2
Apr

Divorce by Mutual Consent in the Dominican Republic (which was established in Dominican legislation), has always been of great interest to foreign nationals and citizens.

Divorce by mutual consent, as indicated by its name, is the type of Divorce in which both spouses are interested in dissolving their marital bond. It is our understanding that this is an appropriate way to conclude a marriage, avoiding the hurdles involved with other types of divorce. As a result, this type of divorce has certain advantages, some of which are the following:

• It can be completed in a very short time.
• It is more affordable.
• It is less damaging to both parties.

How is a Divorce by Mutual Consent in the Dominican Republic processed?

The Act of Conventions and Stipulations establishes everything related to this type of dissolution of marriage, in accordance with the requirements established by law.

The consent of the spouses must be stated in a notarized document called the “Act of Conventions and Stipulations”, which –given that it is a notarial act– must be drafted before a notary, along with other stipulations such as:

• Inventory of goods.
• Address where the wife will reside during the divorce.
• Pension to be paid for minor children.
• Agreement on custody of minor children.
• Other relevant elements.

The court with jurisdiction to oversee a Divorce by Mutual Consent is the court of the First Instance of the domicile of the parties, i.e. where the spouses reside.

Given that the parties are in agreement, it is not necessary to provide the Court with any cause for divorce (unlike divorce proceedings for a specific cause). The Court only accepts and ratifies the agreement signed between the parties.

Essential Requirements

The essential requirements for this divorce process are the following:

• Legalized Marriage Certificate.
• Children’s birth certificate (if applicable).
• Proof of asset ownership (if applicable).
• Minutes of Conventions and Stipulations drafted before a Notary Public.

Certificate of stipulations and conventions

The certificate of stipulations and conventions is simply a contract, in which the agreements reached by the parties in a divorce process by mutual consent are established.
The act of stipulations and conventions needs to be signed before a Notary Public, and the spouses will also need to comply with the following:

• Formalize an inventory of all your properties (if there any).
• Establish which of the spouses will have custody of the children during the divorce (if there are children of the marriage).
• Establish a visitation schedule in favor of the spouse who does not have custody.
• Establish the amount to be paid for child support in favor of underage and dependent children.
• Any other matter in accordance with the laws and that can be agreed upon within this act.

Divorce by Mutual Consent Exceptions

The provision of Art. 27 of Law 1306-bis on divorce, establish the following:

A Divorce by Mutual Consent will not be admitted until after two years of marriage, nor will it be admitted after thirty years of common life or if the husband is at least sixty years old and the wife is fifty years old.

Therefore, the Law does not admit a divorce that is consistent with the following criteria:

• The marriage has lasted no more than two years.
• The marriage has lasted over thirty years.
• The husband is over 60 years of age.
• The wife is over 50 years of age.

If any of these cases is verified, a Divorce by Mutual Consent will not be admissible, and the possibility of carrying out this type of procedure must be ruled out.

Noncompliance prevents some spouses who want to resort to this type of divorce – given that they agree on the terms of their separation – from being able to do so. The spouses in question would need to start a claim process, to be able to divorce on the grounds of a specific cause.

But fortunately, this was REPEALED by the Constitutional Court, and no longer applies, therefore, any couple regardless of age, time of marriage can DIVORCE by mutual agreement.

Some people consider Art. 27, of Law 1306-bis to be unconstitutional since it violates the principle of equality established in the 2010 Constitution, in its article 39, in addition to not complying with the free will principle. As a result, many judges accept this mutual consent process in their courts, even if the conditions established by law are not met (the criteria mentioned before regarding length of marriage and age of the spouses). Additionally, those judges state that the Divorce Law is unconstitutional, in order to deem the dissolution of the marital bond by mutual consent good and valid.