Choosing the forum
An international divorce often has more than one possible court, and the choice can change the rules applied to property, support, and the children. New York courts require a residency connection before hearing a divorce, and a foreign court applies its own test. When spouses file in different countries, the courts may have to sort out which case goes forward, and filing first is not always the advantage people assume. Custody follows its own framework that generally looks to where the child has been living, and the Hague Convention on child abduction can come into play when a child is moved across a border without consent. Because the forum decision is hard to reverse, it is worth weighing before anything is filed.
Documents that cross borders
Collect your marriage certificate, any prenuptial or marital agreement, and records of property in each country, including real estate, bank accounts, and pensions. Foreign documents usually need certified translations, and some need an apostille or similar authentication before a New York court will rely on them. Serving papers on a spouse who lives abroad typically follows treaty procedures or the rules of the country involved, which can take longer than local service. If a divorce has already been granted elsewhere, bring the decree. New York often recognizes a foreign divorce as a matter of comity when the foreign court had a proper basis to act and both spouses had a fair chance to take part, but recognition depends on the facts.
Mapping the case in a first conversation
We start by charting where each of you lives, where the children live, and where the assets actually are. From there we can discuss whether New York is a sensible place to proceed, whether a foreign court has already taken the matter, and whether an order from one country can be enforced in the other. If you hold a visa that depends on the marriage, we flag it so you can speak with immigration counsel before making decisions. Collecting support or dividing property held overseas may require counsel in that country, and we raise that early rather than after a judgment that is hard to enforce. You leave with a clearer view of the sequence, not a prediction of where it ends.
