Chapter V: Family proceedings

Subject to the rules laid down in the first two sections of this chapter, proceedings shall be brought, heard and determined in accordance with the ordinary written procedure applicable before the judicial court.

The application for divorce is made by writ of summons or by petition delivered or addressed jointly by the parties to the court registry and contains, on pain of nullity, the place, date and time of the orientation hearing and on provisional measures. This date is communicated by the court to the applicant in accordance with procedures defined by order of the Keeper of the Seals. On pain of inadmissibility,…

The matter is referred to the family court, at the request of either party, by delivering a copy of the document initiating proceedings to the court registry. Provided that the date of the hearing is communicated more than fifteen days in advance, delivery must be made at least fifteen days before that date. Delivery must take place within this time limit, failing which the document initiating the proceedings will lapse,…

In urgent cases, notwithstanding Articles 1107 and 1108, the family affairs judge, seised by petition, under the conditions of the second and third paragraphs of Article 840 and of Article 841, may authorise one of the spouses to summon the other spouse to divorce and to a hearing on orientation and provisional measures set within a short period of time. A copy of the summons must be delivered to the…

The proposal to settle the spouses’ pecuniary interests, provided for in article 252 of the Civil Code, contains a summary description of their assets and specifies the claimant’s intentions regarding the liquidation of the community or joint ownership and, where applicable, the distribution of assets. It does not constitute a claim within the meaning of Article 4 of this Code. The inadmissibility provided for by article 252 of the Civil…

The requests referred to in the second paragraph of article 267 of the Civil Code are admissible only if the parties justify by any means their remaining disagreements. The notarial draft referred to in the fourth paragraph of article 267 of the Civil Code may be attached subsequently to the pleadings in which the application for liquidation and partition is made. The joint declaration of acceptance provided for in the…