Civil Code Book II Chapter 6. Dissolution of marriage

Chapter 6. Dissolution of marriage

Art. 662.- Various forms of marriage equivalent.

(1)    The causes and effects of dissolution of marriage shall be the same whichever the form of celebration of the marriage.

(2)    In this respect, no distinction shall be made as to whether the marriage was celebrated before an officer of civil status or according to the formalities prescribed by religion or custom.

Section 1. Causes of dissolution of marriage

Art. 663.- Various causes.

(1)    Marriage shall terminate by the death of the spouses,

(2)    It shall terminate where the court orders its dissolution as a sanction of one of the conditions of the marriage.

(3)    It may be terminated by divorce.

Art. 664.-     Repudiation.

Any unilateral repudiation of the wife by the husband or the husband by the wife shall be of no effect.

Art 665.- Divorce by mutual consent.

(1)    Divorce by mutual consent is not permitted by law,

(2)    Divorce may not be ordered between two spouses except in accordance with the provisions of this Code.

Art. 666.- Petition for divorce.

(1)    A petition for divorce may be made of the family arbitrators either by the two spouses conjointly or by one of them.

(2)    It may be made by no other person.

(3)    The death of one of the spouses which occurs before  the divorce has been ordered shall put an end to divorce proceedings.

Art. 667.- Serious causes and other causes.

The conditions on which a divorce may be ordered and the effects of the divorce differ according to whether the petitioner establishes for not the existence in his favour of a serious cause of divorce.

Art. 668-.- Pronouncement of divorce for serious cause.

The family arbitrators shall make an order for divorce within three months from the petition having been made where the petitioner establishes in his favour the existence of a serious cause of divorce.

Art. 669.- Serious causes of divorce. – 1. Due to a spouse.

There is a serious cause for divorce:

(a)    when one of the spouses has committed adultery: or

(b)    when one of the spouses has deserted the conjugal residence when, since at least two years, the other spouse does not know where he is.

Art. 670.- 2. Note due to a spouses.

There is also a serious cause for divorce:

(a)    when one of the spouses is confined in a lunatic asylum since not less than two years;

(b)    when he absence of one of the spouses has been judicially declared.

Art. 671.- 3. Annulment of religious  marriage.

There is also a serious cause of divorce when a marriage contracted according to the formalities of a religion has been declared null by the religious authority.

Art. 672.- Disappearance of the character of serious cause.

(1)    The fault imputable to one of the spouses shall cases to constitute a serious cause where the other spouses has granted forgiveness.

(2)    Notwithstanding any proof to the contrary, such pardon shall be presumed where no petition for divorce has been made within six    months from the culpable conduct of the spouse having ceased.

(3)    The annulment of a religious marriage shall cease to constitute a serious cause of divorce if the spouses, after having known of the decision pronouncing such  annulment, continue living together.

Art. 673.- Other grounds.

(1)    Any other ground of divorce invoked by one of the parties shall not constitute a serious cause of divorcé.

(2)    A divorce may validly be ordered on one of such grounds if it be ordered on the conditions and at the times mentioned in the following articles.

Art. 674.- Provisional measures.

(1)    From the time the matter is brought before them, the arbitrators shall order such provisional measures as are required by the circumstance in particular as regards the maintenance of the spouses and of the children or the management  of the property of the spouses.

(2)    They may assign or prohibit a determinate residence tot the husband or to the wife.

Art. 675.- Revision may be made.

Any provisional measure taken by the arbitrators may be revised or annulled by them on the request of any interested person.

Art. 676.- Attempt o reconcile.

(1)    Where there is no serious cause of divorce, the family arbitrators  shall attempt to reconcile the parties and to make them renounce the petition for divorce.

(2)    To this end, they may prescribed the spouse any measure they think fit.

Art. 677.- Agreement on conditions of divorce.

(1)    Where the arbitrators fail to reconcile the spouses, they shall attempt to make them agree on the conditions of divorce.

(2)    Where such agreement is reached, the judgment of divorce shall be made in accordance therewith.

Art. 678.- Time for the delivery of judgment. 1. Principle.

(1)    Failing agreement between the parties, the family arbitrators shall pronounce the divorce within one year form the petition for divorce having been made to them.

(2)    Such period may be extended to five years by an agreement between the parties concluded either before or after the celebration of the marriage.

Art. 679.- Contents of judgment.

(1)    The judgment of the arbitrators  which pronounces the divorce shall regulate the consequences thereof.

(2)    It shall in particular give directions regarding the custody and maintenance of minor children born of the marriage and make such provisions as may be necessary for the liquidation of the relations between the spouses.

Art. 680.- Supplementary judgment.

(1)    In a first  judgment the arbitrators may confine themselves to pronouncing the divorce and may reserve for a supplementary judgment the regulations of the questions or of certain questions which arise out of the divorce.

(2)    The supplementary judgment shall be delivered within six months from the judgment of divorce having been given.

Art. 681.- Custody of children 1. Principle.

(1)    The custody and maintenance of children born of  the marriage shall be regulated having regard solely to the interest of such children.

(2)    Unless there be a serious reason for deciding otherwise, the children shall be entrusted to their mother up to the age of five years.

