BELGIUM Law and Practice Contributed by: Larissa De Wulf, Carolyn Vanthienen and Alexandra Goossens, Tiberghien
mining divorce or separation of the parents (Article 10); or • exceptional jurisdiction limited to urgent and provisional measures (Articles 11 and 12). If no state bound by the Brussels II ter Regu - lation or the Hague Convention of 19 October 1996 has jurisdiction under these instruments, the Belgian court will apply the rules of the Bel - gian Code of Private International Law, which has jurisdiction in the following cases: • the defendant has their domicile or habitual residence in Belgium (Article 5); • close ties with another case pending before a Belgian court – in which case, it is preferable to assess these cases together (Article 9); • exceptional jurisdiction when there are very close ties to Belgium and proceedings in another country are impossible or it would be unreasonable to demand the proceedings be filed in another country (Article 11); • the child has Belgian nationality (Article 32); and • the management of assets located in Belgium (Article 33). Maintenance Contributions for Children With regard to maintenance contributions for the children, the Belgian court will apply the Mainte - nance Regulation 4/2009 of 18 December 2008. As a general rule, Article 3 of the Maintenance Regulation 4/2009 states that the Belgian courts have jurisdiction if: • the defendant is habitually resident in Bel - gium; • the creditor is habitually resident in Belgium; or • the Belgian court, according to its own law, has jurisdiction to entertain proceedings concerning the status of a person or concern -
ing parental responsibility where the matter relating to maintenance is ancillary to those proceedings, unless that jurisdiction is based solely on the nationality of one of the parties. However, the Maintenance Regulation 4/2009 also puts a limit on proceedings. Where a deci - sion is given in an EU member state or a 2007 Hague Convention contracting state in which the creditor is habitually resident, proceedings to modify the decision or to obtain a new decision cannot be brought by the debtor in any other member state as long as the creditor remains habitually resident in the state in which the deci - sion was given. Exceptions apply (Article 8). 3.2 Living/Contact Arrangements and Child Maintenance Jurisdiction of the Family Court Disputes between parents regarding a (minor) child’s living arrangements, the right to personal contact, and maintenance fall within the jurisdic - tion of the family court. An application regarding parental authority, a minor’s living arrangements, the right to personal contact, or maintenance may be filed: • by writ of summons served on the defendant by a bailiff on behalf of the plaintiff; • by petition served on the defendant by the clerk of the family court on request of the plaintiff; or • by joint petition by the clerk of the family court on request of both parents. The applications are considered urgent by the court and judgment will be given as in interlocu - tory proceedings.
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