ARGENTINA Law and Practice Contributed by: Herberto Robinson, McEWAN
1. Divorce 1.1 Grounds, Timeline, Service and Process In Argentina, there are neither grounds for terminating marriage nor a required period of personal separation before for filing a divorce. Argentina is a codified law jurisdiction. Its Civil and Commercial Code (CCC) has eliminated any form of fault-alleging by either of the spouses and, therefore, the possibility of initiating claims for damages (against the other spouse) is not allowed. Divorce Proceedings Either spouse may file, unilaterally or jointly, a divorce procedure. If a unilateral procedure has been filed, the parties may have an uncontested divorce. However, the judge will rule the same way as in a joint proce ‑ dure, as there are no grounds for divorce. Argentine law has recognised marriage between same-sex couples since 2010, so the same mari ‑ tal regime will apply in such cases. Adoption is also allowed for same-sex couples under the same terms as those required for heterosexual couples. Same-sex marriage and cohabitation have been recognised and enforced since 2015, with the sanction of the CCC. The divorce process is initiated by filing a petition with the court based on the principle of the last marital domicile. This can be done by both spouses together (joint petition) or by one spouse alone (unilateral peti ‑ tion). A divorce petition can be filed at any time after marriage, as there are no required separation periods or specific grounds needed to request a divorce. If both parties agree on the terms, the court can issue a divorce decree within a period of two to three months. The divorce becomes official once the court’s decision is registered in the Civil Registry of the jurisdiction where the marriage took place. The rule for service of divorce proceedings is the last effective marital domicile or the domicile of the defendant spouse, at the plaintiff spouse’s discretion. If one of the spouses does not have a domicile in Argentina, the action may be brought before the court of the last domicile they had within Argentina, provid ‑ ed the marriage was celebrated there. If the location
of the last marital domicile cannot be established, the general rules of jurisdiction will apply. Religious Marriages Religious marriages have no legal effects in Argentina. In the Catholic Church, there is no divorce or sepa ‑ ration. However, there is the annulment of marriage. Divorced Catholics can marry in the church only if it has been demonstrated through the church’s internal process that they are free to marry. This also applies to non-Catholics who wish to marry a Catholic or convert to Catholicism. Marriage Annulment The annulment of a marriage is another process that spouses may file in relation to ending a marriage. When any of the grounds established by law arise, it is possible to request the annulment of a civil mar ‑ riage, meaning it will be rendered null and void. Unlike divorce, when a marriage is declared null, it is as if it never existed. The grounds for declaring the annul ‑ ment of a civil marriage are: • if there was an error regarding the identity of the person with whom the marriage was contracted; • when both or one of the spouses are under 18 years of age; • when the marriage was entered into under the influence of force or fear strong enough to prevent the free exercise of decision-making; • when there was no freedom of consent because one of the spouses was abducted; • when one of the spouses was involved in the crime of spousal homicide in a previous marriage; • when a prior marital bond still exists; • when the marriage was contracted between: (a) kinship in a straight line in all degrees, regard ‑ less of the origin of the relationship; (b) kinship between bilateral and unilateral sib ‑ lings, regardless of the origin of the relation ‑ ship; and (c) affinity in a straight line in all degrees. The annulment is processed through legal proceed ‑ ings before a judge. The process begins with a law ‑ suit, for which presenting the marriage certificate is a fundamental requirement. Once the marriage is annulled, all reciprocal rights and obligations arising
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