Family Law of Ukraine. The concept of marriage

Family Law of Ukraine. The concept of marriage and the procedure for its making. Marriage contract

The Family Law The Family Law of Ukraine defines foundations of marriage, personal non- property and property rights and duties of spouses, grounds of emergence, substance of personal non-property and property rights and duties of parents and children, adoptive parents and adoptive children and other family members and relatives

Regulating family relationship is done with this Law in order to: - to consolidate a family as a social institution and a unity of the certain persons; - to affirm the feeling of duty as to parents, children and other members of the family; - to build family relationship on grounds of equality, feelings of mutual love and respect, mutual support; - to provide each child with family upbringing, opportunity of spiritual and physical development

Family Family is the primary and main cell of society Family consists of persons, who live together, are bound with common being, have mutual rights and duties. Spouses are considered family also when a wife and a husband do not live together through different reasons, for example, studies, work, medical treatment, taking care for parents or children and other good reasons. Child belongs to a family of his/her parents even if he/she does not live together with his/her family. A single person has the rights of a family member. Family is made on ground of marriage, blood relationship, adoption and other grounds, which are not in disagreement with law and moral norms of society

Right of a person to have a family 1. A person can have a family if she/he has an age of marriage. In cases, mentioned in Item 2 of Clause 23 of this Law, a family can be made by a person, who has not reached the age of marriage. 2. Family can be made by a person irrespective of age if a child has been born. 3. Each person has a right for living in the family. A person can be forcefully isolated from the family only in cases and orders, established by law. 4. Each person has a right for respect as to his/her family life.

Definition of Marriage The legal status, condition, or relationship that results from a contract by which one man and one woman, who have the capacity to enter into such an agreement, mutually promise to live together in the relationship of Husband and Wife in law for life, or until the legal termination of the relationship.

According to the Article 21 of the Code the marriage is the family union of a woman and a man registered in the state registry office. Procedurally, an application for marriage registration is submitted by a woman and a man personally to any civil registry office. If the couple can not submit the application personally for valid reasons, an application certified by a notary can be submitted by their legal representatives, whose authority must also be certified by a notary. If a marriage is not registered on the scheduled day for some reason, the application for marriage registration remains valid within three months from the date of its submission.

Required documents The following documents must be submitted to civil registry office (ZAGS): -Ukrainian passport/notarized translation of foreign passport; - document confirming that you are not married with other person. (If someone of the couple is international citizen:) - divorce decree or divorce certificate, or court judgment on marriage annulment, or spouse's death certificate if any (these documents must be presented only by individuals who have been previously married).

Time Frame The usual period to complete the marriage registration process in Ukraine is one month. However, foreign nationals with a reasonable excuse may request permission to register their marriage before the expiration of one month. After the registration of marriage, you receive standard pattern Marriage Certificate in Ukrainian language, approved by the Ukrainian Ministry. Marriage Certificate is a subject to further legalization and certified translation, if it will be used for immigration purposes.

Place of registration A marriage is usually registered in the premises of the Civil Registry Offices, but a marriage can be registered in another place if so requested in the application. For instance, upon request the marriage can be registered in the place of the couple's residence, in a hospital or in any another place, if the couple are unable to come to the civil registry office for valid reasons. One absolute requirement, however, is that a man and a woman must be present personally at the registration of their marriage. In other words, registration of marriage through a designated representative or by a Power of Attorney is not permitted.

Right to choose a surname Persons entering into a marriage have the right to choose the surname of one of them as the common surname of the spouses or to keep the surnames they had before marriage. They also can add the surname of each other to her/his surname. If they wish to have a double surname, they have the right to select whose surname will be the first in the double surname, and whose surname is the second. Combination of more than two surnames is usually not allowed, unless it is a custom of their national minority. (the surname is already double by the date of marriage, he/she has the right to replace one of the parts of his/her surname with his/her surname.)

PRENUPTIAL AGREEMENT Until recently, marriage-related contracts were employed by a narrow circle of wealthy people, but the opposite tendency is observed lately. Our practice shows, however, that entering into marriage contracts is becoming increasingly more common, especially between the citizens of Ukraine and foreign countries. Unlike before, a large number of foreigners insist on signing a marriage contract in an order to protect themselves from financial losses, especially where there is a great difference in the ages between the couple.

Definition of Prenuptial Agreement an official agreement that two people make before they marry in which they state how much of each other's property each will receive if they divorce or if one of them dies.

Right to conclude a marriage contract A marriage contract is a written agreement, entered into by mutual consent, defining the rights and duties of the parties before, during, and after the marriage. A marriage contract can be concluded by a woman and a man who applied for registration of their marriage as well as by spouses who have already been married.

Content of marriage contract A marriage contract regulates financial relationship between spouses, determines their property rights and duties. A marriage contract can also determine property rights and duties of spouses as parents and decide questions regarding spousal and child support and other matters. Note, however, that personal relationship of spouses cannot be regulated by marriage contract, as well as personal relationship between spouses and their children. Marriage contracts which reduce the rights of children or put one of spouses in a clearly disadvantageous financial position are also not permitted by law.

Form of a marriage contract A marriage contract must be concluded in written form and notarized.

Effective date of a marriage contract If a marriage contract was concluded before marriage registration, it comes into effect on the day of marriage registration. If a marriage contract is concluded by married spouses, it comes into effect the day of its notarization.

Duration of a marriage contract A marriage contract can stipulate its duration as well as the duration of any specific rights and duties. However, a marriage contract or some of its specific clauses can be still effective after the dissolution of marriage.

Legal regime of property in marriage contract A marriage contract gives the opportunity for spouses to choose the legal rights to the property, which can be applied to all property or its part. For instance, property may be classified as joint ownership, share ownership or separate (individual) ownership. The marriage contract can govern property already acquired by the date of conclusion of a marriage contract (including property acquired before marriage) as well as property, which will be acquired in future. According to the Ukrainian family law a marriage contract can also determine the legal regime of a property that spouses give for family needs and the legal regime of a property gifted to spouses for their marriage registration. In a marriage contract the parties can set forth the procedure for division of property (including the case of divorce) and the procedure for use of a property owned by both spouses or by one of them to satisfy the needs of their children or other persons.

Changing conditions of a marriage contract Obviously, unilateral change of conditions in a marriage contract is not permitted. The conditions of a marriage contract can be changed by spouses. An agreement about changing conditions of a marriage contract must be in writing, and has to be notarized. Upon request of one of spouses a marriage contract can be changed by court, if this is required by his/her interests, interests of children, disabled adult daughter (son), which have essential significance.

Right to cancel marriage contract Of course, the spouses have the right to cancel their marriage contract. In that case, rights and duties prescribed in a marriage contract are terminated the day of applying for cancellation of a marriage contract.

Unilateral dissolution of a marriage contract A marriage contract can be dissolved by court decree upon request of one of spouses a on the grounds that have essential significance, in particular if the marriage contract cannot be fulfilled.

Invalid marriage contract Last, but not lest, a marriage contract can be deemed invalid by court decree on the grounds established by the Civil Code of Ukraine upon request of one of spouses or another person, the rights of whose were violated by a marriage contract.

Opinion Poll Couples should be required to live together for six months before getting married. DISCUSSION POINTS: Would this decrease divorce rates? What sorts of arguments, other than legal arguments, might influence people’s opinions on this? (religious, moral, financial, family needs) Do you think it should be easy to get married? Do you think anything should be required before a couple gets married? (counseling, blood tests)