What Happens If Your Spouse Doesn’t Attend the Divorce Hearing in Malaysia?
Necessity of Divorce Hearing in Malaysia
You may be certain that it is time to end the marriage. But you are not sure if it is possible to get a divorce in Malaysia if your spouse doesn’t attend the divorce hearing for any reason. So, what happens if your spouse doesn’t attend the divorce hearing in Malaysia?
Before we answer this question, it is important to understand the divorce process in Malaysia. In short, under what circumstances your spouse needs to attend the Court to get a divorce in Malaysia?
Ways to File a Divorce in Malaysia
Essentially, there are 2 ways to file a divorce in Malaysia for non-Muslims. You may file a joint petition for divorce (mutual divorce) or single petition for divorce (non-mutual divorce and also known as unilateral divorce).
Do I Need to Get My Spouse to Attend the Court Hearing for Divorce?
This is one of the most common questions we have gotten. The short answer to this is, it depends.
This is because the requirement for joint and single petition for divorce are different.
To understand this better, we will breakdown the process as below.
Requirement of Court Attendance in Joint Petition for Divorce
This is the simplest and most affordable option to get a divorce in Malaysia.
In a joint petition, parties must come to an agreement on all the divorce terms such as the amount of alimony, custody of children, maintenance of children, and division of matrimonial assets.
Once all the divorce terms are finalized, parties are required to sign the divorce papers and attend the court hearing. This is important as the Court has full discretion to grant the divorce or not in the absence of one or both parties.
That said, if one or both parties cannot make it to the court hearing for any reason, there is an option to file for an exemption from the court hearing with valid reason. The Court, again, has full discretion on this and decide accordingly.
Generally, the Court may allow for exemption especially in cases where either one or both parties are residing overseas. Alternatively, the Court may also order for the court hearing to be conducted online, which is common, for the convenience of parties.
Requirement of Court Attendance in Single Petition for Divorce
In a single petition for divorce, there is a misconception that both parties must attend the court hearing. This is not true.
For single petition, also known as unilateral divorce, the petition is filed by either the husband or wife against his or her spouse. The divorce petition must be served to the other party so that he or she is aware of the divorce proceedings.
Therefore, it is not mandatory for the other party to attend the Court before the applicant can get a divorce as long as the applicant can prove his or her ground for divorce and the other party is aware of the divorce proceedings.
If the Court is satisfied that the ground for divorce is proven in the single petition, the Court will grant a provisional divorce order (known as decree nisi) even in the absence of the other party as long as the divorce papers are sent to the other party or reasonable attempts are being made to send the divorce papers to him or her.
Conclusion
To sum it up, parties must attend the court hearing in a mutual divorce (joint petition) or apply for an exemption/online hearing accordingly. This is important to demonstrate to the Court that parties willingly and voluntarily agreed to get a divorce in Malaysia.
On the other hand, in a non-mutual divorce (single petition), it is not mandatory for the other party to attend the court hearing as long as the applicant can prove his or her ground for divorce and that the other party is aware of the divorce proceedings.
If you believe that your spouse is unable to attend the court hearing for any reason, you may get advice from our divorce lawyer to find out what is the best way to resolve the issue.
