DIVORCE TIES CHILE IN KNOTS: From the New York Times

TWO months ago, Chile became the last country in the Western Hemisphere to legalize divorce. Everyone predicted an avalanche of divorce petitions, but it hasn't worked out that way. In fact, almost nobody is lining up outside the courts, except lawyers.

Chileans, it turns out, are being as canny--some say sly--as they were all the years that they had to function under a marriage code written in the 1880's. There was no provision for divorce, so Chileans became famous for the novel ways they got out of or ignored unhappy marriages.

Small wonder, then, that in the first eight weeks of legal but cumbersome divorce procedures, barely 1,000 couples in a nation of 15 million took advantage of the new law. According to news reports here, only four divorces were granted.

As for the rest of the country, it seems to be writing off the opportunity to divorce as too bureaucratic and expensive. ...

Grounds for divorce include abandonment, abuse and adultery. But claims and proof are different things. Complainants must show "repeated infidelity," for example, not just one instance. Or they must submit evidence of physical violence, like photographs or police records. Hiring a lawyer is almost a necessity. ...

Before divorce was legalized, Chileans could escape from failed marriages, but usually only by subterfuge. The most creative schemes involved civil annulment, which required the separating couple to persuade a court that the original marriage had not met legal requirements. So marrying couples frequently left an escape hatch, in case things didn't work out.

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posted by Eve at 5:33 PM | link

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