International Jurisdiction in Marital Cases. Selected Issues

Abstract

Marital law incorporates regulations of international civil proceedings pertaining to international jurisdiction in marital cases. This is an area where the competence of courts is made separate at the international level regarding marriage, its existence (or non-existence), annulment, separation or divorce. Jurisdiction is a notion that belongs to the realm of international civil procedure law. If a court in a given court (or other authority established to settle civil cases) has jurisdiction, it means that it has a competence to hear and adjudicate civil cases in a situation when the circumstances of the case include elements which might imply that a foreign court is competent to deal with such a case (e.g. when the parties reside or have their head offices in distinct states, or the event which gives rise to a claim occurred abroad). Provisions that regulate international jurisdiction are related to marriage contracted in a secular fashion as well as before a priest, being effective as such under the Polish law. Given the discussed area, it is procedural provisions that hold among EU member states, while the regulations of domestic jurisdiction hold between Poland and non-EU states laid down by the Code of Civil Procedure. Additionally, norms of multilateral and bilateral international conventions are applicable in the discussed area since Poland is a signatory thereof.