Calling divorced Canadians...

SeanoChuinn

Hey there.. I'm an Irish citizen, my finance is Canadian and divorced out in Canada and we're hoping to get married in a civil ceremony next year in Ireland. But we've been told by the GRO in Ireland that her divorce has to be scrutinized by the government etc. and proved to be fully legal in Irish law eyes.

I can't imagine it won't be recognised, but just wanted to get some feedback from people who may have been through the same situation as we are about to go through. Are there any pitfalls we need to avoid, advice that could help. Thanks all.

Peregrinus

SFAIK, the issue is not really one of whether Canadian divorce law or divorce procedures are "up to scratch" when measured against some notional Irish standard of perfection. The point is to prevent forum-shopping; people who couldn't qualify for a divorce in Ireland (or their own country) going off and getting a quickie divorce in some hokey jurisdiction that they have no connection with, whose standards are, um, flexible.

Since Ireland doesn't want to be drawing up a list of hokey jurisdictions, they have a general practice, whenever your freedom to marry depends on a foreign divorce, of scrutinising whether it is reasonable for you to rely on that divorce. So the question will really come down to this; why did your fiancee get divorced in Canada? And if the answer is some variation on "because she's Canadian, she married in Canada, she was living in Canada when her marriage broke down, and the couple's property and assets were mostly in Canada", then you're home and hosed.

Enright

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/member.php?u=598282

With a name like that you should be in jail!!

SeanoChuinn

Thanks Peregrinus, we should be good so! Thanks for the response. Enright I've no idea what ya mean!!!!