Bill that allows free divorce in Colombia advances

So far in Colombia, there are two types of divorce, the one that is given by mutual agreement and the one that is given without agreement. In the latter case, one of the nine grounds for matrimonial dissolution, included in article 154 of the Civil Code, must be presented. But this would be close to changing.

The First Committee of the House of Representatives approved the bill that seeks to make divorce in Colombia free, a news that was confirmed by the representative of the House for Valle del Cauca, Juan Fernando Reyes Kuri, who is leading this initiative.

According to the congressman, “today divorce is not allowed with the sole will of one of the spouses, it is only allowed on specific grounds included in the Civil Code. What we seek is to add a new cause that is by the sole will of either spouse.”

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In this regard, Reyes Kuri explained that couples who want to divorce will only have to go to a judge and express their will. “Of course, the obligations of the children and to the other spouse should be respected if any, but free divorce is guaranteed in Colombia and that is a step forward for freedoms in the country,” said the congressman. The initiative has three debates left to become a Law of the Republic.

The latest figures released by the National Superintendency of Notaries and Registry, on March 29, revealed that divorce cases in Colombia increased during 2021. According to the agency, last year 16,657 divorces were registered in the country, while, in 2020 and 2019, the figure was 10,305 and 15,797, respectively.

In the bill, the congressmen who are pushing this new ground included a process called a “divorce proposal.” “There must be established maintenance obligations between couples, liquidation of society, and if they have children, agreements will be reached for custody, visitation and parenting. This is extremely important and we must not overlook it,” said Reyes Kuri.

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This initiative also has as authors representative Katherine Miranda and representative to the camera Julián Peinado. The congresswoman of the Green Alliance said that “the individual decisions of the spouses continue to be respected in order to move forward with divorce proceedings freely, without affecting the rights of their partner or their children,” Miranda said.

The report of the Superintendency of Notaries and Registry reports that Bogotá, Medellín, Cali, Bucaramanga and Pereira continue to be the cities where marriage and divorce are most frequently registered.

These are the nine grounds set forth in article 154 of the civil code:

1. Extramarital sexual relations of one of the spouses.

2. The serious and unjustified failure by one of the spouses to fulfill the duties imposed on them by law as such and as parents.

3. The outrages, the cruel treatment and the ill-treatment of work.

4. The usual drunkenness of one of the spouses.

5. The usual use of hallucinogenic or narcotic substances, unless prescribed by a doctor.

6. Any serious and incurable illness or abnormality, physical or psychic, of one of the spouses, which endangers the mental or physical health of the other spouse and makes the marriage community impossible.

7. Any conduct of one of the spouses aimed at corrupting or perverting the other, a descendant, or persons in their care and living together under the same roof.

8. The separation of bodies, judicial or de facto, that has lasted for more than two years.

9. The consent of both spouses expressed before the competent judge and recognized by the latter by judgment.

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