchased during marriage, such as computers, cars and mobile phones.
• Luxuries.
• Royalties.

The law prohibits the division of personal property. This includes:

1. Premarital assets.
2. Inherited or gratuitously acquired items.
3. Copyright rights to literary works and other results of intellectual work.
4. Individual items (clothing, cosmetics, shoes, professional accessories, for example, a guitar for a musician).
5. Things acquired by the wife and husband during their separation, if the court finds that the family relationship between them has actually ended since the start of their separation.

In a marriage contract or division agreement, the parties to the marriage have the right not to take into account the principle of equal shares and to divide the property in other proportions. However, if the spouses do not have the above documents, the court is obliged to divide all assets and debts equally, unless the following facts are established:

1. One of the marriage partners neglected the responsibility to financially support the family due to laziness, a frivolous lifestyle, or drunkenness.
2. One of the marriage partners squandered family property.
3. The need to take into account the interests of young children. For example, if the school is located far from the place where small children live, then the court may give the family car to the parent living with them for use in the children's interests.

Algorithm of actions

• You need to file a claim.
• Specify the basic requirements.
• It is determined which specific judicial body should consider this dispute based on the territoriality of residence of the parties. If the husband and wife live in different territorial boundaries, the territorial location of the defendant is selected.

If the second spouse admits the claim during the court hearing and agrees to the divorce, the court will not find out the reasons for such a decision. If the spouse is against divorcing his pregnant wife, they will be given a period for reconciliation (no more than three months). If after this time the spouse continues to insist on divorce, the marriage will be dissolved.

List of documents for filing a claim

This list includes such papers as:

1. Certificate of the fact of concluding a marital relationship.
2. Certificates for children, if available.
3. Copy of passport data.
4. Certificate from a medical institution confirming pregnancy.
5. Alimony agreement (if one was concluded).
6. An agreement on the division of property or documents of title to property assets (if the wife makes property claims).
7. Marriage agreement if available.
8. Information about the defendant’s earnings if a request for alimony is made.
9. Document for state duty (receipt, check).

The number of copies of each document submitted to the court, including the statement of claim, is equal to the number of participants in the proceedings. In addition, 1 copy of each application must be prepared for the judge.

Reasons for ending a marriage on women's initiative

Nikah is an important event; divorce initiated by the wife must have good reasons. Certain male shortcomings can provoke divorce according to Islam on the initiative of the wife. These include:

• adultery;
• feeling of disgust towards her husband;
• prohibited close family ties between spouses;
• castration of a man;
• apostasy;
• husband's sexual impotence;
• spouse's insanity;
• long-term imprisonment and absence for other reasons;
• the man’s reluctance to receive treatment for alcohol/drug addiction.

According to statistics, the main reason for most divorces is increasingly infidelity: 23.5 percent of Muslim couples break up because of a cheating spouse.

Government duty

In accordance with the current Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation, in order to consider divorce proceedings, along with filing the corresponding claim, a document confirming payment of the state fee is provided.

Currently, the state duty is 650 rubles. You can pay it at any bank branch; to do this, you need to take the account details from the court.

After paying the fee, attach the original payment document to the claim. Do not forget to make yourself a copy of the payment receipt so that in the future there will be no questions about when and what amounts were transferred.

In order to understand in more detail where, how and how much you need to pay, check out the procedure in which state fees for divorce are paid.

Divorce proceedings

During the hearing, the judge’s task is to make sure that continuation of family life is impossible. To do this, he listens to the arguments of the parties and, based on this, sets a deadline for reconciliation. Maximum it can be 3 months.

The court will also have to determine other issues: with whom the other children (if any) will remain after the divorce, assign alimony, and determine the fate of jointly acquired property. In this case, one meeting may not be enough and the process will be delayed.

Expert commentary

Gorchakov Vladimir

Lawyer

After all issues have been resolved, the parties will receive a court decision. Another month is given to appeal. After this, the document comes into force. Within three days, the court secretary will independently send the extract to the registry office where the marriage was registered. After this, the spouses are officially considered free.