Refusing divorce: knowing your rights
I do not want to divorce: know my rights
My spouse does not want to divorce: what should I do?
In general, it is impossible to force a person to stay married against his will. The divorce will eventually be pronounced, despite the refusal of one of the spouses.
I do not want to divorce: know my rights
If you do not want to divorce but your spouse wishes, you can not oppose his decision. You can not force a person to stay married against their will.
Good to know: it is possible to ask your spouse to perform family mediation to try to reconcile.
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Of course, if you refuse to divorce, you will be able to cancel the divorce procedure by mutual consent and divorce proceedings on acceptance of the principle of marriage breakdown.
These two forms of divorce imply the agreement of both spouses.
If, therefore, your spouse sends a divorce petition for mutual consent or acceptance of the principle of marriage breakdown, you will have to attend the conciliation hearing before the Family Court Judge.
Your presence is more than recommended. Only, at the time of the said hearing, you will only have to express your refusal to divorce before the JAF so that the petition for divorce becomes null and void.
On the other hand, the divorce for fault and the divorce for definitive alteration of the conjugal bond do not necessarily imply the agreement of both spouses.
Your spouse may be able to divorce you against your will through these two procedures.
However, he must prove that you have committed a fault in the case of divorce for misconduct, or that he proves that the common life has stopped for at least two years in the case of divorce for permanent alteration of the conjugal bond .
It is then your responsibility to show, with supporting evidence, before the Family Court Judge at the time of the Conciliation Hearing that no misconduct has been committed or that the cohabitation has ceased for less than two years.
If you succeed, the divorce petition will lapse.
My spouse does not want to divorce: what should I do?
You are in the opposite situation: you ask for a divorce but your spouse refuses to divorce.
Based on what has been said above, we deduce that you will:
Be able to prove that your spouse has committed one or more mistakes. If you succeed, the divorce can be pronounced without the consent of your spouse.
Either prove that the common life has stopped for at least two years. If this is the case, the divorce will be automatically pronounced, without your spouse agreeing.
As we can see, divorce for definitive alteration of the conjugal bond is the only "way out" if your spouse does not want to divorce and has not committed a fault. This sometimes implies patience (two years to wait from the separation).