1) Before starting the case for matrimonial nullity, is it necessary to obtain a divorce or civil separation?

A.: No. These are totally distinct and independent processes. It is possible to ask for canonical nullity first and then start the separation procedure, as is possible the reverse process.

2) To obtain nullity, does the other party necessarily have to agree?

A.: No. Even if it obviously helps to ascertain the truth and the timing of the process, the agreement is not necessary to obtain the declaration of nullity. Likewise, the fact that the other spouse, disinterested in the process, decides not to take part in it, does not hinder the attainment of nullity.

3) Is it necessary to meet the other party during the process?

A.: No. The parties are usually heard on different days.

4) Are the hearings public?

A.: No. The hearings take place in the absence of the public, as only insiders are admitted (the investigating judge with a "notary" appointed to take the minutes, the plaintiff's lawyer, the defendant's lawyer, if the latter is constituted in court with its own lawyer, and the defender of the bond, if he wishes to be present).

5) Does the presence of children born from the marriage prevent the declaration of nullity?

A.: No. The desire to exclude children from the marriage is only one of the grounds for nullity: where there are other causes (defect of consent, non-dispensated impediment or lack of canonical form), the presence of children is in no way an impediment to declaration of nullity.

6) If the declaration of nullity is obtained, do the children born in constancy of marriage become illegitimate?

A.: No. The sentence declaring the nullity produces its juridical effects only between the spouses and does not harm in any way the status of legitimate child, nor affects the rights and duties connected to it.

7) Can family members intervene in the trial as witnesses?

A.: Yes. Unlike what happens in the civil trial, relatives are generally among the witnesses, since it is assumed that they know better than others the personal facts which are the object of the nullity trial.

8) What is meant by «registered and unconsummated» marriage?

A.: This expression means a valid marriage which is not followed by a regular conjugal sexual relationship, consummated according to nature.

The non-consummation is not a cause of nullity of the marriage, but a circumstance which allows the obtainment of the pontifical "dispensation", which is a provision of "grace", not a sentence.

9) What are the civil effects deriving from the execution of the marriage nullity sentence?

A.: Following the civil recognition of the canonical sentence of matrimonial nullity, the personal effects of the marriage cease with retroactive effect (from the day of consent): it is as if the parties had never been married to each other (without prejudice to the rights of any children). With regard to the patrimonial effects and in particular to the maintenance allowance, based on the current orientation of the italian Court of Cassation jurisprudence, if a final divorce has not yet occurred at the moment in which the recognition occurs, the right to the allowance will cease; if, on the other hand, there is already a definitive divorce, then the check will not fail. 

10) I am a cleric: what can I do if I consider a decree concerning me unjust?

A.: The addressee of a decree that he considers unfair, in order to appeal, must first of all ask the author of the decree in writing to revoke or correct it within 10 days of notification (so-called remonstratio). The request for revocation or correction also implies the request for suspension of the execution. Once the 10 days have elapsed in vain, the right to challenge the administrative act is lost.

If, within thirty days of receiving the request, the author of the decree issues a new decree with which he corrects the first one or decides that the request should be rejected, the time limits for recourse to the hierarchical superior of the person who issued the decree – of fifteen useful days – run from the notification of the new decree; if then within thirty days of receiving the remonstratio the author of the decree does not decide anything, the terms – of fifteen useful days – start from the thirtieth day.

The appellant always has the right to make use of a lawyer or solicitor.