You will need a lawyer and a solicitor to act on your behalf. If both you and your partner agree to the divorce and all its terms, there should be no problem with both of you using the same lawyer. Your lawyer will be able to recommend a solicitor. Contact us at GironaAdvocats, to find out about our services. The Civil Code of Catalonia regulates three types of benefits that, after a divorce or separation, ex-spouses can request from each other. They are: the compensatory pension, the financial compensation due to work and alimony.

Documentation necessary to process the divorce

Together with your request for divorce, you will also have to present to the judge the proposal for a regulatory agreement, which will contain what they have jointly agreed on regarding the following points:

• The amount, if applicable, of the compensatory pension or alimony that one spouse must pay to the other.
• In the case of common children, the regime of coexistence and custody of them, including the visitation rights of the non-custodial parent.
• The amount to be paid for child support.
• Use of the family home. The form, if applicable, in which the spouses continue to contribute to family expenses.
• The marriage certificate and the birth certificates of the children. The power to approve the regulatory agreement and grant the divorce rests with the judge.

2) Contentious divorce It occurs when only one of the spouses requests a divorce without the consent of the other. The judicial procedure in these cases is longer and more complex and can last from a few months to more than a year. Necessary documentation Again, the divorce petition and proposed settlement agreement must be filed with the judge to request the divorce judgment, along with the marriage certificate and birth certificates of the children. If you and your spouse do not agree on the content of the governing agreement, your respective attorneys will have to negotiate with each other, perhaps also requiring third-party evidence. In the meantime, provisional measures can be adopted on issues covered by the regulatory agreement, such as child custody and alimony. Resources The judgment of the judge regarding the divorce sentence will be submitted to the Civil Registry of Girona, and can then be appealed. One or both spouses can request modifications of the sentence, which will be resolved by a subsequent judicial opinion. Custody of children Custody is attributed to the mother in most cases, especially when it comes to small children, with the exception of proving that it is not in the best interests of the child or children. Recently, Spanish courts increasingly support shared custody when both spouses wish to share visitation rights. Alimony Courts generally only award alimony in situations where one spouse will suffer a serious loss of income as a result of the divorce, for example, if they have given up a career to care for the children and the other spouse takes on the role of sole or main support of the family. The amount of alimony varies from one case to another, but it usually ranges between 15% and 40% of the wealthier spouse’s income. Division of goods Spanish legislation relating to the division of property in a divorce is determined by the local legislation of the couple’s place of residence. In Catalonia, Aragon, Navarre, the Balearic Islands and the Basque Country, for example, the Separation of Assets generally applies. This means that each member of the couple keeps everything they owned before the marriage, and any joint purchases during the marriage are divided based on each person’s investment in their acquisition. Court rulings also place an economic value on non-monetary contributions such as caring for the home and raising children. In the other Spanish regions, including Andalusia, the Society of Gains generally applies. This means that all property acquired during the marriage is considered to belong to both spouses equally, unless they are considered “private property”. Dual ownership applies to income from rentals, businesses, and property acquired with shared accounts or investments. Contact us Are you about to get a divorce or are you thinking about it? If you want GironaAdvocats, specialist divorce lawyers in Girona, to handle your divorce for you, or simply discuss r your options with us, you can contact us with complete confidence to arrange a consultation. We have offices in Vidreres, Girona.