Art. 682.- 2. Revision may be made.

The  provisions made regarding the custody and maintenance of the children may at any time be revised by the arbitrators on the application of the father, mother or other ascendant of the children.

Section 2. Liquidation of pecuniary relations between spouses

Paragraph 1. Case of death of one of the  spouses.

Art. 683.- Autonomy  of agreements.

(1)    On the death of one of the spouses, the pecuniary relations between the spouses shall be liquidated in accordance with the contract of marriage and with the agreements entered into by the spouses.

(2)    In default of agreements or if these have not been validly stipulated, the pecuniary relations between spouses shall be liquidated in accordance with the provisions of the Section.

Art. 684.- Retaking personal property.

Each spouse shall retake in kind the property which is owned personally by him where he shows that he is the owner thereof.

Art. 685.- Withdrawal beforehand form common property.

(1)    If one of the spouses proves that any of his personal has been alienated and that the price thereof has fallen in the common property, he shall withdraw beforehand there form money or things of a value corresponding to such price.

(2)    The wife shall make her withdrawal before the husband.

Art. 686.-    Indemnities. – 1. Principle.

Notwithstanding any agreement or final acquaintance to the contrary, damages may be awarded to one  of the spouses by reason of acts which have been performed by the other spouse and which have affected the common property or the property owned personally by either spouse where:

(a)    the spouse who has performed such acts did not have the right to perform them; or

(b)    such acts constitute acts of bad administration or have been performed in fraud of the rights of the person making the claim.

Art. 687.- 2. Inadmissibility of action.

No claim for indemnity based on Art. 686 may be made by reason of acts which have been performed more than three years before the dissolution of the marriage.

Art. 688.- Unlawful enrichment.

Unless  otherwise agreed, an indemnity shall be awarded to a spouse who proves that the personal property of his spouses has been enriched to the prejudice of his own personal property of common property.

Art. 689.- Partition of common property.

(1)    Without prejudice to the provisions of the preceding Articles and unless otherwise provided in the contract of marriage or in a contract validly concluded between the spouses, common property shall be divided equally between the spouses, common property shall be divided equally between the spouses.

(2)    Those provisions in the Title of this Code relating to Succession which concern the manner of making a partition, the relations between co-heirs after partition and the rights of creditors after partition shall apply mutates mutandis to the partition of common property (Art. 1079-1113).

Paragraph 2. Case of divorce

Art. 690.- General rule.

(1)    Without prejudice to the provisions of the following Articles, pecuniary relations between spouses shall be liquidated in case of divorce as in the cease of death of one of the spouses.

(2)    The  provisions of the following Articles may not be set aside by the contract of marriage nor by another agreement made by the spouses before the dissolution of the marriage.

Art. 691.- Presents and matrimonial benefits.

(1)    On the request of the persons who have given presents or of their heirs, the family arbitrators may order the restitution of such presents as may have been received b the spouses on the occasion of the marriage or by reason of the existence of the marriage, whether by one spouse from the other or from the ascendants of one of the spouses or from other persons.

(2)    They may invalidate such other benefits as may have been made or promised to the spouses or to one of them, by one of the spouses or by a third person on the occasion or in consideration of the marriage.

Art. 692.- Unequal treatment of spouses.

(1)    The family arbitrators may award to one of the spouses a greater portion or even the whole of the common property.

(2)    They may also award to one of the spouses property belonging to the other spouse, provided the value of  such property does not represent more than one third of the estate of such other spouses.

Art. 693.- Responsibility for divorce. -1. Serious cause.

(1)    Where the divorce is ordered for a serious cause imputable to one of  the spouses, the penalties specified in Art. 691 and 692 shall apply to the prejudice of  such spouse.

(2)    They may not be applied to the prejudice of the other spouse.

(3)    They may not be applied either to one or to the other of the spouses when the divorce is ordered for a cause not imputable to one of the spouses.

Art. 694.- 2. Absence of serious cause.

(1)    Where the divorce is not ordered for a serious cause, the penalties mentioned in the preceding Articles shall apply to the spouse who has made the petition for divorce.

(2)    They may not be applied  to the other spouses.

Art. 695. – Direction to be followed.

(1)    The family arbitrators shall be a rule be bound to apply the penalties mentioned in the preceding Articles.

(2)    Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-art , (1) they have a discretionary power whether to apply them or not as well as for establishing in which measure to apply them.

(3)    In making their decision, they shall have regard to all the circumstances of the case and in particular to the importance and the gravity of the faults by reason of which the divorce has been ordered and the and the more or less morally reprehensible nature of the petition for divorce.

Paragraph 3.  Other cases of dissolution of marriage.

Art. 696.- Rule to be followed.

(1)    Where the court orders the dissolution of  a marriage as a sanction of the conditions of marriage, it shall regulate according to equity the consequences of such dissolution.

(2)    It shall be guided by the rules regarding the liquidations of the relations between spouses in cases of divorce. (ART. 690-695).

(3)    It shall in particular have regard to the good or bad faith of the spouses, the fact that the marriage has been consummated or not, the interest of children, if any, born of the dissolved union and the interest of third parties in good faith.