Divorce from a convicted spouse and recovery of alimony in Russia

The situation when one of the spouses is convicted and has been sentenced to imprisonment is quite common. Often the second spouse is worried about the obvious question: "How do I get a divorce in this case?"

In this case, a divorce from the convicted partner can be made either in court or in the registry office (Rus. "ЗАГС"). The choice of the body in which the procedure will be carried out depends on the fact for how long the spouse is imprisoned by the court's verdict.

If the imprisonment term is more than three years, then according to the law of 11/15/1997 No 143-FL, the second spouse can file for divorce with the registry office. After submitting an application, the marriage will be dissolved indisputably, i.e. the opinion of the convicted partner will not be taken into account. Consequently, their statements of consent / disagreement with the divorce will be ignored.

If the imprisonment term is equal to three years or less, or the punishment will not be associated with imprisonment at all, then it is simply impossible to carry out a divorce through the registry office. In this case, the spouses will have to apply for divorce to court.

A partition dispute or minor children are also an obstacle to dissolving a marriage with a convicted spouse on the simplified scheme, i.e. through the registry office. In this case, only the court will be able to finally resolve the dispute between the marital partners.

WHAT SHOULD BE IN A CLAIM FILED WITH A COURT?

The following required information is indicated in the claim:

• Full and official name of the court to which the claim is applied;
• Information about the plaintiff and the defendant (their place of registration and passport data);
• Indication of why it is impossible to keep the marital union;
• Number of the court verdict and the date when it came into force;
• full and official name of the court that sentenced the spouse;

WHAT DOCUMENTS MUST BE ATTACHED TO THE CLAIM?

The following papers must be attached to the claim:

• Marriage certificate (you need to attach the original);
• Verdict that has entered into force (they require a copy of the full judgment, not an extract from it);
• Passport;
• Marriage contract (if any);
• Receipt of payment of state duty;
• Extract for the defendant's spouse from the house book.

WHICH COURT DO I FILE A CLAIM WITH FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE WITH A CONVICTED SPOUSE AND RECOVERY OF ALIMONY?

A claim for divorce from the convicted spouse is filed in court according to territorial jurisdiction, at the last place of residence of the convicted person, before their detention. If the spouses have minor children or in the same lawsuit there are claims for the recovery of alimony, then the claim can be filed at the plaintiff’s place of residence.

A separate application for the court order issuance for the recovery of alimony from the convicted spouse can also be submitted both to the court at the plaintiff’s place of residence and to the court at the convicted person’s last place of residence.


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