Looking for Divorce in Hong Kong? Call 6419-9999 (Henry Chung)

We provide legal service on family matters

Thomas Tse — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 22:18:24 +0800

•Divorce
•Deed of Separation
•Guardianship
•Custody of children and maintenance
•Matrimonial Assets settlement
•Variation of custody order
•Variation of maintenace order
•Enforcement of order and Judgment Summons
•Taking the child out of jurisdiction

Our fee can be as low as a few thousand dollars in simple, undisputed divorce cases. CALL NOW 6419-9999 (Henry Chung)

Grounds of Divorce and Children's Welfare

Thomas Tse — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:38:39 +0800

To apply for divorce in Hong Kong's courts, you must be able to prove that you have reasons (or "grounds") for saying that the marriage is at an end. The term the court uses is "the marriage has irretrievably broken down".

The court will accept one or more of the following grounds as proof, in the simplest terms:

adultery
bad behaviour
separation with or without consent to divorce
desertion

If there are children of the family who are under the age of 18, you must include in your petition your proposal as to their custody, maintenance and access. If you wish to apply for ancillary relief such as maintenance, transfer of property, division of matrimonial assets, you should also set out in your petition.

Do I Need a Lawyer for Divorce?

Thomas Tse — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:37:15 +0800

If you are petitioning for divorce, you may choose to do so personally. Alternatively, you may engage a lawyer to represent you.

How soon after marriage can I petition for divorce?

Thomas Tse — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:37:00 +0800

Unless the court allows otherwise, you can start a petition for divorce only if you have been married for at least 1 year.

The Forms We Complete for Your Divorce Petition

Thomas Tse — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:36:40 +0800

Petition for divorce

To start a petition, we shall fill in:

Form 2 Petition
Form 2B Statement as to the arrangements for children (if applicable)
Form 3 Notice of Proceedings
Form 4 Acknowledgement of Service (case number and name of parties only)

We may complete them in English or Chinese. We shall then take them to the Family Court Registry for filing, together with your original marriage certificate or a certified true copy. The filing fee is $630 and will be paid from your funds. The court will give your case a case number, which must be marked on any subsequently filed documents.

Serving Divorce Petition on Your Spouse

Thomas Tse — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:35:33 +0800

In the divorce process, you are known as the "petitioner" and your spouse is known as the "respondent". In adultery case, the adulterer can be made as respondent too. After we have filed your petition, we shall obtain a sealed copy of the petition to be served on every other party to the proceedings, either by hand or by post.

Court's Concern Before Making a Divorce Order

Thomas Tse — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:24:50 +0800

The Registrar must be satisfied that the petition has been served on the respondent. We can prove this to the court by:

showing that respondent has completed and returned to the Registrar a Form 4, or
having our servicing clerk file an affirmation to that effect.

The Registrar will make directions on the date, place and time of trial and will notify us and the other parties.

What We as Your Lawyers will do after filing a divorce petition?

Thomas Tse — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:23:31 +0800

We shall apply to the Registrar of the Court for directions to set down the case for trial. This requires us to complete and sign an application form for you. The court will set down your petition for hearing in one of the following lists:

Special procedure list if it is an undefended case. We pay a list fee of $630 to the court out of your funds. It it is a defended case, it will be in the Defended list. The list fee is $1,045.

Divorce Process Differs: Undefended or Defended

Thomas Tse — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:22:22 +0800

Special Procedure List

If you have petitioned for divorce. Your spouse does not file an answer. The court will set down the petition in the Special Procedure List.

The Registrar of the court will then give directions for trial. You have to prove the contents of the petition to the Registrar's satisfaction. He will make and file a certificate on being satisfied. Both parties will receive a copy, endorsed with the terms they have agreed.

The parties do not have to attend the hearing. The court will grant a decree nisi dissolving the marriage.

Defended List

This applies if the respondent has filed an answer to the petition. The case will be set down in the Defended List. The court will grant a decree nisi dissolving the marriage on satisfying with the evidence. Without sufficient evidene, the court will dismiss the petition

If the parties have children, the court has to deal with the question of custody and access. Besides, if there are applications for ancillary relief by either party, the court will adjourn these matters. The court will hear the parties' arguements in Chambers (not open to the public) with directions for social investigations report and filing of affidavit of means by the parties where appropriate.

Advice:

Divorce applications are often predicted. Few people argue in court to resist an order. If you do not wish to be caught by your spouse's surprise, discuss and have consensus with your spouse before you make the petition. If you have children and you wish to complete the absolute process fast, you should endeavour to agree with your spouse on the children's arrangement.

When Your Divorce Process Become Final?

Thomas Tse — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:20:29 +0800

Divorce order is in 2 stages. The court will give a decree nisi first. A decree nisi is "temporary" order. To get a final divorce order, which we call "decree absolute", we shall apply to the court after 6 weeks of the decree nisi. We shall send to the court a completed "Notice of Application for Decree Nisi to be made Absolute", using Form 5 (for a petition) or Form 5A (for a joint application).

If there are children of the marriage, the court has to consider the arrangements for their welfare. Children means who are below 18 and if still receiving full-time education, the applicable age is 21. The court will make a decree absolute until the court is satisfied with the arrangements for the children.

The Registrar will issue a Certificate of Decree Absolute to each party if he is satisfied that the statutory requirements have been complied with.

Advice:
If you wish to complete the absolute process fast, you should endeavour to agree with your spouse on the children's arrangement.