House OKs easier marriage annulment

[Jollygoodfellow]

So this does not apply to civil marriages done through a judge? 

House OKs easier marriage annulment

 

MANILA, Philippines — Marriage annulment may soon become easier.

The House of Representatives approved on second reading last Tuesday night a bill that will do away with the long and costly judicial process of marriage annulment.

A third and final approval by the House is usually just a formality.

Under the bill, a marriage annulment duly approved by the Catholic Church or any other religious group will have the same effect as a civil annulment, making the legal process unnecessary, according to Leyte Rep. Yedda Kittilstvedt-Romualdez.

House Bill 6779 provides that whenever a marriage – duly and legally solemnized by a priest, minister, rabbi or presiding elder of any church or religious sect in the Philippines – is subsequently annulled or dissolved in a final judgment or decree in accordance with the canons or precepts of the church or religious sect, the annulment or dissolution shall have the same effect as a decree of annulment or dissolution issued by a competent court.

The measure also provides that the status of children of marriages subject of the Church annulment decree shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of Executive Order 209, otherwise known as the Family Code of the Philippines.

Romualdez was one of the principal authors, along with House Deputy Speaker Gwendolyn Garcia, of the now approved substitute HB 6779, entitled “An Act Recognizing the Civil Effects of Church Annulment Decrees.”

The two lawmakers sponsored the measure that was endorsed by the House committee on population and family relations headed by Laguna Rep. Sol Aragones.

Couples married under the Catholic faith will have only annulment as an option.

Under the current laws and legal setup, only the Code of Muslim Personal Laws of the Philippines, which is based on Sharia or Islamic law, recognizes divorce.

“The good of our children and the good of society hang in the balance with every decision to declare a marriage null and void,” said Romualdez, vice chairperson of the House committee on government enterprises and privatization.

“In this context, recognizing the civil effects of Church annulment decrees will address the need to ensure that those who find themselves in such a difficult marital situation will have the benefit of a more efficient and affordable procedure that can help ease their conscience and may permit them to move on in freedom from a truly irreparable relationship,” she explained.

Garcia underscored the importance for Congress to give civil recognition of church-decreed annulment in all religions because “every single one is entitled to equal protection of the law.”

“There is no reason to distinguish among religions, churches and sects because – as far as marriage and the dissolution thereof are concerned – no such substantial distinction exists,” she said in her separate sponsorship speech.

“It is time that the dissolution of marriages of other religions, churches and sects – as, for instance, the Catholic majority in the Philippines, from whose Canon Law, ironically, we borrowed the concept of psychological incapacity as a basis for declaration of nullity of marriage under the Family Code – be given equal civil effect,” Garcia added.

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2018/01/25/1781128/house-oks-easier-marriage-annulment

[GeoffH]

I read that twice all the way through and I'm more confused than before I read it.

 

[JJReyes]

It would be interesting to know how many couples are legally married. You hear in the Philippines the phrase "common law husband" or "common law wife" very often. Marriage is a legal contract. The ceremony, whether civil or religious, isn't important. What matters is the document signed by the couple before witnesses (family, congregation, etc.).  To void the contract requires another legal process.

[Jollygoodfellow]

Update

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 31) — The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved on third and final reading a bill recognizing church annulments as the same as court annulments.

House Bill 6779 provides that "whenever a marriage, duly and legally solemnized by a priest, minister, rabbi or presiding elder of any church or religious sect in the Philippines is subsequently annulled in accordance with the canons or precepts of the church or religious sect, the said annulment shall have the same effect as a decree of annulment issued by a competent court."

Under the Family Code of the Philippines, annulment presumes that a marriage was never valid from the start, thus allowing the spouses to remarry.

The bill also provides that the status of children from a marriage annulled by the church shall be determined by the Family Code.

In case the grounds for the church annulment is not similar to any of the grounds provided in the Family Code, the common children born or conceived before the issuance of the church annulment decree shall be considered legitimate.

Grounds for annulment under the Family Code include:

Either spouse was psychologically incapable of marrying
Consent to marry was obtained through fraud
Consent to marry was forced
Either spouse is physically incapable of consummating the marriage
Either spouse had an undisclosed and incurable sexually transmitted disease
Another provision of the bill states that the liquidation, partition and distribution of the property of the spouses, the custody and support of the children and the delivery of their presumptive legitimes shall be agreed upon by the spouses and embodied in a public document.

In case no agreement is met, the provisions of the Family Code shall be in force.

The bill also mandates that the church annulment shall be recorded in the appropriate civil registries, together with the agreement of the spouses required under the measure, within 30 days from the issuance of the church annulment.

Authors of the measure include Deputy Speaker Gwendolyn Garcia, Reps. Yedda Marie Romualdez, Nancy Catamco, Emmi de Jesus, Arthur Yap, Arlene Brosas, Carlos Zarate, Antonio Tinio and Ariel Casilao.

http://cnnphilippines.com/news/2018/01/31/house-approve-bill-church-annulment.html

[scott h]

32 minutes ago, Jollygoodfellow said:

recognizing church annulments

Ask Henry the VIII how easy these are to come by 

[Jack Peterson]

7 minutes ago, scott h said:

Ask Henry the VIII how easy these are to come by 

 Beheading comes to mind  or create a new religion ie; "Church of England"  

Edited January 31, 2018 by Jack Peterson

[Dave Hounddriver]

2 hours ago, Jollygoodfellow said:

Either spouse was psychologically incapable of marrying

I like this one.  Now people can get an annulment by simply declaring their ex a nutcase, and really, aren't most exes nutcases?

[Snowy79]

It'll be interesting to see how the costs will compare now that one of the oldest businesses going can make money out of it.

[Tukaram (Tim)]

They need to join the rest of the world - this is the only country that does not have divorce (yeah, I am not counting the vatican as a country ha ha).  The annulment does not cover any of the real issues: abuse, abandonment, or adultery.

[Gary D]

6 hours ago, Tukaram (Tim) said:

They need to join the rest of the world - this is the only country that does not have divorce (yeah, I am not counting the vatican as a country ha ha).  The annulment does not cover any of the real issues: abuse, abandonment, or adultery.

An annulment says the marriage should never have happened, a divorce says I don't like you anymore. chalk and cheese.