Non residents from all over the world who have a connection with the UK may be able to establish jurisdiction for the purpose of English divorce law.  Jurisdiction can be established in a number of ways.  Often one of the spouses either the husband or the wife is habitually resident in England or Wales whilst the other is working abroad and has become resident abroad.  In such cases there is no difficulty and the English Courts accept jurisdiction.

Another common scenario is where neither party is resident in the UK.  In such cases unless there is an alternative competing EC jurisdiction the British domicile of the Petitioner is sufficient to allow a petition to be presented in an English Court.  The difficulties arise if one or other party is resident in an EC country in which case the English Court may not be able to accept a petition. 

You do not have to be a British Expat to establish jurisdiction before the English courts. That is a common misconception.The jurisdiction is established in the various ways outlined above and it doesn't matter what your actual nationality or background may be unless you are trying to establish the connection through your domicile.If you are in doubt then telephone John Rosley and it should be very easy to clarify this issue.

The choice of jurisdiction can be a difficult decision.  This is particularly so when the parties have a choice of systems and laws that produce radically different outcomes in relation to financial settlements.  The choice must therefore be made carefully and often with the advice of lawyers in more than one country who assist the client in weighing up options and possibly also their own interests.

The divorce process is bureaucratic but does not involve personal attendances at Court.  Everything can be done by email and by telephone.  With modern communications geography is virtually irrelevant.

Our divorce package for expatriates offers a fixed fee service at £1,500 plus VAT if appropriate.  Clients resident outside the EC do not pay UK VAT.  The Court fees are currently £340 and are payable in addition.  The package includes all work from the commencement of instructions to the decree absolute in divorce and you will at all times be dealing with John Rosley or Claire McLeod personally who will be available to you at any time by email or telephone.  Your emails will generally be answered by return during office hours or within a very acceptable timescale that may be agreed between us from time to time.  If you would like to discuss anything with us please telephone +44 115 958 0584 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

In offering a fixed fee we assume that both parties are co-operating with each other and documents will be acknowledged without unnecessary delays. In cases where we do not have the co-operation of the other party we can go ahead in the normal way and take whatever steps are necessary to prosecute the procedures to a successful conclusion irrespective of any lack of co-operation or consent.

We also assist in property and financial settlements in relation to which our normal hourly rates will apply.  See our web page on Financial Settlements.

Procedure;
To get started all you need to do is telephone us and initially speak to John Rosley who will advise you immediately whether or not you are likely to succeed in dealing with your case before the English courts. If your case looks promising a questionnaire will be sent to you by e-mail which you complete giving us most of the information required to begin your case.  Everything is done by e-mail and telephone.  We keep things simple.