Annulment Procedure
The procedure for annulment or declaration of nullity of marriages in the Philippines is covered by a specific issuance of the Supreme Court - the “Rules on Declaration of Absolute Nullity of Void Marriages and Annulment of Voidable Marriages“.
The procedure (e.g., filing, pre-trial, trial) is clearly provided in said issuance, so allow me to focus instead on the following “steps”:
1. Make sure it is the last resort. As stated in my previous post, love and marriage are supposed to be forever. Try all options, like counselling, to make it work.
2. Get your first house in order. Getting into another relationship or marriage, while the first marital bond is still existing, is a sure way of courting criminal liability (adultery/concubinage, bigamy). A subsequent petition for declaration of nullity/annulment of marriage is not a defense in the criminal action.
3. Realize that it will cost you. This is one of the ironies of love; it will cost you to get out of a previous marriage and consummate your love with another. Expenses include the fees for your lawyer or counsel, the filing fees, professional fees for the psychologist (if psychological incapacity), appearance fees, etc. Of course, there are other expenses.
4. Discuss the custody of children, property arrangements and support. The custody of children and the separation of properties in annulment are the more loaded issues. If possible, discuss these matters beforehand (also, the wife and the children are entitled to legal support during the pendency of the proceedings). In contrast, collusion is prohibited in seeking an annulment and it is the duty of the public prosecutor to ensure that no such collusion exists.
5. Prepare/file the Petition. You have to decide where to file the petition (in the province or city where the petitioner or the respondent resides for the last 6 months). For pyschological incapacity (Article 36, Family Code), the petition may be filed by either spouse (even the one suffering from the psychological incapacity). Even an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) may file the petition while he/she is abroad, but the verification/ certification against forum-shopping must be authenticated in the nearest Philippine embassy. The contents of the petition are clearly set out in the rules.
6. Pre-trial and trial. Again, this is extensively discussed in the rules.
if the man is seeing someone else, is it reason enough to file for annulment? or file for whatever charges
Comment by moe — May 31, 2006 @ 5:35 am
Moe,
Infidelity, by itself, is not a sufficient ground for anullment. At the very least, it is a ground for legal separation.
As to the “seeing someone else” aspect, it depends on the extent thereof.
Comment by AttyFred — June 3, 2006 @ 6:08 am