MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court (SC) has clarified that Filipinos seeking recognition of a foreign divorce in Philippine courts are only required to prove the law of the country where the divorce was obtained—not the national law of their foreign spouse.

In a decision penned by Associate Justice Henri Jean Paul B. Inting, the SC’s Third Division remanded a case to the Court of Appeals (CA) to give a Filipina the opportunity to properly prove the divorce laws of Kentucky, United States of America.

The case involved a Filipina doctor who married a Peruvian citizen in New Jersey, U.S., and later resided with him in Kentucky. After the husband secured a divorce from a Kentucky court, the Filipina petitioned a Philippine Regional Trial Court (RTC) to recognize the foreign divorce, submitting a copy of the decree and printouts of Kentucky and Peruvian laws.

The RTC granted the petition, but the CA reversed the ruling, citing her failure to properly authenticate the foreign laws and prove that the divorce complied with Kentucky and Peruvian law.

On appeal, the SC ruled that only Kentucky law—where the divorce was issued—needed to be proven. It explained that under Article 26(2) of the Family Code, a Filipino may remarry if their foreign spouse obtains a valid divorce abroad that allows them to remarry. Philippine courts must confirm the validity of the divorce under the applicable foreign law, which the Filipino spouse must prove.

The SC emphasized the principle of comity of nations, which allows court decisions from one country to be recognized in another, especially when the foreign court had jurisdiction based on legal residence.

The Court added that the requirement to prove a foreign spouse’s national law applies only if the divorce was granted in the foreign spouse’s home country. Since the divorce in this case was granted in Kentucky, only Kentucky law was relevant.

However, the SC noted that the Filipina merely submitted printouts of Kentucky law. Under Rule 132, Sections 24 and 25 of the Rules of Court, foreign laws must be presented through official publications or certified copies. As a result, the SC remanded the case to the CA to allow the Filipina to submit proper documentation.