Reflections on the Conflict-of-Laws Rules for Divorce: Has the Time Come for the Czech Republic to Accede to the Rome III Regulation?
Abstract
Czech conflict-of-laws rules for divorce can be found either in the Act on Private international law (No. 91/2012 Coll.) or in several bilateral agreements on cross-border legal aid and judicial cooperation. Council Regulation (EU) No 1259/2010 of 20 December 2010 implementing enhanced cooperation in the area of the law applicable to divorce and legal separation (Rome III Regulation) does not apply in the Czech Republic, although all other EU instruments in the field of international family law, including those adopted in the framework of enhanced cooperation, are applicable.
After having compared the structure of different conflict-of-laws rules and their connecting factors (habitual residence and nationality of the spouses), the author tends to conclude that there are no legal or other obstacles to the Czech Republic acceding to the Rome III Regulation.